Nikon unveils eight new Coolpix cams

Nikon just dropped the refresh bomb on its Coolpix line, adding eight new point-and-shoots like the P90 here to the family. Here's the rundown:

• Coolpix S230 and S220: 10 megapixels with a touchscreen that lets you write and draw on your photos. Both have four-way VR image stabilization, blink detection, and are available in several colors; the $229 S230 bumps the screen to three inches from the $149 S220's two and a half and adds ISO 2000 sensitivity.
• Coolpix S630: 12 megapixels with a 7x optical zoom and an 11fps burst mode, a 2.7-inch LCD, four-way VR image stabilization, blink detection and ISO 6400 sensitivity. Available in five colors for $279.
• S620: 12.2 megapixels with a 4x zoom, 0.7-second startup time, subject tracking, four-way VR image stabilization, blink / motion detection and ISO 6400 sensitivity. Also available in five colors for $269.
• Coolpix P90: 12.1 megapixel zoomer with a 24x 26-624mm zoom and 15fps burst mode, 3-inch tilt screen, four-way VR image stabilization, blink / motion detection, distortion control and ISO 6400 sensitivity. $339 in March.
• Coolpix L100: 10 megapixel with a 15x 28-420mm zoom and a 13fps burst mode, 3-inch screen and four-way VR image stabilization. Only comes in Bright Red for $279 in March.
• Coolpix L20: 10 megapixels with a 3.6x zoom and a 3-inch display, motion detection and auto scene selection. AA-powered, will come in Deep Red for $129.
• Coolpix L19: 8 megapixels with a 3.6 zoom and a 2.7-inch display, motion detection and auto scene selection. AA-powered, will come in Bright Silver for $109.

Not bad at all, but you've got to wonder why all these companies insist on cranking out so many minior variations on the same theme -- the average consumer has no chance of keeping up. Pictures of all the new shooters in the gallery.

Gallery: Nikon unveils eight new Coolpix cams

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[sdjavan @ Feb 2nd 2009 11:20PM]

whoa...am I first?!

[iamnotjamesh @ Mar 1st 2009 2:49PM]

Stop increasing the megapixels. 8 and 10mp is enough and takes too much hard drive space...Increase the features like HD video recording, and possibly add wifi, games :P.
Touch screen is too sensitive and not convenient since buttons will be accidently pushed. Bring back buttons! big screen is ok, not touch though.

[sdjavan @ Feb 2nd 2009 11:21PM]

I just hope this new line of Nikon's (although dubious) proves to match the quality of a canon.
I love their DSLR's but their compact line is sort of crap.

[zed @ Feb 2nd 2009 11:22PM]

i had a coolpix s51 a while ago, worked great, took good pictures but the only problem was the slooow focus and shutter speeds

[Giga @ Feb 2nd 2009 11:24PM]

Another day, another point and shoot with craptacular quality that the average consumer won't care about just because it has 5 gigapixels.

[Thunderbuck @ Feb 3rd 2009 12:14AM]

Yeah, I know Bill Gates once said he couldn't imagine users wanting any more than 640k, but...

Is there REALLY a good reason to buy a 10 Mp camera over an 8? Or a 5? I mean, sure, if you're shooting for large-format, and you really need that level of detail, but 10? Really?

I mean, just the fact that downloads are overtaking CDs is fair proof to me that ultimate fidelity isn't really an issue for the average consumer (an MP3 contains MAYBE 15% of the audio information on an original .WAV on a CD). I'm somewhat more interested in technology that helps me archive, access, and share my pictures (and, yes, occasionally print them).

Am I way off base here?

[Plothole @ Feb 3rd 2009 12:34AM]

And of course the extra megapixels doesn't necessarily mean you are getting any additional detail. Noise and optics must also be considered here. In fact some cameras, like the G10, have already passed the breaking point... the circle of confusion, even at the fastest aperture, is wider than the individual pixels. In other words physics dictate that no more detail can possibly be captured.

[The Fresh Panda @ Feb 2nd 2009 11:31PM]

Why is this tagged under "Breakingnews" and "Breaking News"?

