Win a Nikon Coolpix P7000 digital camera from Nikon my Picturetown

by Scott Carmichael on

Oh boy, do we have a contest for you – we’ve teamed up with Nikon’s my Picturetown photo sharing service to give away one of the best cameras of 2010 – the Nikon Coolpix P7000.

Before we explain how to enter this awesome contest, first a couple of words about the P7000 – this is the camera you pick when you want something compact, without having to sacrifice the quality and features of a larger digital SLR camera. Inside the Coolpix P7000 is a 10.1 megapixel 1/1.7″ CCD sensor, a 7x optical zoom, HD video, stereo audio (with mic input) and an HDMI output.

Photos take advantage of a 5-way image stabilizer, face detection system, smile timer and even a blink warning. Bottom line – in a camera this compact, you won’t find anything better.

So – now you know a little more about this great camera, how about a way to win one?

Entering is easy – we want you to share your best picture of 2010 with us. Your favorite photo of the year can be hosted anywhere you want, just link to it. Ideally, we’d love for you to take the time to create a Photo Movie at my Picturetown. To make this easier, Nikon has provided a promotional code that will upgrade a basic my Picturetown account to a three month gold account when you enter promtional code FREE3MTHS.

Later this week, we’ll post a full review of the Nikon Coolpix P7000 and show off more fun features of my Picturetown.

  • To enter, simply leave a comment answering the question posted above.
  • The comment must be left before Wednesday December 22, 2010 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time.
  • You may enter only once.
  • One Prize Winner will be randomly selected to receive one Nikon Coolpix P7000 digital camera.
  • Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, and the District of Columbia who are 18 and older.
  • The total value of the prize is approximately $499.
  • Click here for the complete official rules of this giveaway.

Camera travels 1,100 miles by sea… and turtle

by Jason Heflin on

I dropped my waterproof camera into twenty feet of ocean water once while snorkeling off the coast of Mexico. As I watched my camera drift slowly to the rocky bottom I knew I couldn’t hold my breath long enough to retrieve it. Luckily for me a free diver was in our party and rescued my electronic treasure. The thought of a losing a camera can be somewhat sickening. Once gone most never expect to see it again. Royal Dutch Navy sergeant Dick De Bruin never thought he’d see his camera after losing it at a dive site off the shores of Aruba. Yet after six months of travel the camera found it’s way back to him.

US Coast Guard officer Paul Schultz discovered the red Nikon camera, still in it’s waterproof case, banging against the rocks of a marina in Key West Florida. The camera wasn’t marked with any identification tying it to the owner so Schultz looked through the photos and video still preserved on the camera. The pictures held few clues. There were photos of two divers standing beside a truck with a blue roofed building in the background, a family on a couch, and a curious video. It appeared to have been taken accidentally by none other than a sea turtle. The footage shows the strap of the camera hooked on the turtles fin. In the five minute clip the camera is violently thrashed by the turtle’s fin then floats to the surface.

Schultz posted the photos to ScubaBoard.com and CruiseCritic.com and the mystery was solved. Members of the sites recognized a plane’s tail number and tracked it to the island of Aruba. Another site visitor recognized some of the children in a photo and pointed Schultz to Dick de Bruin. “I have a smile on my face. I can’t stop laughing about it,” de Bruin commented. “It’s really big news on the island.”
(Photo: Flickr/NOAA’s National Ocean Service)




Nikon Coolpix S8000 review – 10x wide zoom in an ultra compact point and shoot

by Scott Carmichael on

The new Nikon Coolpix S8000 is another new camera in the 2010 Nikon lineup. Last week we showed you the new P800 ultra-zoom, but travelers looking for a more compact camera may be interested in the S8000. The S8000 is currently the slimmest 10x optical zoom camera on the market.

As always, we’ll open with the basics – inside the S8000 is a 10x wide angle NIKKOR ED glass lens. The camera shoots photos at 14.2 megapixels and videos at 720p/30 frames per second. Images are stabilized with a 4-way VR system that combines an optical image stabilizer with motion detection.

On the back of the camera is a stunning 3 inch high resolution display with just under one million pixels. Its anti-glare coating makes it fairly usable in sunlight.

The camera charges over USB (thank goodness!) but uses a proprietary Nikon connector that combines USB and audio/video. HD content (photos and video) can be output using a miniHDMI connector.

