Digital Camera News and Reviews

Updates from the camera world



Month: February, 2009

Nikon announces Coolpix S230 digital camera with touch screen

3 February, 2009 (08:44) | Compact Camera, Nikon | By: Camera News

Nikon Coolpix S230
Nikon Coolpix S230

Among all the compact digital cameras Nikon announced today we get the Nikon Coolpix S230 with touch screen. The camera from Nikon also features a 10 megapixel sensor, 3x optical zoom and 3″ LCD screen.

Some key features for the Nikon Coolpix S230:
-10 megapixel sensor
-3x optical zoom (35 – 105mm)
-3″ LCD touch screen
-44MB of built-in memory

The Nikon Coolpix S230 will be available in March 2009 and cost about $230.

Press release:
Nikon Unveils New S230 Touch Screen Digital Camera

Playback and Zoom Controlled with the Swipe of a Finger

MELVILLE, NY (February 2, 2009) – Hot on the heels of the successful COOLPIX S60 camera, Nikon today introduced the new S230, which incorporates Nikon’s innovative touch screen LCD, offering the cutting-edge of elegant design and intuitive operation. The S230 combines a 3.0-inch high-resolution touch panel LCD design with a new graphic interface that lets users switch modes, view and edit images and change camera settings with the touch of the screen.

“Touch technology is one of the hottest things in consumer electronics today and our new S230 is no different,” said Bill Giordano, General Manager Marketing, COOLPIX for Nikon Inc. “With the S230, our touch screen brings a new level of sophistication and interaction to consumers, by putting the power of the camera right at their fingertips.”

Touch controls also give users a fun, creative way to do more with their pictures. The camera comes equipped with a stylus that brings an element of personalization and expression. With the Draw Function, users can write or draw on their pictures. The S230 also has the Paint Function, which enables users to add fun frames and stamps to their pictures. The camera saves the images as copies, so the user always has access to the original picture.

In addition to the Touch Screen LCD, the S230 includes several innovative features introduced across the entire COOLPIX line. The S230 incorporates Nikon’s world-class NIKKOR lenses, which deliver extremely accurate and high-speed focusing, and Nikon’s EXPEED™ digital image processing concept, which ensures high-quality pictures with stunning color and sharpness.

The S230 camera also includes new shooting modes, which Nikon has seamlessly integrated into the camera’s interface. These include:

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Scene Auto Selector, which automatically recognizes the scene in your camera and adjusts the camera settings:

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The camera will select between six common scene modes: Close-up, Portrait, Landscape, Backlight, Night Portrait, and Night Landscape.
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Smart Portrait System, which integrates the following to make it a snap to capture stunning portrait photos of friends and family:
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In-Camera Red-Eye Fix™, which automatically fixes most instances of red-eye.
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Enhanced Face-Priority AF, which can detect up to 12 faces from a variety of angles, including straight on, from the side, or even in a multitude of three-quarter positions.
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Smile Mode, which automatically detects when your subject smiles and releases the shutter.
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Blink Proof, which automatically takes two shots and saves the one in which the subject’s eyes are open.
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4-Way Vibration Reduction (VR) Image Stabilization, which helps enable blur-free pictures, even in low light or unsteady conditions with the following features:
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Electronic VR, which compensates for camera shake within the image processing, which minimizes blurriness in photos and helps ensure crisp, clear images.
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Motion Detection, which automatically sets a faster shutter speed and higher ISO if the camera detects movement from camera shake or if the subject moves.
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ISO 2000 Capability, which makes it easy to take sharper, more natural-looking photos in lower light conditions.
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Best Shot Selector (BSS), which takes a maximum of 10 sequential shots while the shutter button is pressed, and saves the sharpest image, making sure photos are crisp, clear, and detailed.

The new S230 camera will be available nationwide beginning February 2009 and will retail for $229.95. The camera will be available in five colors: Plum, Jet Black, Night Blue, Gloss Red and Warm Silver. The new S230 is one of four new S-series cameras introduced by Nikon today. Other cameras include the S630, S620 and the S220 (for more information, please see press release, “NIKON UNVEILS S630 NEW POCKET-SIZED 7X ZOOM DIGITAL CAMERA,” Feb. 2, 2009)

For more information about the new COOLPIX cameras, please visit www.nikonusa.com.

Nikon announces Coolpix P90 -24x optical zoom

3 February, 2009 (08:35) | Compact Camera, Nikon | By: Camera News

Nikon Coolpix P90
Nikon Coolpix P90

Nikon has announced the new superzoom digital camera Nikon Coolpix P90. The camera features a 24x optical zoom lens, 12 megapixels and high-speed continuous shooting up to 45 shots at 15 fps.

Some key features for the Nikon Coolpix P90:
-24x optical zoom (26mm – 624mm)
-12.1 megapixel sensor
-3″ tilting LCD screen
-47MB of built-in memory
-Image stabilization

The Nikon Coolpix P90 will be available in March 2009 and cost about $400.