[SNP @ Feb 2nd 2009 11:34PM]

*yawn*

[MastrCake @ Feb 2nd 2009 11:44PM]

With this many new models, they better be better than their current lineup.

Most of their point-and-shoot cameras are slow, lacking in features, and have so-so picture quality, especially when compared to Canon cameras.

Let's just hope that these are not just pretty prices.

[YpoCaramel @ Feb 2nd 2009 11:47PM]

hahaha draw on your photos. It'll be a mini-Japanese sticker photo booth in here... maybe they'll have lighten and darken and little hearts as well?

[Danny @ Feb 3rd 2009 12:09AM]

Retractable lenses and touch screens are the worst two features on cameras. Never had a camera with a retractable lens that didn't break; never used a touch screen camera that wasn't frustrating.

Hopefully they come out with a non TS P&S with 5 - 7X Optical Zoom and no retractable lens. Would buy that in a heartbeat. Always seems to be something...

[hamish @ Feb 3rd 2009 12:18AM]

1

[Tony @ Feb 3rd 2009 12:18AM]

I got excited when I saw the P90 listed as $339 here, but other sites had it priced at $399.95. Sadly $400 is the price mentioned in Nikon's press release.

http://press.nikonusa.com/2009/02/powerful_new_nikon_p90_unleash.php

[helloUser @ Feb 3rd 2009 12:22AM]

15 fps? Jesus....thats fast. But I dont see the use for a point and shoot being 10megapixels or more. I dont know anyone printing larger than 8x10 on a P&S, and thats being generous, because I dont know too many people even printing 4x6s.

[pika2000 @ Feb 3rd 2009 12:56AM]

Casio is doing high speed movie recording to differentiate. Panasonic is doing AVCHD lite video recording. This is boring. I'm tired of the megapixel race in consumer digicams. And what's with the trend of touch screen? Touch screen is very awkward on a camera, and defeats the purpose of the "ease of use" of point-n-shoot.

[Plothole @ Feb 3rd 2009 1:03AM]

It seems like the touchscreen is a gimmick to attract the iPhone/iPod Touch crowd.

[alex barus @ Feb 3rd 2009 1:45AM]

They should start unveils The high end Coolpix (e.g.P7000) with

1) 4/3 sensor size on CCD (or CMOS) with 15 megapixel or so (to keep the noise clean for point-shoot level)
2) High ISO from 100-12,800
3) Dynamic Range from 100-600 %
4) Keep steady with 5-8 fps
5) Manual Zoom from 24 mm - 400 mm
6) Dual IS Stabilizer

That's my imagination

[Fr0 @ Apr 8th 2009 10:02AM]

you have one wild imagination... because that would DEFINITELY not happen. Here's what I think is more likely:

1) Nikon DX CMOS sensor with 6 - 12 megapixel (I would prefer 6)
2) ISO 100/200 - 3200 with 6400 boost mode
3) Standard Nikon dynamic range with Active D-Lighting (none of the Fujifilm extended DR)
4) 2.5 - 3 FPS
5) 28 - 80 mm f/3.5 - 5.6 zoom (possibly a prime 28/35mm f/2 or 50mm f/1.8)

[Ian @ Feb 3rd 2009 2:20AM]

If Engadget really doesn't know why camera manufacturers release so many near-identical cameras in different body sizes (which I doubt......it's Engadget, and this is has been discussed in many places for years), the reason is so that a company like Nikon can take up more shelf space on store shelves. Every manufacturer basically only has 2, 3, or 4 different point and shoot camera models. They just vary things slightly so that they can release 12 models. If Nikon only had 4 camera models in their line-up, Nikon would have very little shelf space, even in the big 8 storey Japanese shops.

The reason Nikon bothers to release "new" cameras with nearly identical specs as their previous models is so that camera manufacturers can include the word "NEW!" beside a lot of Nikon cameras, which draws a customer's interest. If they didn't release the same model 3 or 4 times, Nikon's p&s cameras would be buried behind all the new releases from other manufacturers.

None of them have anything new to offer this year. They're still mostly at 8 to 12 MP, 3 or 4x zoom, etc. They just need to release new cameras like everyone else, or die.

