Comments about Nikon Nikon D7000 Digital SLR Camera Body Kit - U.S.A. Warranty - with 8GB SD Memory Card, Camera System Bag, Mack 3 Year Extended Warranty, USB 2.0 SD Card Reader:

I bought this as my work camera at a newspaper, replacing a D300, which I did not like because of its poor performance above ISO 800 and noisy skies at 200. Also never liked the D300's skin tones.
The D7000 also backs up my D700, which I'll use as a benchmark.
First, the D7000 is still noisy compared to the D700. If you are looking for D700 noise performance in the D7000, forget it. Nikon is still blurring details to get lower noise. But it is better, I'd say by a stop, than the D300.
I am most impressed with the skin tones from this camera; something between the D300 and D200, which I felt was Nikon's best skin tone camera of all time. Not quite there, and the less-than-elegant way of setting picture controls makes it hard to tweak the tones. But for the most part, gone is the D300's nasty habit of quickly blowing out highlights on skin. And, finally, we have a true ISO 100, something missing since the D200. The image quality at 100 is fantastic, making it ideal for landscapes and groups.
I also purchased it for the video capability. It is still very cumbersome to use that way and the auto focusing has a long way to go. But for B roll stuff where I need shallow DOF, it will be pressed into service as needed. From what I've seen, quality is good at 1080 24p, but not on par with my Panasonic HMC 150. Images are not as sharp, even with the top notch pro lenses attached. And the 17-35 is a dog on this body -- it's age and lack of resolution are no match for the big sensor.
The body feels durable except for the mode dial, which seems to be lifted off an old Ricoh film camera. The camera really slows down in the cold; after 15 minutes in 15-degree weather, it would not shut down and the focusing motor slowed way down. Focusing is very confusing with the new selection switch on the side. Make sure you read the book and understand how the switch and dials work in tandem to select modes and patterns. This is a major change from previous models.
I see this body holding me until a D700 successor is released. It's a light weight and durable body for family and situations where you don't want to risk a really expensive body, but no substitute for a D700.