Nikon Launches 8 New Cameras Including New Flagship

2009.02.03

Today Nikon has unveiled 8 new Coolpix cameras with a new flagship for its performance series and a new relatively compact ultra-zoom for its life series.

At the top end, the success to the Nikon Coolpix P80 Neocamera reviewed last year is the Nikon Coolpix P90. This 12 megapixels ultra-zoom features a very wide 24X optical zoom lens with image stabilization and full manual controls. With a focal length range equivalent to 26-624mm in 35mm terms, the Coolpix P90 can reach any subject and take wide landscape and architecture shots as well. For capturing action, this digital camera has a wide-aspect 2 megapixels 15 FPS continuous shooting mode, similar to HDTV. Just like the P80 before it, the P90 is molded as a miniature SLR with a deep hand-grip and a protruding electronic viewfinder for added hand-holding comfort and stability.

The already existing L-series was also expanded to feature Nikon's first compact ultra-zoom, the 10 megapixels Coolpix L100. Unlike most compact ultra-zooms, the L100 is equipped with a wide-angle 15X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 28-420mm in 35mm terms. Its lens also features image stabilization and 1cm (0.4") macro mode, for close and far photography. The Nikon Coolpix L100 also features a high-speed continuous drive mode, this time at 13 FPS and a standard (4:3) aspect 3 megapixels resolution. This ultra-zoom is powered by readily available AA batteries for extra convenience.

The L-series also welcomes two new additions, the Coolpix L20 and Coolpix L19. Both these compacts feature point-and-shoot operation with a 3.6X wide-angle optical zoom lens. The L20 has a 10 megapixels sensor and 3" LCD, while the L19 has a 8 megapixels sensor and a 2.7" LCD.

The final additions of the day are members of the slim S-series, available in a wide-variety of interesting colors from a product photography point of view. The Nikon Coolpix S630, pictured in a lovely purple here, features a 12 megapixels sensor and a 7X stabilized optical zoom lens. Such a relatively long zoom range is rare among ultra-compact cameras without using folded optics which often reduce optical quality. Like all S-series Coolpix digital cameras, this one is purely point-and-shoot.

The Coolpix S620 features a wide-angle 4X optical zoom lens and a 12 megapixels sensor. The S230 and S220 are new 10 megapixels models with a minimal 3X optical zoom lens. While the S230 has a 3" touch-screen LCD, the S220 has a 2.5" standard (non-touch) LCD.

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