Nikon Unveils 6 Coolpix Digicams

By Greg Tarr On Sep 8 2011 - 4:01am

MELVILLE, N.Y. – Nikon introduced six Coolpix point-and-shoot digicams, including one that marks the company’s return to a waterproof camera since the classic Nikonos film camera line, and a model that marks Nikon’s first attempt at offering a 3D still shooting feature.

The new models will all start shipping in September and include the AW100 ($380 suggested retail) weather-proof Coolpix, the P7100 ($500) advanced manual point-and-shoot, and four S-series models including the S100 ($300), S1200pj ($430), S6200 ($230) and S8200 ($330).

Among the introduction class highlights is the Coolpix AW100, which is billed as a feature-rich waterproof (to 33 feet), freeze-proof (to 14 degrees) and shock-proof (from up to a 5-foot drop) point-andshoot designed for adventure seekers and extremeshooters. It shoots FullHD 1080p video and includes a 16-megapixel backside illuminated (BSI) CMOS sensor and Expeed C2 video processing with strong low-light performance.

Also added is a new GPS geo-tagging function. Users can shoot and track their route with the included Nikon ViewNX2 software, Nikon’s picture-sharing site Mypicturetown.com or Google Earth to pinpoint the exact picture locations.

The camera will also track location while not in use so the user can show an accurate map of their travels up the mountain or kayaking down a river. An included E-compass lets the user find his bearings via the LCD screen.

The compact body design measures 0.9 inches thin and 6.3 ounces light.

The camera supports a maximum ISO of 3,200 and includes a 5x wide angle zoom-Nikkor ED glass lens (35mm equivalent of 28-140mm) and Vibration Reduction (VR) to minimize camera shake.

The AW100 also includes a 3-inch, bright LCD screen with Clear Color Display and anti-reflective coating. It will be available in choice of black, blue and orange.

Like its predecessor, the P7000, the new CoolPix P7100 was designed to offer advanced photographers a compact camera option with a variety of creative manual controls.

It includes a 10.1-megapixel CCD image sensor, Expeed C2 image processing and will capture 720p/24 fps HD movies. Images can be stored as JPEGs or RAW files.

Other features include a 3-inch vari-angle tilting LCD screen, new special effects and an improved response time enabled in part through a newly enhanced AF system.

The camera can capture full-resolution JPEG images at up to 1.2 fps.

The camera has a 7.1x wide-angle optical zoom-Nikkor ED glass lens (35mm equivalent to 28-200mm), with built-in neutral density (ND) filter, and optical Vibration Reduction (VR).

The ISO sensitivity ranges from 100 to 3,200, but can also be set to Hi 1 at full resolution (ISO 6,400 equivalent).

The new S-series offerings are highlighted by the Coolpix S8200 pocketable super-zoom camera with up to a 14x optical zoom-Nikkor ED glass lens and a compact body (measuring 1.3 inches deep).