Nikon Coolpix S2800 Review

Features
Handling
Performance
Verdict
Specification



The Nikon Coolpix S2800 was announced in January 2014. It is a slim compact with a 20.1 megapixel CCD sensor and 5x optical zoom lens. Other features include a range of filter effects which can be applied to pictures in playback. The S2800 is available exclusively from Argos in purple lineart, pink, red, silver, black and purple for £69.99.

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Features

The Nikon Coolpix S2800 has a 20.1 megapixel CCD sensor and a 5x optical zoom lens, which is a 35mm equivalent of 26-130mm. To help take sharper shots there is motion blur reduction. When shooting moving objects you can use Target Finding AF which identifies and focuses on your subject.

The Scene Auto Selector automatically optimises the camera settings for the detected scene, or you can choose your own from 18 scene modes. There is the Smart Portrait System which includes Smile Timer, Blink Proof alerting and Red-Eye Fix. After shooting your portraits they can be enhanced using Advanced Glamour Retouch, which includes 12 retouch effects such as add make-up and hide eye-bags. You can also edit your images via the Retouch menu with 32 quick effects, which includes Selective Colour.

Videos are recorded in 720p HD.

Key Features

• 20.1 megapixel CCD sensor
• 5x optical zoom lens (35mm equiv: 26-130mm)
• Electronic vibration reduction
• 2.7 inch 230k dot LCD screen
• In-camera filter effects
• 720p HD video recording
• ISO 80-1600 (ISO 3200 available in auto mode)
• 10cm minimum focusing distance
• 1.1 fps continuous shooting
• Available in purple lineart, pink, red, silver, black and purple

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Handling

The Nikon Coolpix S2800 is a pocketable, lightweight camera with a metal front - the rear is made from plastic. To aid grip there is a dotted area where your right hand thumb sits. The top of the camera houses the on / off button, zoom rocker and shutter release. On the rear are movie record, mode, playback, menu and delete buttons as well as a d-pad for cycling through the menus. The d-pad also gives you access to the flash, self-timer, exposure compensation and macro.

The rest of the rear of the camera is filled with the 2.7 inch screen, which has a 230k dot resolution. This is a low resolution, but fairly typical for a budget compact camera. The screen also has an anti-reflection coating, making it easy to view the screen in bright sunlight. The menu is easy to read and navigate. After each shot you are asked if you would like to apply a quick effect to your picture. This can be quite tedious, but it is possible to switch it off.

Battery life is rated at 220 shots according to CIPA test results, it's likely a full day of shooting will require the batteries to be recharged. We took a number of shots to test the camera's responsiveness, from switch on to first photo, shot to shot, focusing speed etc. We take a number of shots and then use the average to ensure accurate and consistent tests, making it easy to compare with other cameras.

Shutter Response		0.25 secs
Wide - Focus / Shutter Response		0.4 secs
Full zoom - Focus / Shutter Response		0.6 secs
Switch on Time to Taking a Photo		2.4 secs
Shot to Shot without Flash		2.4 secs
Shot to Shot with Flash		5.7 secs
Continuous Shooting		1.0 fps

When using the flash, the S2800 becomes very sluggish between shots.

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Performance

Additional sample photos and product shots are available in the Equipment Database, where you can add your own review, photos and product ratings.

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Sample Photos

Sample Photos - The S2800 produces well exposed images with decent colour reproduction. Portraits have decent skin tones, are free of red-eye and you can enhance them further using the Glamour Retouch available via playback. 

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Lens test images

Lens Performance - Detail is good when shooting wide, with sharp images produced. When zooming in, detail isn't as good. There is a little purple fringing in contrasting areas, but it doesn't impact too much on image quality. The lens has a minimum focusing distance of 10cm, so it's not easy to take a frame filling macro shot.

Nikon Coolpix S2800 ISO test images

ISO Noise Performance - Noise is low at ISO 80 and 100, with only a small increase in noise at ISO 200 and 400. Images clearly have more noise at ISO 800 and quality drops significantly at ISO 1600. Image size is limited to just 4 megapixels at ISO 3200.

Nikon Coolpix S2800 White-balance test images

White Balance Performance - Under the incandescent lights, both the Auto White Balance (AWB) and incandescent presets perform well, taking very similar images. Under the fluorescent lights, the AWB again performs well - the fluorescent preset takes an image with a magenta cast.

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Digital filters

Digital Filters - When shooting, you can apply one of five colour modes. After shooting, there are a number of different quick effects available, we've included examples of each above (there are several different selective colour effects available, we have included just one).

Video - Below is a video recorded in 720p HD. Quality is OK, there's no optical zoom available during recording, but you can use digital zoom.

Value For Money

The Nikon Coolpix S2800 is available for £69.99. There are plenty of other cameras available that have a similar specification. Options include the Sony Cybershot W710 at £64.99, Panasonic Lumix DMC-XS1 at £54.99 and Canon PowerShot A3500 IS at £79.99.

You'll also need to buy a memory card and a case or bag to keep your camera safe and protected - have a look at our complete guide to camera bags.

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Verdict

The S2800 is one of the cheapest compact cameras around and is very good value for a Nikon compact. It has a fairly basic set of features, but there are plenty of quick filters to make you pictures different and unique - a bit like having Instagram on a camera. It lacks optical image stabilisation and if you like to take macro shots, you'll struggle with the 10cm minimum focusing distance. You can purchases the S2800 in a wide variety of colours and at just £69.99, is good value for money.

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Pros

Easy to use
Images have decent colour reproduction
Good value for money
Available in a number of colours

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Cons

Lacks features
Low battery life
10cm minimum focusing distance
No optical image stabilisation

FEATURES
HANDLING
PERFORMANCE
VALUE FOR MONEY
VERDICT

Nikon Coolpix S2800 Specifications

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