I have a D7000 on layaway and will have it in my hands on March 1, 2011. It's plain to see that the camera has some shortcomings, but the firmware is out now and in the case of metering and focus, there are corrective features on board.
I got my first SLR about a year ago, which was the D3000. It is a worthy entry-level camera, but it does have some low-light performance limitations that were beginning to drive me toward the inevitable upgrade.
What impressed me about the D7000 and made me willing to part with the requisite bucks this early on in its life cycle is that it's a Nikon. It doesn't seem prudent to switch brands and buy all new glass.
It is generally reviewed well and the final judgements are all pretty much equal.
It appears to have a fairly easy to use menu system with shortcut access to a number of features, which is good because I'm tired of going into the menu manually for nearly everything.
Still being a novice, I'm not likely to ever outgrow this camera and it's weaknesses don't impact the kind of shooting I do most of the time and actually have accommodations for when I might need some corrective measures.
The CameraLabs review was very good and I think ultimately quite fair. In the end, his scoring of the camera was in line with most reviews I've read.
One thing did bother me, however, and that was the reviewers frequent reminder that the D7000 is not low-end semi-pro camera. If there was a need to say that even once, it only needed saying once.
It's quite clear to see that the D7000 is a replacement for the D90 that due to the advance of technology steps into the territory which the D300s now holds. The camera is a mid-range DSLR that incorporates or exceeds some features of the current semi-pro camera.
The overall tone of the reviewer was in my opinion snide and he seemed to gloat over having knocked the D7000 off some preconceived pedestal.
For myself, working only with the reviews of the camera, believe that the D7000 is a quite capable camera that will perform extremely well in those areas that are important to me and maybe not so well in those areas that are less important to me, like continuous shooting rates and video.
In the unlikely event that the D7000's shortcomings ever impinge on my ability to shoot well in those venues where I shoot, it will be clear that I will need another upgrade, which will probably be whatever replaces the D300s, which will probably be some kind of humdinger.
As it is, the D7000 appears to be a very robust mid-range DSLR that has features that make it a strong competitor in its range.
For better or worse, I made the decision to go with Nikon and it's very unlikely (though not inconceivable) that I'll ever jump ship, since I intend to buy some more glass that will complement the D7000 even more than what I have on hand, the 18-55mmVR, 18-200mmVRII, and the 35mm f1.8.