Controls on the rear are nothing special – you get a 4-way D-pad/scroll wheel, and dedicated buttons for video and playback. Scene selections are made through the menu. Those menus are easy to navigate, and well designed, so those of us that don’t care for user manuals won’t be lost.

The 10x optical zoom packs a huge punch – and in fully extended mode, it really pops out of the unit. Thankfully, since this is a point and shoot, the lens has a built in protector.

And speaking of that zoom lens – this is a shot zoomed out…

And this is one zoomed all the way in (no digital zoom used). As you can see – you really can get quite close to things. The zoom is relatively fast, but often takes a second or two to reach where you want it. Unfortunately, the impressive zoom lens does have a price when it comes to camera start-up time – from power-on till shooting is a tad over three seconds.

On top of the S8000 is a tiny pop up flash – which turns out to be quite a hassle – especially if you tend to hold your camera in that corner (like me). Thankfully, the camera offers a polite warning when the auto-popup doesn’t work (when you have your hands on it). Because the flash is so small, don’t expect wonders in large dark areas. Also, the flash does pop-up, but not down, so don’t forget to push it in when you are done shooting.

Behind a small plastic flap is the miniHDMI connector – the USB/charger/AV port is on the bottom, which is a pretty poor design choice, as it means you can’t keep it plugged in and upright on your desk.

As with most point and shooters nowadays, the Nikon Coolpix S8000 comes with a variety of nifty tricks designed to make better photos:

  • Smile timer and blink protection
  • Blink warning
  • In-camera red-eye fix
  • Skin softening
  • Subject tracking
  • Quick retouch (in-camera)
  • Auto or manual scene selection from 16 modes

These gimmicks are perfect for people like me – who just want to press “click” and hope for the best.

Photo quality is like the P100 we recently reviewed – good, but not outstanding. It makes great vacation photos, but don’t purchase this expecting amazing results on par with a digital SLR. Still, given its $299 (MSRP) price, you really can’t ask for much more. HD videos are decent, photos look good and the styling and operation are what you’d expect from one of the world leaders in photography.

Thankfully, the MSRP is more of a recommended price than anything else – because I found mine for a mere $254 – making it a really good bargain, especially since it has only been available in stores for about three weeks.

PROS: Fantastic lens, easy operation, extremely compact, cheap

CONS: Fairly basic picture quality, weak flash, no zoom in video mode, slow start-up

Included with the camera is a battery rated for 210 shots (without the flash). In my tests, I reached 196 before the battery was drained beyond usage. Included in the box is a battery, wall USB charger, USB cable, AV cable, manuals/DVD and wrist strap. No memory card is included, and the camera only features 32MB of internal memory.

Product page: Nikon S8000

Ultra-zoom in a travel friendly package – Gadling reviews the new Nikon Coolpix P100

by Scott Carmichael on

This is a great time to be in the market for a new travel friendly camera. Almost weekly, new cameras are revealed that add more of the stuff travelers can benefit from.

In this review, I’ll introduce you to the newest from Nikon – the Coolpix P100. The P100 is an “ultra zoom” – which means its zoom lens packs quite a punch.

The basics are all pretty impressive too – 10.3 megapixels, 1080p HD video, high-speed video (up to 240 frames per second), tilting screen, pop-up flash and an electronic viewfinder. But perhaps the best feature in the P100 is its 26x optical zoom.

Operating the Nikon is simple – its startup time is quick, and you can start shooting your first photo in about 2 seconds (more if you need the flash). Subsequent photos are equally fast – also about 2 seconds. On the top of the camera is the mode selector (auto, sports, scene favorite scene, subject tracking, user settings, manual, aperture priority, shutter priority and programmed auto). Next to the mode selector is the power switch and zoom button.

On the rear of the camera is the viewfinder button, display option button, a selector knob for high-definition or high-speed video, video record button, play button, menu button, erase button and of course a d-pad control for menu operation and quick access to flash, timer, macro and exposure.

The tilting display is a fantastic feature – the entire 3″ display swivels up or down, and because it is mounted on an arm, you can angle it in all kinds of ways. This makes it perfect for shooting above or below you without having to get down on your knees or hurting your neck. Angling the display also makes it easier to move it out of the glare from the sun, because the anti-glare coating isn’t always efficient.

Photos are good, not great – obviously you won’t get professional digital SLR results from a camera with a small(ish) sensor, but for most people, the results will be perfect for travel photos. Video clips are acceptable, but I found the colors to be a little washed out. Even though you are shooting in 1080p, the results are about the same as most HD cameras in this price range. Bottom line is that if you want “real” HD video, you’ll need a “real” HD camcorder.