[Lee @ Feb 3rd 2009 4:45AM]

The futility of posting this is obvious, but companies like Nikon are never really going to give consumers what they want, because the size of the company dictates that the devices are designed by committee. Marketers carry out research based on sales trends and quote the results to product planners, who in turn make a list of requests from the engineers, who look at the lists and pick all the features that are relatively easy to incrementally improve to differentiate the product from its predecessor in their six month product cycle, since there is no development capital available to start from a blank sheet. The feedback loop is completed when the product sells. Nikon are still in business, and that's all (and all they need to, and all they should) care about. The features I want (listed below, just in case a miracle happens and Nikon designs the camera, or another poster makes my day and points me towards a camera that has all these features) are very difficult to quantify with sales figures, and therefore very difficult for teams (or individual dreamers) within a company to convince whoever can authorise a production design process that they're going to have a positive ROI of development costs. Big businesses get that way by not taking risks. The camera market has spent a long time in the doldrums, long enough that the memory is still fresh in the culture of camera manufacturers. Consumers are (en masse), overwhelmed by information when making a purchase, yet want to get the best bang for their buck. 12 for $99 beats 10 for $129 every time, and the big manufacturers know this.

1. instant start up
2. internal lens with wide (2.8 or larger) aperture
3. APS-C (or larger) sized sensor
4. sub 0.1 second shutter lag (including AF time)
5. optical viewfinder
6. two dial controls (finger and thumb)
7. small enough to fit in a pocket.
8. 28-80mm focal range

I'd pay DSLR money for one of those. I use pro DSLRs for street shooting because they're fast, and I don't have a choice.

[Plothole @ Feb 3rd 2009 5:11AM]

Unless you ditch the zoom, there is no way a camera with those specs could be made pocketable. The size of the lens is generally proportional to the sensor. That's why superzooms mostly use tiny 1/2.3" or smaller sensors.

[Lee @ Feb 3rd 2009 5:34AM]

True. I'd settle for a prime anywhere between 28 and 50mm equivalent. I just want something as responsive as an old film compact. They used 35mm film and had lenses with similar focal lengths, and were pocketable.

[guy @ Feb 3rd 2009 6:12AM]

Leica's line of rangefinder comes to mind. I will be shooting with one if I could afford one. I wish more company would make rangefinder these days so the price will go down. I would stick with my DSLR for now.

[Plothole @ Feb 3rd 2009 1:55PM]

@Lee
Well the DP2 seems to fulfill most of those requirements. (including the optional hotshoe viewfinder)

@guy
I have a feeling that LIVE camera systems like µ4:3 could be the final nail in the coffin for the rangefinder camera. They offer the same advantage of a shorter mounting distance, while still allowing the user to look straight through the lens. This makes zooms a whole lot more practical. And lets face it, the average consumer probably isn't going to be too interested in prime lenses.

[Bad Beaver @ Feb 3rd 2009 4:55AM]

Another slew of Nikon boring compacts. As Ian said, it's all about retail presence, which is a pity, as most of these take the same crappy shots, but some will have a higher pixel-count. Nikon should take their expertise into a quality high-end compact (the big Coolpix is crushed by Panasonic and Canon. And Ricoh and Sigma if you will) that actually takes *good* pictures, and put away with spectacular megapixels and insane ISO that will just mean lots of high-data noise, all in some Win-only RAW. The way it is, I'd take a Nikon DSLR over anything, and anything over a Nikon compact.

[xValentine @ Feb 3rd 2009 6:32AM]

They should have remade the P6000.

The P6000 is getting owned by the G10 and most of all, the LX3.

[Jason Collin @ Feb 3rd 2009 12:17PM]

The G10 isn't owning anything. It's a fail camera. Try reading this for a comparison of all three by a photographer that actually has used all three cameras:

http://twipphoto.com/archives/2470

[Jonny @ Feb 3rd 2009 7:25AM]

Great, more lame commericals with annoying Asthon Kutcher.

Joy. :/ I personally wont buy a Nikon just for their commericals.

[Simon @ Feb 3rd 2009 8:02PM]

That P90 is sweet! Now I wish I had held off on my SX10 IS purchase.