Ten things you may not like about the Nikon Z9

The Nikon Z9 was officially launched in late October and on paper, it looks fantastic. It’s still only available for preorders, but Matt Granger got his hands on a pre-production model to test it out. Even though the camera comes with a bunch of excellent features, there are some things that you may not like about it – and Matt guides you through ten of them in his latest video.

1. The Fn button: There are many customizable buttons on the Z9, but the Fn button on the vertical grip is awkwardly placed so it’s difficult to find it without looking.
2. The screen: The Z9 has a dual-tilting screen, but Matt says that it could have been designed better. It’s easy to accidentally tilt in in both ways simultaneously, which makes it flimsy and easier to even rip it off.
3. Flash sync: The Z9 allows for flash sync up to 1/200, and Matt would love to see it even faster since this camera has the fastest sensor readout of any camera on the market.
4. Buffer: Matt would love to see a larger buffer in the Z9 so that it could catch up with all the shots taken in the burst mode. Still, users say that it only takes about a second to clear the buffer, so it’s not that big of a deal.
5. No 3D tracking in the video: 3D tracking is a staple in Nikon cameras, so it’s a shame that the Z9 doesn’t have it for video as it would be really helpful.
6. The port covers: in the Z9, the port covers have been downgraded to just two doors. This means that you have to expose more ports than you need to use.
7. Easy to lose track of photos (and hence, the used-up data) when shooting in burst mode because there’s no tactile feedback to remind you that you’re mounting up data. But it’s an adjustment you’ll have to make and something you’ll have to get used to.
8. Going from OVF to EVF is another adjustment you’re going to make, but if you already are a mirrorless user, I think you’re good to go.
9. The card door mechanism is a bit finicky to open on purpose, yet it’s easy to open it accidentally.
10. The Z9 would benefit from anti-theft technology like passwords or fingerprints. But then again, wouldn’t all high-end cameras?

Matt would also love to see Nikon make an adapter for older D lenses. This isn’t only about the Z9, but about the entire Z series. Many users shoot with older lenses and they would love to adapt them to their new Z-series cameras.

In the video, Matt admits that he was a bit nitpicky about the Z9’s downsides. But still, maybe some of these are a big deal for some of you so they’re worth mentioning. Personally, I don’t see them as major drawbacks, especially with all the other Z9 features. But then again, I’m just a hobbyist who’s perfectly happy with a ten-year-old DSLR.

[10 Things I DON’T LIKE about the Z9 | Matt Granger]