With the growing popularity of the smartphone, cameras have fallen sharply in sales. Not because they wouldn’t still perform better than phones, but because mobile phones offer pretty good image quality in a device you already have with you. Thus, it is not surprising that Nikon will move the production of cameras from Japan to Thailand, in an attempt to reduce production costs, as its profits are declining in proportion to sales.
Nikon only produced high-end cameras in Japan
Nikon has a 70-year tradition of producing its cameras in Japan. The company has always produced these devices in its home country, producing in other countries only other accessories for them. However, because its sales of DSLR and Mirrorless cameras are declining, one way to increase profits is to move this production out of the country as well.
Nikon already has a presence in Thailand, where it develops other products. The company is to develop there its new high-end cameras in the mirrorless category, Z7 and Z6, as well as the production of the top DSLR model, the Nikon D6 model, which is used in sports photography or by professionals in the field of wildlife documentaries.
The truth is that in recent years, Nikon cameras have not been in the public eye, as most content producers on the Internet are looking for cameras with advanced video features, an area in which Nikon has not invested much. Sony and Panasonic have had the most to gain in the last few years, launching many high-performance mirrorless models, with not very restrictive prices. Even Canon has started launching more mirrorless models with advanced photo capabilities, for various budgets.
Nikon entered the mirrorless camera market late and now has a lot to recover. At the same time, it continues to invest heavily in DSLR cameras, which are still preferred by professionals in the field of photography, but which are not as practical for video capture.
Robert J. Smith is still early into his career as tech reporter but has already had his work published in many major publications including JoyStiq and Android Authority. In regards to academics, Robert earned a degree in business from Fordham University. Robert has passion for emerging technology and covers upcoming products and breakthroughs in science and tech.
