It seemed like more than 12 years, but after a long run of being produced exactly in the same non-D version, Nikon finally got around to adding the distance technology to the classic 300mm f/4. But they didn't stop there. The new lens uses AF-S (silent wave) technology to focus faster and quieter, sports a new tripod mount, and has a host of other new features. About the only thing that remained the same is the overall length and the f/4 aperture. The question, of course, is did they get all the changes right?
For those who can't afford the big aperture teles, the 300mm f/4 was Nikon's answer: give up one stop of aperture and you could get an equally sharp telephoto that weighed about half that of its f/2.8 cousin, but focused slowly. From 1988 to 2001, that was the choice. Buy a 300mm f/2.8, which kept getting new features and abilities (D-type technology, silent wave autofocus, AF-S with manual override, etc.), or buy the old reliable 300mm f/4, which had none of those new features.