Re: Coolpix 990 -> Coolpix 800 not bad either! (Score 1)

I've been using the Nikon Coolpix 800 (the 950's smaller brother) for a few months now, and I'm very pleased with the results. The Coolpix 800 does not have the 950's rotating lens, but it's nearly equivalent for the rest: 2.1 megapixel, matrix measuring, opical (2x) zoom, good LCD screen on the back, and built-in flash.

The camera has good automatic modes, and a manual mode allows you to change all the settings (aperture, shutter speed ...), albeit through a rather clumsy menu-interface. It works best with bright light, obviously, but the grain in low-light pictures is viable, and in any case, the built-in flash is quite powerful. The quality of the optics is what you would expect from Nikon: very good!

Pictures are stored on a CompactFlash card, in 1600x1200 pixels. In "normal" compression mode, you can fit about 16 on the standard 8 Mb card. You can take pictures in burst mode, at up to 30 frames per second (but images are 320x240 then).

The camera works on 4 AA batteries, and for best results, it is very much advisable to use rechargeable NiMh batteries. The camera has energy-saving features, so battery life is rather good.

The biggest drawbacks in my opinion are the high price, but especially the lack of USB connectivity. The download speed using standard serial ports is not exactly fast. One way around this, especially useful for laptop users, is to get a PCMCIA adapter for the CompactFlash card, that way you can transfer pictures to your computer as easily as copying files from a floppy.

Nikon's product page for the Coolpix 800 can be found here.

iefpe