B_Campbell's Full Review: Nikon COOLPIX P2 Digital Camera
Is the Nikon Coolpix P2 the best digital camera out there? No, but it just might be the best camera at the contentious $200 price point. 5.1 megapixels, wireless wi-fi picture transfer, a bright, large LCD, and a host of features make it a bargain that's worth much more than the asking price.
Form Factor
There's only one area where I found the Coolpix P2 didn't stack up to the competition, and that's size. With most digital cameras in the $200 range being thin and compact, the P2 is just a little bulkier. It's not big by any stretch; it's about the size of a pack of cards, and maybe a little bit thicker -- maybe two packs stacked on top of one another. But it is bigger, and especially thicker, than many rivals. It compensates with a nice handgrip on the right side that makes one-handed shooting easier, but if size is your primary deciding factor, you may want to look elsewhere. Other than size, ergonomics are excellent. You're not likely to hit the power button by accident, and the shape keeps yours hands away from the LCD screen and the lens, and puts your thumb very naturally on the zoom controls.
Shooting
The P2 works like most any other digital camera when it comes to the basics: frame the shot using the LCD (there is no viewfinder), press the shutter button halfway to focus, and press the whole way to shoot. The huge 2.5-inch LCD screen holds a bunch of info while you're shooting, including a focus indicator, shutter speed indicator, what quality settings you're using, and number of pictures remaining, but honestly it feels like a bit too much. I tend to take my pictures and then review them to see how they turned out, not spend five minutes making sure all the little indicator lights say it's okay to shoot. The LCD is extremely bright, easy to see even in daylight.
The 5.1 megapixel CCD takes great photos, and this is a fairly average picture quality in the price range. This is good enough for decent 8x10 prints of your photos, and is more than enough for the casual user. Image settings can be adjusted by size and quality, and the instructions have a nice chart showing how many pictures you can expect to fit on a memory card for each setting.
Photo Modes
There are three basic photo modes: auto, programmed auto (P), and aperture-priority auto (A). Honestly, most people will never need to use anything other than auto, which automatically selects aperture and shutter speed. "P" mode will do the same, but allow the user to select from other aperture and shutter speed settings that the camera decides will also produce a good image. "A" mode lets the user choose the desired aperture setting (to a point) and adjusts shutter speed to compensate. Neither P nor A modes really offer the flexibility needed for those who actually understand what they do, so they're rarely used.
There are also 16 preset "scenes" that have specific camera settings for certain situations, like shooting indoor scenes, night landscapes, or text copy. Most of these are superfluous, but a few are really useful. Panorama assist superimposes part of the last picture taken to help line up shots that you'll later stitch together using editing software. Sports has a constant focus and shoots extremely quickly to capture moving subjects. The rest are questionable, like beach or fireworks show, but they could come in handy if you live near the beach or are a pyromaniac.
Other Recording
The Coolpix P2 also has a video and audio recorder. The audio recorder output is saved to your computer as a .wav file. The video recorder can record up to 640x480 at 30 frames per second, which produces good results. The video is recorded as .mov Quicktime movies.
Reviewing/Transferring
Reviewing pictures is simple and they're easy to see on the large screen. They can be zoomed or you can choose to look at multiple pictures at once. While reviewing, pictures can be marked for quick transfer (which automatically transfers marked images the next time you connect the camera to your computer), or deleted.
You can transfer your pictures via USB 2.0 using the included cable. However, the one feature that makes this camera stand out is the ability to wirelessly transfer pictures using a wi-fi 802.11b or 802.11g connection. You can use ad-hoc transfer, connecting directly to a computer with a wireless adapter, but only the slower 802.11b is supported this way. For faster transfer, you can connect to a wireless access point, like an 802.11g capable router. It's easy to install the necessary software and set up the camera for connection, and once you do that you never need to plug your camera into your computer. Ever. Never again fumble around with plugging a cable into the front USB jacks or finding somewhere to keep that cable when not using it. All you do is set the camera to wireless transfer, choose what pictures you want to copy, and it takes care of the rest. Your pictures are automatically stored in your My Pictures (Windows XP) or Picture (Mac OS) folder in their own numbered subfolders.
Memory/Batteries
The Coolpix P2 uses SD (secure digital) memory cards, and though it does have internal memory it's so small (16MB) that you'll want to purchase a card with the camera. At the highest quality setting, it only stores five pictures internally. Included with the P2 is a li-ion rechargeable battery. It takes about two hours to fully charge a completely drained battery, and a full charge can get you over 100 photos, though this number varies wildly depending on flash and LCD usage.
Other Features
Some other features, in a nutshell:
White balance/ISO adjustment: for precise image control.
Four metering modes: to adjust how the camera handles exposure.
Automatic bracketing: taking multiple images at different exposure levels.
Time-lapse shooting: pictures can be taken automatically at different intervals (30 seconds to 30 minutes) and saved as individual images or a movie file.
Zoom: 3.5x optical, 4x digital.
On-camera editing: images can be cropped, brightness can be adjusted, and thumbnail images can be created.
Continuous mode: shoots continuously at 2.5 frames per second, shoots 16 frames at 2 per second and arranges them into one large image, or shoots low-quality images at 30 frames per second.
Best shot selector: takes up to ten pictures continuously and compares them to choose the sharpest picture.
Image adjustment, image sharpening, saturation control: for fine control of images.
Flash exposure compensation: Adjust flash output if too weak/strong.
Focus assist: red LED light helps focus in dark environments (though this just blinds people).
Customizable welcome: Welcome video, your own welcome picture, or no welcome on power-on.
TV slideshow: included cable for displaying images on a TV.
It's also worth noting that the instruction manual is excellent, with easy to follow instructions, all of the reference information you'll want, and an easy to use index and glossary. Charts explain things like image file sizes and recommended print sizes, and there are easy to follow instructions for all of the features.
Gripes
A few minor gripes with the P2:
-The zoom doesn't feel very fluid, but instead seems to step up and down in increments, making it hard to get the right amount of "just a little" zoom. This is offset by the extreme quickness of the optical zoom overall.
-The focus assist light is way too bright for the dark environments it's designed for and just blinds any people you're taking pictures of. The real complaint here is that it's on by default and it took me a while to figure out what was happening so I could disable it.
-The battery could have been a little bigger to allow for more photos on a charge. It was likely a weight decision, as the camera with battery installed feels just right. To go along with this, there's no viewfinder, making it hard to conserve battery life by turning the LCD screen off.
Overall
Taking the basic specs into consideration -- 5.1 megapixels, 3.5x optical zoom, 2.5 inch LCD, included rechargeable battery, and ergonomic shape -- this is a good camera for the price. However, adding in the features that many at this price don't have (like continuous shooting), and one that few cameras at any price have (wireless transfer), the Coolpix P2 is worth every penny and more. The only reason this wouldn't be the ideal camera for you is if compactness were your first priority. Otherwise, if you're shopping for a digital camera in the $200 price range, you owe it to yourself to check this Nikon out.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 199.99 This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts
5.1-megapixel CCD captures enough detail for photo-quality 13 x 17-inch prints 3.5x optical zoom; 2.5-inch LCD display Face Priority Autofocus and In-...More at Amazon Marketplace
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.