Nikon drops new firmware for the best DSLR it ever made
After seven years, Nikon's best DSLR has just got new firmware – and the D7500 has been updated, too!
Here's something I wasn't expecting! The Nikon D850 and D7500, two DSLR cameras released back in 2017, have just received new firmware updates.
As you might expect, these aren't game-changing updates that introduce radical new features; they're actually pretty unexciting. However, the fact that Nikon is still actively supporting cameras seven years after they were launched is pretty impressive.
The D850 was, for my money, the best DSLR that Nikon ever made. Its 45.7MP sensor, for example, is so good that it has been upcycled for the company's top-tier mirrorless cameras ever since.
I don't think the D7500 got as much love as it deserved, due to having a 20MP sensor when APS-C cameras were expected to have 24MP, but it was pretty much Nikon's flagship DX DSLR and boasted an enviable spec sheet (even if the resolution thing was admittedly a bit confusing).
The new firmware (Ver 1.31) for the D850 adds a single update: "The default password setting displayed in the communication function after camera initialization has been changed."
Meanwhile, the new D7500 firmware (Ver1.12) offers the same update along with an additional bug fix: "Fixed a phenomenon where the R and L indicators on the camera's image monitor and the external recorder's audio level indicator would move in opposite directions when HDMI output was performed to an external recorder during video live view."
Nikon has been on a real firmware kick of late, dropping updates for everything from its newest mirrorless camera (the Nikon Z8) to its flagship DSLR (the Nikon D6) to its most extreme bridge camera (the Nikon Coolpix P1000).
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These latest updates for the D850 and D7500 may not make you rush to your computer to download them, but it's definitely worth installing if you can – it's always good to run the latest available software for your camera, so check to see if yours is up to date.
Take a look at the best Nikon cameras, along with the best Nikon lenses to pair with them.
James has 22 years experience as a journalist, serving as editor of Digital Camera World for 6 of them. He started working in the photography industry in 2014, product testing and shooting ad campaigns for Olympus, as well as clients like Aston Martin Racing, Elinchrom and L'Oréal. An Olympus / OM System, Canon and Hasselblad shooter, he has a wealth of knowledge on cameras of all makes – and he loves instant cameras, too.