Nikon Coolpix S1100pj projector cam arrives with USB projection and touchscreen telestrator capabilities; S5100 arrives in tow

By Nilay Patel

posted August 17th 2010 12:01AM

Looks like those German Coolpix leaks were right on the money -- Nikon's just announced the Coolpix S1100pj and the S5100. The S1100pj is a seriously hot update to the original quirky and lovable Nikon Coolpix S1000pj projector-cam: not only is it thinner and sleeker, but the projector is brighter at 14 lumens and can now beam images off a laptop over USB. The control scheme also looks to have been simplified, with a new three-inch 460,000-dot touchscreen taking over most duties and enabling a wild telestrator-style paint mode which lets you draw right on top of projected images in real-time. Camera-wise, it's an iterative bump over the previous model: 14 megapixel sensor with 720p movie mode and ISO 6400 sensitivity, 28-140mm 5x optical zoom with five-way stabilizer, and the ability to detect faces, smiles and blinks. Perhaps best of all, MSRP has dropped $100 to $349, which actually makes it a somewhat reasonable consideration if you're shopping higher-end cams. Yep, we definitely want to play with one -- it'll hit in a bunch of colors next month sometime.

The Coolpix S5100 is a bit less interesting, slotting in between the S6000 and S4000. Nothing too complicated here, just a 12.1 megapixel sensor with ISO 3200 sensitivity and a 720p movie mode, 5x optical zoom with four-way stabilization, and a nifty tripod-detection function that automatically tweaks shutter speed and exposure to produce blur-free images when the camera is handheld. It'll be $179 in a bunch of colors when it hits in October -- check a shot after the break, along with the full PR for both cams.

P.S.- That's both of the leaked Coolpix models -- we've got a feeling we'll be hearing about that D3100 DSLR rather soon as well.

Nikon Coolpix S1100pj projector cam arrives with USB projection and touchscreen telestrator capabilities

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NIKON'S NEW PROJECTOR CAMERA WITH COMPUTER CONNECTIVITY TAKES ON-THE-GO CONTENT SHARING TO A NEW LEVEL OF FUN

The New COOLPIX S1100pj Offers Exciting Ways to Share Photos, Movies, and Even Presentations, While the New COOLPIX S5100 Delivers Versatile Performance in a Slim Stylish Design

MELVILLE, NY (August 17, 2010) – At the forefront of product innovation and market firsts, Nikon Inc. introduces two new COOLPIX cameras into the Style Series, marrying first‐of‐its‐kind technology and portable design to enhance the experience of making and sharing great photos and videos.

Building upon its award‐winning projector camera, Nikon continues to broaden content sharing with the new COOLPIX S1100pj's computer connectivity offering a new way to view photos, movies and even presentations. The chic and vibrant new COOLPIX S5100 delivers the speed and ease‐of‐use that have made the S‐Series the preferred choice among consumers who seek style and performance, and advanced Nikon technologies to help create amazing pictures even in low light.
"As the first to introduce a built‐in projector in a compact digital camera, our consumers have come to expect innovation from Nikon's COOLPIX S‐Series," said Bo Kajiwara, director of marketing, Nikon Inc. "In order to meet the evolving needs of our consumers, we have further advanced our award‐winning technology, while delivering the high performance and shooting and sharing versatility they have come to trust."

New COOLPIX S1100pj: Innovative Sharing Experiences for Work and Play
On the heels of its ground‐breaking predecessor, the new COOLPIX S1100pj takes advanced technology a step further with a 40 percent brighter, 14‐lumen internal projector complete with a built‐in stand and an easy‐to‐use touch screen interface, allowing the user to share photos and movies in even more environments. With the computer connection feature, the S1100pj also allows the user to connect the camera to a computer via USB and project whatever is on the computer screen or JPEG image files saved to the camera's memory card or internal memory. Additional creative features include a built‐in slide show function that plays photos with music and one‐touch HD 720p movie recording with easy projection playback. Whether sharing family photos and videos with loved ones or presenting an important presentation to a client, users can make a big impression by projecting up to 47‐inches from over 7‐feet away.

Truly putting creativity at the user's fingertips, the COOLPIX S1100pj features a 3‐inch 460,000‐dot touch LCD screen with Clear Color Display. A new Paint function allows users to write and draw on projected images in real time, while a wide range of new Retouch functions allow users to add stamps for an entertaining effect or rate their favorite photos for a more convenient search. Other new functions in the S1100pj's in‐camera Retouch Menu include Soft, Selective Color, Cross Screen, Fisheye Effect, Miniature Effect and Makeup Effect, giving the user creative freedom without the need for a computer.
The 14.1‐megapixel COOLPIX S1100pj includes a 5x Wide‐Angle Optical Zoom‐NIKKOR glass lens (28‐ 140mm) and a 5‐way VR Image Stabilization System with ISO settings up to 6400 to ensure incredibly sharp, crisp images in low light or while shooting handheld. To further help users capture stunning photos easily, the S1100pj also features 17 scene modes, Subject Tracking, Easy Auto Mode and Nikon's Smart Portrait System all packed into a colorful, compact design.

The COOLPIX S1100pj will be available in September 2010 for $349.95* MSRP in a choice of colors including black, violet, green and silver.

The New COOLPIX S5100: Style, Speed and Simplicity
The new COOLPIX S5100 combines speedy performance with sleek design for a stylish, yet convenient accessory for wherever life leads. Sporting a fast start‐up time, a short shutter‐release time and one‐ touch HD (720p) movie recording at 30 fps, the S5100 helps to ensure memories are captured as soon as they happen. The S5100 plays host to a myriad of Nikon technologies used to capture beautiful nighttime and low‐light shots with less blur and noise. These features include image processing that results in less noise at high sensitivities, motion detection function, lens‐shift vibration reduction (VR) function and a new flash control system.

In addition to must‐have features including 12.2‐megapixel resolution, a bright 2.7‐inch LCD display, 5x Optical Zoom and a 4‐way VR Image Stabilization System with ISO settings to 3200 at full resolution, the COOLPIX S5100 also adds a new tripod detection function found on premium NIKKOR Lenses. This function detects handheld or tripod shooting and automatically selects the ideal exposure, ISO sensitivity and shutter speed in order to reduce image blur and ensure sharp photos.
The stylish design and vivid color options of the COOLPIX S5100 make the camera a perfect outlet to express one's personality, while user‐friendly features like 18 scene modes, Scene Auto Selector, Subject Tracking, and Nikon's Smart Portrait System make the S5100 an easy‐to‐use tool for capturing remarkable photos virtually anywhere.
The COOLPIX S5100 will be available in October 2010 for $179.95* MSRP in a choice of attractive colors including black, pink, purple and blue.

COOLPIX Technology
At the core of all new COOLPIX cameras are Nikon's world‐class NIKKOR lenses, delivering accurate detail, brilliant color and amazing clarity. For the first time, Nikon's new EXPEED C2TM high performance digital image processing engine is implemented and custom‐optimized for each COOLPIX model to ensure high‐quality pictures with stunning color and sharpness. The new S‐Series models embrace the addition of High Definition (HD) video accessible via an ideally located video record button on the back of the camera. Other COOLPIX features include Scene Auto Selector or Easy Auto Mode, which automatically recognizes the shooting situation and adjusts camera settings accordingly for great pictures anywhere. To help users create better portraits easier, the Smart Portrait System incorporates a series of automatic functions including In‐Camera Red‐Eye Fix TM, Improved Face‐Priority AF, Face Priority AE, Smile Mode, Blink Warning and Skin Softening to flatter even the most camera‐shy subject (features vary by model).