The release of Nikon’s new full frame (FX Format) D700 will probably come as no surprise to folks who have been keeping tabs on the latest rumors, but if you’ve been living in a cave or something; here’s the skinny.

It is packing a 12.1 megapixel full-frame sensor, with the same sensor cleaning that the D300 employs. It supports ISO 100 to ISO 25600 in boost modes, with 200 to 6400 naively. Features a DX mode like the D3 that automatically crops to 5.1mp images when DX lenses are mounted. It has 14 bit image processing and features the EXPEED processor. It has the same shutter lag and starter times as the high end D3.

An big surprise here is the Kevlar/carbon fiber composite shutter, which should expand the life beyond older models. It has 95% viewfinder coverage and basically shares the D300 body, except for the D3-esque viewfinder.

Comparison photo thanks to DPReview.