Nikon Coolpix S2

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From S1 to S2, several features have been improved--including a sliding lens cover, splash-proof aluminum body and some in-camera features. This upgraded model is being marketed as a shooter that can withstand the elements while remaining slim and stylish. The weather-resistant feature is, however, not new in the market with several models from Olympus and HP's Photosmart M22 already sporting the same ability. Adding on to that, Pentax's Optio WP is even waterproof up to a depth of 1.5m.

Editors' note:

Our initial review was based on a pre-production unit of the Coolpix S2 and we have since updated our review with some minor improvements to the camera. The shot-to-shot performance of the S2 was slightly faster at 3 seconds with flash on and 2 seconds with flash forced off. Under features, more than half of the setup menus disappointingly remained as a double-dash which was non-intuitive to the user experience of the camera. We did not find any major differences in both our pre-production and commercial unit that warrant a change in our ratings for the camera.

Design
Our first impression of the Coolpix S2 was a squeaky clean one--only Nikon's brand and the camera model get front row seats on its aluminum body. A sliding cover that has a tendency to retain fingerprints protects the flash unit, lens and autofocus light. Its reflective surface also doubles as a mirror for self-portrait shots. With the snap-on feature, it prevents any accidental powering of the camera.

The back of this 5-megapixel camera is dominated by a large 2.5-inch screen, stifling the competition for the limited space with the controls and dials occupying whatever that is left. The only recognition Nikon gives to its splash-proof feature that is not available in the S1 is by the All-Weather label at the top of the unit--placed side-by-side with the speaker, microphone and the shutter.

Like its predecessor and Sony's Cyber-shot T7, the lens is placed at the extreme end of the camera's body. In fact, our initial snaps with the unit had quite a fair bit of unwanted attention from our fingers which tended to wrap around the lens while we were holding the camera. Unlike the T7 which uses its cradle as a support for the tripod, the S2 does away with all the hassle and has a mount beneath its aluminum body.

Features
Along with its slim body, the S2 protects itself with a splash-proof body that allows photography in rain or in snow and, of course, under the sun. By holding the playback button for 2 seconds, we can preview images in our Secure Digital (SD) card--or onboard memory of 12MB--without sliding down the faux mirror that doubles as an on/off button. Pressing the same button again turns off the unit.

Most of the functions are accessed via the Menu button. Unlike most other digital cameras in its category that sport a rotating dial for selecting different shooting modes, the S2 has an illuminated three-option selector--another one of those user-friendly features that makes it less strenuous to see which setting the camera is in. The built-in scene modes are self-explanatory or, when they are not, there is a Help button shared with the telezoom. Most of the menus within the camera's setup appear as a double-dash which was non-intuitive to the whole user experience of the camera. It gave the impression that the particular menu was unavailable compared to the other menus which was shown with either a graphical or text interface.

The S2's D-Lighting feature corrects images with insufficient exposure in the playback mode--creating a new copy of the picture together with a preview. This function works pretty well with photos taken in the day but not for those taken at night given the amount of noise exhibited after correction. Additional features include the Face-priority autofocus that was carried on from its predecessor; the ability to fix red-eye; and crop individual images in the playback mode.

The S2 also allows the user to zoom in and out during movie recording--a feature that previously belonged to the higher-end camera models.

Performance
True to Nikon's claim, the S2 is ready to take its first picture approximately 1.5 seconds upon startup. Its shot-to-shot performance came in average at 3 seconds with the flash on and 2 seconds with flash forced off. The camera took about 1 to 2 seconds to autofocus under most shooting environments.

The D-Lighting feature took a staggering 6 seconds to correct our pictures. Without a optical viewfinder, we had to keep the LCD on, draining the battery life at a much faster rate. Overall, we managed to take approximately 100 pictures with 2/3 of a fully charged battery.

Image Quality
The S2 produced images which were sharp and clear both in the normal and macro mode. With its D-Lighting feature, we were able to correct the images that were insufficiently exposed without much loss in the resolution. However, that feature did not perform as well on night photos which were considerably grainy and exhibited a lot of noise.

Without any form of image stabilizer, our pictures taken at night turned out to be blurry with ghoulish trails. A blur warning function in the form of a blinking red hand appears on the LCD when the camera is unstable and the unit promptly asks for the user's permission to save the image before it is actually recorded.