resale value of a d200?

[pna]

Hi,

There's a local guy selling his lightly used d200 and 18-55 kit lens for $1050. It's non-grey market, and it appears it's been very well taken care of. I've been using a d40 and loving it, but am really intrigued with the idea of experimenting with a higher end body for a bit. What I'd love to do is pick up the d200, use it for 4-6 months or so, and then resell it for something relatively close to what I paid for it. I've been trying to get a ballpark idea for what these bodies are worth used at this point, with the introduction of the d300, and it looks like new body prices are somewhere around the $1400 price, maybe a bit less. The used bodies are harder to guage.

Can those of you that have watched new bodies in the past be introduced, and old prices fall, give any perspective on whether I should be able to still get about $1000 for the d200 after another few months? I'd certainly be open to keeping it if I had the money, but the expectation would be to resell it. In the meantime, I'm just hoping to experiment, and get to go out shooting with my girlfriend, who could use my d40.

Thanks for any insight you all have. I appreciate it.

 

[cube]

The D70 is selling for the same price as one year ago, when the D80 had only been recently released. D70s is very hard to find and more expensive. D50 is also hard to find, so there was little choice other than D70.
Now the D200's and D2's arrive all together. I expect the used D200's to go quickly, as a new D300 costs twice as much.

But the D70s was discontinued immediately, while the D200 is said to continue in production. I wouldn't be surprised if the new D200's dropped a couple hundred, it seems a bit expensive now.

 

[GoCubsGo]

I would say that you could probably unload the d200 and kit lens in 4-6 months for about $900 if you pay $1050 now. Right now they're still priced at what $1500? That is a bit high because for $300 more you get the d300. I can see them dropping to $1200 new so a $300 savings between new and used seems appropriate.

 

[mattwe]

my take:

I am watching prices on D200's and D80's as I am in the market for my first DSLR and know I would get upgrade-itis if I bought a D70 (my original plan). I think the prices on D200's are artificially low right now (a result of the release of the D300) - the bodies are down to 800-900 on Nikonian's right now and that seems to be the less desirable kit lens (the 18-70 is more desirable). I doubt the lens is worth but about $75, but I don't remember seeing any for sale (it is the kit lens for the D40 and D50 - new retail is about $115 IIRC).

Like I said, I think that it is artificially low pricing for the bodies as a result of the D300 release, but I could end up being totally wrong - only time will tell.

/mw

 

[termina3]

I think the prices on D200's are artificially low right now (a result of the release of the D300) - the bodies are down to 800-900 on Nikonian's right now and that seems to be the less desirable kit lens (the 18-70 is more desirable). I doubt the lens is worth but about $75, but I don't remember seeing any for sale (it is the kit lens for the D40 and D50 - new retail is about $115 IIRC).

my 2¢:

If the D300 is properly supplied, the D200 price will continue to fall.
If not, the D200 price will rebound to ~$100 higher than where it is, and then fall once the D300 is readily available.

 

[Clix Pix]

The resale market will be affected if Nikon decides to drop prices on the D200 and keep it in the line for a while instead of discontinuing it immediately. I imagine that the same situation applies to the D2X/s as well......

 

[cube]

I would say that you could probably unload the d200 and kit lens in 4-6 months for about $900 if you pay $1050 now. Right now they're still priced at what $1500? That is a bit high because for $300 more you get the d300. I can see them dropping to $1200 new so a $300 savings between new and used seems appropriate.

I think saving $300 by buying a camera without a real warranty is not worth it.

By comparison, the Kodak 14n I just got cost 17% of the original price.

 

[Westside guy]

D200 with 18-55 lens - that's a really odd kit (not that you asked).

FWIW my take on this is... don't bother. But in any case, what is it you think you'd learn shooting with a D200 versus a D40, especially with that lens (serious question, not meant as a slam of any sort)? I'd suspect if you learn anything, you'd learn the wrong things; e.g. "Mirror lockup doesn't improve my photos with this 18-55mm lens, so it must be a marketing thing"

The D200 isn't going to teach you much of anything, IMNSHO. The features it has that the D40 doesn't (e.g. flash commander mode, in-body focus motor) are likely not going to benefit you at all right now. I think you'd be better off using that money to buy a better lens or lenses, then do some shooting with them on your D40. That's how you'll advance your photographic skill set.

