Nikon announces new slim, stylin' S-series cameras

[Jamison Cush]

Nikon today announced four new S-series Coolpix cameras, stating the "S" stands for "style" and represents a host of features, including long zooms, touch screens, HD video recording capabilities, and sleek new bodies.

Nikon Coolpix S8000
Style aside, Nikon claims that the Coolpix S8000 is the thinnest camera in its class; so in this case, the S stands for "slim." Nikon 14.2 megapixel S8000 shoots HD video (720p) at 30 fps and sports a 10X optical zoom (30mm to 300mm), 4-way image stabilization, ISO to 3200, and a 3.0 inch LCD display.

Other features include the Nikon Creative Slider for simplified picture controls (brightness, saturation, and color tone), Advanced Flash Control, high-speed continuous shooting, subject tracking, Scene Auto Selector Mode, fast start-up, quick shutter release, and a host of portrait modes, including red-eye reduction and smile recognition. The S8000 will be available in black, red, bronze, and silver.

Nikon Coolpix S6000
Nikon also claims the Coolpix S6000 is the thinnest camera in its class, which in this case means compact cameras with similar specs (that doesn't include the S8000, according to Nikon). The S6000 is a 14.2 megapixel compact camera with a 7x optical zoom, ISO to 3200, 4-way image stabilization, and a 2.7 inch LCD display.

Like the S8000, it shoots 720p HD video, but the S6000 includes an HDMI connection. The S6000 also features Advanced Flash Control, high-speed continuous shooting, subject tracking, Scene Auto Selector Mode, fast start-up time (.75 seconds), quick shutter release (.3 seconds), and all the portrait modes found in the S8000. The S6000 will come in silver, black, red, and bronze.

Nikon Coolpix S4000
The 12 megapixel Coolpix S4000 has a bit more girth than its slim counterparts, just enough to pack in a 3.0 inch LCD screen and touch interface. The S4000 allows users to highlight subjects via the touch screen and control the focus, exposure, and shutter with a single touch. It has 4x wide-angle zoom, and like the S8000 and S6000, the S4000 also shoots 720p video, features ISO to 3200, 4-way image stabilization, subject tracking, Scene Auto Selector Mode, and all the Nikon portrait modes. The S4000 will come in silver, black, red, pink, and plum.

Nikon Coolpix S3000
Rounding out the S-series is the 12 megapixel Coolpix S3000 with its 2.7 inch LCD screen. Unlike the others, the S3000 cannot shoot HD video. Otherwise, it is comparable to the S4000 in terms of features, sans the touch screen. It will be available in sliver, black, plum, orange, green, and blue.

Pricing and availability
The S8000 will be available later this month for an MSRP of $299.95. The S600, S4000, and S3000 will all be available in March for an MSRP of $249.95, $199.95, and $149.95, respectively.

[kelsci]

What I like about the S8000 is the fact it supports stereo sound. I like the design of its stereo microphones too. Depending on the polar field of those mics, the camera might render matrix surround effects when played back over a virtual surround mode on a receiver or dvd player or a Dolby Pro-Logic Movie mode.