Nikon Coolpix S60 – Big 3.5 inch touch screen
Nikon Coolpix S60 costs $349 and it seems very nice in the playback mode. Like the iPod Touch and iPhone, this camera has touch screen which lets you scroll through the picture and you can also zoom in and out. On the negative side, shooting through the camera was a bit tedious because all the controls are located on the screen. However, the most disappointing thing is the image quality, especially considering some less expensive cameras can give better looking photos.
The Nikon Coolpix S60 is really slim at 2.4 inches by 2.8 inches by 0.9 inches and it weights 5.1 ounces. With the chrome detailing and the glossy finish, this is certainly a very attractive looking point and shoot camera. Just like most of the cameras out in the market these days, the S60 has a variety of colors to choose from. My review model was Crimson Red and other options include Platinum Bronze, Champagne Pink, Burgundy, Arctic White and Espresso Black. The back of this camera is dominated by a spacious three and half inch touch screen which is surrounded by a black thin border. On the top, there are just 2 physical buttons – Shutter and Power and everything else is controlled by the touch screen. The camera also has 5X zoom lens having a 5.9mm to 29.5 mm focal length and the corresponding maximum f-stops are of f/3.8 and f/4.8.
The biggest selling point on the Nikon Coolpix S60 is its touch screen. It is quite responsive and is fun to use just like the one on the iPhone. However, the user interface can be frustrating at times. For instance, for changing the ISO settings, it takes 4 steps but on the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T77, it takes just one touch. I don’t particularly like having zoom controls on the touch screen; a physical button is always preferred to sliding a finger on the display. However, the touch screen technology comes really handy in the playback mode – you can tap, drag, swipe gestures, move through images, and zoom.
If you are concerned about the speed, let me tell you that the Nikon Coolpix S60 is a quick shooter but there is some shutter lag. It takes 2.9 seconds for the camera to wake up and start shooting and successive shots can be snapped in 1.9 seconds. However, the shutter lag of the camera is pretty average at 0.65 seconds. For those who don’t know, the shutter lag is the time which elapses between the time when the shutter button is pressed and the time when the camera captures the picture.
