http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/D70/D70A.HTM
.....
Then Canon hit the street with a sub-$1,000 digital SLR with a bundled lens to meet that magical $999.99 price point that lured consumers in droves. As they did in the film arena with their N55 to N80 range of cameras, Nikon answered, this time with a camera that exceeds the capabilities of Canon's Digital Rebel. Nikon's answer, the D70, does not include a lens at the sub-$1,000 price, but it has a whole lot more features and a more solid feel than the competition. For an additional $300, users get a special 18-70mm lens (equivalent to a 27-105mm zoom on a 35mm camera), designed just for the camera's smaller sensor. Further, the new camera is compatible with almost the entire range of Nikon's F-mount AF lenses. A lower price is great, but we have to see what compromises Nikon had to make, if any, and whether those compromises will result in significantly reduced image quality over the current Nikon benchmark, the D100.
.....
Then Canon hit the street with a sub-$1,000 digital SLR with a bundled lens to meet that magical $999.99 price point that lured consumers in droves. As they did in the film arena with their N55 to N80 range of cameras, Nikon answered, this time with a camera that exceeds the capabilities of Canon's Digital Rebel. Nikon's answer, the D70, does not include a lens at the sub-$1,000 price, but it has a whole lot more features and a more solid feel than the competition. For an additional $300, users get a special 18-70mm lens (equivalent to a 27-105mm zoom on a 35mm camera), designed just for the camera's smaller sensor. Further, the new camera is compatible with almost the entire range of Nikon's F-mount AF lenses. A lower price is great, but we have to see what compromises Nikon had to make, if any, and whether those compromises will result in significantly reduced image quality over the current Nikon benchmark, the D100.