Nikon has announced the discontinuation of production for the SB-500 and the temporary halt of orders for the SB-5000 in Japan (on January 27th). This appears to be parts shortage related.
Since these are the two Speedlights I tend to recommend for the Z System cameras, this is disappointing, to say the least. Both units are pretty much back-ordered everywhere here in the US. I don’t expect the SB-500 backorders to fill. I do expect we’ll see some SB-5000’s arrive shortly, but that may not be enough to fill demand. I’ve had two additional units on order for months now (you can’t even order these through NPS Priority Purchase, by the way).
The problem is that I haven’t found any third-party flash solution (as opposed to studio solution) to be satisfactory. Beyond the reverse-engineering triggering firmware update needs for the significant third-party flash units as Nikon makes changes to cameras, I’ve also found that the consistency of exposure to be “off” with most of the units I’ve tried. By “off”, I mean “not what Nikon calculates for their own units.”
Moreover, Nikon’s solution is part of a broader ecosystem: the WR-R11a allows me to control not just remote SB-5000’s, but also remote cameras (and a bit of vice versa).
I’ve written it before and I’ll write it again: Nikon needs to fix their accessories situation. It is not prioritized at the same level as cameras and lenses, we’ve gone backwards in what’s available, solutions are often compromised by farming out design and parts choices, and the general unavailability of accessories has been a problem going back far into the DSLR era.
It’s the Z System, and that requires that it actually be a system, not just some cameras and lenses. We users don’t care if it’s difficult for Nikon to fix; the situation needs fixing, stat. Even if that’s eventually saying “buy Nissin” (which, by the way, are all in stock at B&H and other places that carry them).
Message to Nikon: do better.
