Nikon has announced the launch of four new cameras in its Coolpix line of point-and-shoot offerings. The flagship model for the series is now the P7700 offering full-scale manual photography controls. The P7700 has a large 1/1.7-inch backside illumination CMOS sensor, 7.1x optical zoom, and a three-inch vary-angle TFT LCD.
Nikon Coolpix P7700
The camera also has integrated lens-shift vibration reduction that works for taking still photographs and recording full HD movies. The 7.1x optical zoom lens covers 28 mm to 200 mm equivalents, with a maximum aperture of f/2-4. The camera is capable of shooting macro photography as close as two centimeters from the subject. The overall resolution of the camera is 12.2 megapixels.
Nikon Coolpix S800c
The P7700 may be the high-end offering in the new Nikon range, but the most interesting is the S800c. Nikon's S800c digital camera is powered by the Android operating system and has integrated Wi-Fi. Nikon says that the camera offers the natural operation and communication functions of a smartphone minus the phone call functionality. That makes it an ideal single product for taking photos, viewing photos, and uploading them according to Nikon.
The camera has a 3.5-inch OLED screen on the back for high resolution viewing of the photographs and video taken that is touch sensitive. Connecting to Wi-Fi networks is done using the touchscreen and users can type comments on photos and videos they upload to social networks using the touchscreen capability. The camera has a high-performance GPS module allowing the camera to geo-tag photos and videos as they are taken, and then save the photos and location information to the Nikon Picturetown app. The camera supports social networks including Google+, Facebook, and Twitter.
Nikon Coolpix S01
It also features a 16-megapixel backside illumination CMOS image sensor and 10x optical zoom. The zoom lens covers focal lengths from 25 mm to 250 mm. Video can be recorded at 30 FPS in full 1080p resolution. The video can also be played back at 1/2, 1/4, or 1/8 of normal speed for slow motion. Another interesting feature is that photographs taken on the camera can be transferred to other smart devices running Android or iOS over a wireless connection. This feature will require special apps running on the other devices that Nikon plans to release.
Nikon is also offering the S6400 featuring a 16-megapixel backside illumination CMOS image sensor. This camera has 12x optical zoom with a lens covering 25 mm to 300 mm equivalents. The rear LCD is a touch panel allowing for natural operation and camera promises to be compact and slim. The camera supports Target Finding autofocus that allows the user to touch the person on the screen and the camera will automatically focus on the subject.
The last of the new cameras is the S01, which Nikon says is the smallest and lightest digital camera in the history of the Coolpix series. According to Nikon, this camera combines the simplicity of a cell phone with the advanced capability of a camera. The camera body is smaller than a standard business card measuring 77 mm wide by 51.2 mm high by 17.2 mm deep. The little camera weighs 96 g and fits easily in the hand. The camera uses a touch display panel on the rear and promises to be easy-to-use. It has 10.1-megapixel resolution, 3x optical zoom, and can record 720p HD video.
Pricing and availability on the cameras is unknown at this time.
