A new digital SLR from Nikon is due out before the end of the year in the shape of the 10.2-million-pixel D200.

Expected to cost around £1,300 (body only) the D200 is claimed to borrow features from Nikon?s professional-spec D2X.

Pitched between entry-level and professional DSLRs, the D200 is hailed by Nikon as ?creating a new class of camera?. It is due in UK shops by the end of December with features including a newly developed 10.2MP (effective) DX Format CCD imaging sensor and a new 11-area AF system designed to give the same number of focus areas as Nikon?s professional D2-series models. The sensor delivers equivalent ISO sensitivity ranging from ISO 100-1600, expandable to around ISO 3200, says Nikon.

Features borrowed from the D2X include the same image processing engine and 3D Colour Matrix Metering II (AE) system. The image sensor boasts an Optical Low Pass Filter to help prevent moiré, colour fringing and shifting.