Press release:
Powerful New Nikon P90 Unleashes Creative Freedom With 24x Optical Wide Angle Zoom, Vari-Angle LCD And Advanced Shooting Modes

MELVILLE, NY (Feb. 2, 2009) – Photographers seeking high performance with a long zoom in a compact body now have the ideal camera with Nikon’s unveiling of the new P90. As part of the flagship Performance Series of COOLPIX cameras, the P90 offers new features that include a 24x Optical Zoom, a new 3.0-inch vari-angle LCD monitor with tilt function and anti-reflection coating; and 15 frame-per-second1 (fps) high-speed capability (up to 45 frames). The P90 is the ideal photographic tool for photo enthusiasts, travel photographers and consumers with more advanced photography skills.

“Our portfolio of cameras is designed to ensure that any photographer, at any level can find the camera that feels right for them,” said Bill Giordano, General Manager Marketing, COOLPIX for Nikon Inc. “The P90 blends the best of the digital compact and D-SLR camera worlds, allowing the more advanced consumer to really stretch their photographic capabilities.”

The key to the versatility of the P90 is its 24x Optical Wide Angle Zoom-NIKKOR ED Glass Lens. This lens offers unbeatable compositional freedom, with its wide angle (26mm) to super telephoto coverage (624mm). The broad range lets consumers capture a variety of shots and scenes, ranging from sweeping landscapes to close-up action shots taking place on a sports field.

Additional features of the P90 include:

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12.1 megapixels for stunning prints as large as 20 x 30 inches, while retaining fine detail.
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3.0-inch Vari-Angle High Resolution LCD and Electronic Viewfinder make it easy to compose and share pictures with friends and family. The new LCD, with anti-reflection coating, can tilt as much as 90 degrees upward or 45 degrees downward. This enables photographers to shoot from higher angles or from the hip, and thereby make the best use of the reach and range of the 24x zoom lens. The incorporation of the high-resolution electronic viewfinder enables consumers to see through the lens in any lighting condition.
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4-Way Vibration Reduction (VR) Image Stabilization
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Optical VR image stabilization compensates for the effects of camera shake by moving the image sensor, producing clearer, sharper results in lower lighting or unsteady conditions.
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Motion Detection automatically detects moving subjects and adjusts shutter speed and the ISO setting to compensate for camera shake and subject movement.
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High ISO 6400 capability creates new opportunities to take sharper, more natural-looking photos in lower light conditions (ISO 3200 and 6400)2.
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Nikon’s original Best Shot Selector (BSS) automatically takes up to 10 shots while the user presses the shutter, and saves the sharpest image.
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Program, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority and Manual Exposure modes give ultimate control over images. The D-SLR-type mode-dial on the top of the camera offers consumers greater personal and creative control, in any type of lighting condition.
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New Sport Continuous Scene Mode for shooting at up to 15fps1 (up to 45 frames). This high-speed capture setting helps photographers stay ahead of the action.

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Smart Portrait System, which integrates the following to make it a snap to capture stunning portrait photos of friends and family:
o

In-Camera Red-Eye Fix™, which automatically fixes most instances of red-eye.
o

Enhanced Face-Priority AF, which can detect up to 12 faces from a variety of angles, including straight on, from the side, or even in a multitude of three-quarter positions.
o

Smile Mode, which automatically detects when your subject smiles and releases the shutter.
o

Blink Proof, which automatically takes two shots and saves the one in which the subject’s eyes are open.

The P90 will be available nationwide in March 2009 and will retail at $399.95.

For more information on the P90 and all COOLPIX cameras, please visit www.nikonusa.com.

Olympus updates firmware for their E-3 DSLR to version 1.3 – Improves auto focus accuracy

3 February, 2009 (01:25) | DSLR, Olympus | By: Camera News

Olympus E-3 DSLR
Olympus E-3 DSLR

Olympus announced a new firmware for their flagship DSLR camera, the Olympus E-3. Firmware version 1.3 includes improvements to auto foucs accuracy, C-AF performance, improved battery life and makes users able to select AF target by using arrow keys.

Information from Olympus:
-Allow E-3 users to select the AF target by pressing the arrow keys
-Improve AF accuracy when using fast lenses with f2.0 aperture
-Improve C-AF performance
-Improve battery life when using the HLD-4 battery holder

Olympus informs us that when installing the new firmware the E-3 will be rested to factory settings so you should manually record your settings before upgrading the firmware.

Samsung TL34HD (NV100HD) review / test by Computer Active – 14.7 megapixel compact

1 February, 2009 (15:36) | Compact Camera, Review, Samsung | By: Camera News

Samsung NV100HD
Samsung NV100HD

Computer Active has reviewed the 14.7 megapixel compact camera from Samsung, the Samsung NV100HD (known as Samsung TL34HD in the US).

Some key features for the Samsung NV100HD / Samsung TL34HD:
-14.7 megapixel sensor
-Able to record 720p HD video
-3.6x optical zoom lens
-3″ touch screen

Computer active ends up giving the Samsung camera pretty good review and gives it 4 out 5 stars as the camera is able to produce nice pictures, the lens is pretty wide and the body is well built.
The only downsides are some noise at higher ISO levels and a complicated menu system.
Read the full review of the Samsung TL34HD camera here.


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