Design
Measuring just 89.9 x 57.5 x 19.7mm, the S3 is considered compact. The girth of the shooter is no thicker than a typical leather wallet and small enough to fit into most pockets. However, there's also a high chance for users with larger digits to block the non-extending lens while taking pictures. Its aluminum body weighs 118g (without battery and memory card), making it extremely portable.
The Coolpix S3 comes with a 2.5-inch LCD screen and does away with a viewfinder. However, there is no option to remove the image data that blocked parts of our pictures on the screen during playback. The only alternative is to view the shots with the slideshow option which does not allow much flexibility in browsing. The time interval between each slide is predetermined and we weren't able to configure the settings.
In addition to its size and style, the Coolpix S3 proves to be very user-friendly with a gentle learning curve for amateur photographers.
The S3 comes with the standard set of buttons we've seen on previous iterations. The zoom lever is on the upper right-hand corner. Just below is a four-way controller that navigates the graphical user interface (GUI). There are three predefined shortcuts: A trigger to the left initiates the self-timer menu; hitting up cycles the various flash options; down activates the macro menu. There's still space for one more shortcut on the right, which is left unassigned.
Surrounding the controller are the Menu, Playback and Delete buttons, each serving their assigned purposes. Just above the base of the camera body is a three-way slider for photo capture mode, scene mode selection and video recording. We like the ease of use and simplicity of the layout.
Furthermore, the battery and memory cards are discreetly hidden on the sides and bottom of the camera, together with the slot for the Coolstation -- a docking station for integrated and easy downloading of images and recharging of the camera battery.
Features
The Nikon Coolpix S3 packs a 6-megapixel CCD together with a 35mm-to-105mm 3x optical lens that's hidden very well under the slim camera body. At 110k pixels, the S3 does not have the highest LCD resolution compared with its rivals: The Cyber-shot N1 boasts 230k pixels, while the Minolta X1 and FinePix Z1 average close to 117k pixels.
The Coolpix S3 comes with 16 scene modes and Face-priority AF which is useful for shooting portraits. In addition, a built-in flash with Auto, Fill, Slow-sync and Red-eye reduction settings forms part of the S3's stable of features. Both the AF and red-eye reduction functions are easy to use and performed fairly well. There ie a wide variety of shooting modes on the S3: single, continuous, multishot 16 and time-lapse. In my opinion, that's a decent enough range for the normal camera user.
The S3 further comes with a customisable GUI. It provides an option for users to select functions by either names or icons. Navigation using names proved to be a walk in the park. However, the same cannot be said about the icons as we found them rather confusing.
The Coolstation is sleek and light, just like the S3. However, the camera is reliant on the docking station for downloading images so there's a need to carry the extra accessory around. This can get frustrating at times.
Performance
The Coolpix S3 isn't the fastest digicam we've seen so far. The image-processing time averaged 3 seconds without flash and a staggering 5 seconds with flash. It's not all gloom, though. Powering up the unit took approximately 1.5 seconds and another second more for time to first shot. Autofocusing was reasonable between 1.5 and 2 seconds.
The time taken to switch from record to playback was nearly instantaneous. However, it took a much longer time to view images right after a shot -- a hefty 3 seconds. We were pleased though that the 10x magnification could be easily achieved without any lagging or other problems during playback.
Video capture on the S3 was generally satisfactory. On an added note, we could zoom in optically while recording, which was good news.
Image Quality
Image quality from the Coolpix S3 was average. We noticed most of our images had a slight yellow cast and were a bit soft.
The anti-blur function offered only as much help as notifying us that the resulting picture could be blurry. We had to use a tripod or place the S3 on a stable surface to minimise camera shake.
During our video tests, the shooter managed to record relatively clear footages with sound. Noise was evident, sadly, but it's nothing to worry about as it's typical for most cameras of this class. Expect more noise in your still images especially at high ISO settings.
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nikon camera
24/05/2008, 04:17 PM
rating
7/10
I think that Nikon Cool pix S3 is best than L2 model. Because of its great features like solid image quality, internal memory, Attractive design, thin and highly portable, excellent video specs. I like it very much.
Pros: Raw capture.
Lightweight body.
Solid image quality.
Very thin and highly portable.
Cons: I think this camera has no hotshoe.
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dphotographer
22/09/2006, 01:48 PM
rating
9/10
This user friendly camera has good value for money.
Pros: Ability to run on its own lithium battery is a plus factor. Slim design makes it very portable. It also has red-eye reduction features which makes it handy during night photography.
Cons: The shutter speed is not as fast as the newer models.
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