 

[milozauckerman]

A big advantage of the D200 over a D40(x) is that it can make use of past generations of manual-focus AI-S lenses as well as drive the entire AF Nikkor lineup (the D40 lacks the in-body motor needed to use most, if not all of the AF primes).

 

[GoCubsGo]

I think saving $300 by buying a camera without a real warranty is not worth it.

By comparison, the Kodak 14n I just got cost 17% of the original price.

That depends. If I bought a used d200 today and saved $300 it is covered under my own insurance that I pay for. So yeah, saving $300 on a used one doesn't bother me because it will be repaired if something were to go wrong all the same.

 

[Dfndr90]

Hi,

There's a local guy selling his lightly used d200 and 18-55 kit lens for $1050. It's non-grey market, and it appears it's been very well taken care of.

I will sell you my D200 with the original 18 to 70 mm lens that it came with. I have had mine about 1 year, and am looking to upgrade. The 18 to 70 is a much better lens than the 18 to 55. I used it for about 1 month before I purchased my 18 to 200vr. I am looking to get about 1275 for it. If you are interested let me know.

Matt...

 

[avincent52]

The D200 isn't going to teach you much of anything, IMNSHO. The features it has that the D40 doesn't (e.g. flash commander mode, in-body focus motor) are likely not going to benefit you at all right now. I think you'd be better off using that money to buy a better lens or lenses, then do some shooting with them on your D40. That's how you'll advance your photographic skill set.

Amen to that.
The best shooter I ever worked with used an N2000, an amateur level film SLR at a time when I was carrying around an F2 and an FE with a motor drive.
But he had pro-level skills, and I had merely wanna-be skills. I learned a huge amount from him.
And I think this is the rule, not the exception. Great shooters find something, and work with it. If they gravitate to something like a D200 it's because of the lens compatibility or better battery life under cold conditions (?) or a very nuts and bolts thing, rather than a laundry list of so-called "pro" features.
I'm not saying not to buy the 200--I'm a gear weenie myself--but to understand that a pro level camera is no substitute for pro level skills (or pro level glass for that matter)
best
Allen

 

[art gardiner]

What does lightly used mean? While it may be a US market version - when it comes to Nikon's warranty, it will not transfer to you. I am not trying to be a downer here, just practical. Is there anyway to get an image (RAW) from the person? Better yet, take a CF card and take a couple of shots with the camera - this way you can take it home and see what the actual actuation count is using a free download EXIF program, like EXIF Viewer:

http://homepage.mac.com/aozer/EV/

This will tell you how many times the camera has been triggered, which will give you an idea of what to expect from the shutter's life. Nikon estimates 100K actuations on the D200 series shutter - now that doesn't mean that at 100,001 your shutter will go down, but is meant as a guide for photographers to submit their camera in for an overhaul.

How well do you know this person? Do they make their living off of their gear? The reason I ask, is that many pj's I know will wrap their camera using gaffer's tape to help cushion the body during everyday bumps, and bruises. As a result, the camera will appear "Like New" and often end up on eBay listed as such. You really don't want to know what that camera has been through, nor how many times it has been actuated. I'm not saying this is the case with the person you're thinking of buying from, but it is something that you need to be aware of while looking at the used camera market.

As for if it will help you with your photographic endeavors - unless you have a bunch of old Nikon AF, AI, or AI-s lens laying around collecting dust because you can't use them on your D40 - if it were me, I'd take Westside Guy's advice and buy better glass, or invest in a class at your local Adult Ed Center, or Community College. Knowledge is power, and you will get a lot more mileage out of the lessons you learn, than the camera body with a few more bells and whistles. Trust me, this is a trap that a lot of aspiring photographers fall into when they are first starting out... myself included.

HTH's

Art