Here are two examples of what the lens in the P100 can do for you:

Zoomed out…

And zoomed in… Both photos were taken from the same spot. Obviously, the 26x zoom and optical image stabilizer help make photos like this.

The menus are very easy to navigate and you can make things as simple or complicated as you want – amateurs (like myself) will want to stick to the scene or auto mode settings, but if you are little more demanding, you’ll find plenty of other settings to tweak.

Videos and photos can be viewed on a TV using the included composite video/audio cable. but you’ll probably want to invest in a miniHDMI to HDMI cable which allows you to connect the camera to your HDTV. On the side of the camera are the proprietary USB/video connector and the miniHDMI plug. Using a proprietary USB connector means you’ll always want to carry the included USB cable – I wish Nikon would switch to MiniUSB (like Canon uses). Thankfully, the P100 can be charged over USB, which means you can leave the charger at home.

The P100 uses SD and SDHC memory cards – no card is included, but it does offer 43MB of internal memory – which is enough for just a couple of pictures.

The P100 is not a compact camera – but it is quite a bit smaller than a dSLR with a comparable lens. Of course, many people with a dSLR wouldn’t want to be seen in public with a “point and shooter” – but sometimes you just want to turn your camera on and start shooting, without having to worry about the settings on your $2000 camera.

Battery life is pretty basic – the battery pack is a mere 1150mAH, which is rated for about 250 shots – I got just under 230 before I had to swap out the battery. Thankfully, Nikon has not made the switch to authenticated battery packs, so I was able to order a non-Nikon spare for under $10.

The P100 weighs just over one pound (with SD card and battery). Of course, because it is mostly made of plastic, the weight can be kept to a minimum.

Included in the (rather large) box is the camera itself, a lens cap, USB and video cables, a battery with charger, a stack of manuals and an installation CD with transfer software, a panorama maker and more.

All in all a solid ultra-zoom shooter with decent photos. Colors in the video clips are a bit disappointing, and there is no denying that you’ll get better shots from a more expensive camera – still, the quality is perfect for those of us that are still firmly stuck in the point and shoot world. Being able to charge the camera using USB is a huge plus.

The tilting display and ultra-zoom are what make this camera stand out in the crowd – but perhaps its best feature is its price. The MSRP is $399.99, but I was able to pick one up at the local electronics superstore for just $349.99. This makes it a fantastic bargain. Later this year, other companies will be releasing their own ultra-zooms, so the Nikon is in for some decent competition.

PROS: huge 26x optical zoom, charges over USB, tilting display

CONS: washed out colors in HD video clips, images are only “acceptable”, not outstanding

Product page: Nikon USA Coolpix P100
Shopping prices: Google price search

In the photo gallery below, you’ll find more photos, along with hi-res version of the zoom lens demo (large photos!)

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Daiy gear deals – $31 picnic set, widescreen GPS unit and more

by Scott Carmichael on

Here are the hottest gadget deals for today, Thursday June 4th 2009. Remember, these deals are often only valid for one day, so act fast before they are gone!

The first deal for today is pretty damn cool if you ask me – This picnic set comes with 32 pieces, and contains everything you need for a fun outdoor picnic. Mind you – this isn’t some cheap plastic junk either, the kit comes with a cutting board, salt and pepper shakers and of course a picnic blanket. On sale at Buy.com for $30.99 with free shipping.

The best deals are often refurbished items, and this Nikon Coolpix S600 10 Megapixel digital camera is no exception. With a 4x optical wide angle zoom lens and optical vibration reduction, this thing is top of the line, with a bottom of the line price. Normal retail price is about $249, but Adorama is selling it (refurbished) for just $100! You’ll find the Nikon Coolpix S600 digital camera here.

If you are looking for a GPS unit with more than just the basics, then check out this highly rated Garmin nüvi 780 widescreen GPS unit with Bluetooth. Sure, it costs a bit more than the super-basic models, but that does get you Bluetooth handsfree, MSN Direct traffic and information services, a widescreen display and more. Normal retail price s $399, now on sale for just $199 with free shipping.

And finally – the Altec Lansing UHP336 Snugfit noise reducing headphones do much more than just deliver a really long product name. They are designed to feel extremely comfortable, yet provide excellent sound quality and impressive noise isolation. Perfect for your upcoming summer vacation flight! Normal retail price is $130, now on sale for just $34.95 with free shipping.