Introduction

Design & Appearance

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Physical design is a refinement of the S8100. The mode dial and shutter release are in basically the same spot, and so is the stylish thin vertical grip on the front panel. The entire front panel, by the way, is covered with rubber, but the material has a sheen that looks like plastic, preserving the aesthetic.

The lens is slightly larger this time around, and takes up more room on the face of the camera. On the rear, control layout is exactly the same, but some geometry has been added to the LCD bezel for an updated, more modern look.

The S8200 is available in black, silver, and red.

Tour

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Ease of Use

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There's little in the way of easy use that can't be said for every other ultracompact on the market. The small form factor is certainly nice, and despite the long 14x zoom, this camera fits easily in the pocket.

The S8200's menu system doesn't depart from Nikon's usual method, and this a good thing. It's a tab-based system, with options split up into shooting variables, video settings, and hardware preferences. There's no "quick menu" per se, but the current design is fast enough as it is.

Size & Handling

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This is one of the best handling point-and-shoots we've ever used, thanks to the front panel that is entirely coated in rubber. Again, this surface doesn't look like rubber, it shines like plastic, so you won't expect how well the camera feels until you actually take it in hand. We only wish the rear panel had similar properties, but there are at least a few tactile embellishments beside the movie button.

Auto Mode

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Program Auto is notably absent from the S8200's repertoire, however there is a fully automatic green mode that adjusts all settings on the fly. We'll need a little bit more time with the camera to be certain of this mode's flexibility.

Movie Mode

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The S8200's video capabilities are pretty strong. Full HD clips at 30 frames per second are encoded in H.264. Two microphones reside on the top of the body, for AAC stereo sound. High speed shooting is also possible at up to 120 frames per second, though resolution is limited to 640x480. There are even a few additional shooting resolutions, including native iFrame 960x540, for playback on Apple devices.

Playback Mode

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Playback mode is robust and includes fullscreen view with zoom and shooting information, grid display in various proportions, slideshow playback, and even some rudimentary in-camera editing like rotation, retouch, filter effects, crop, or dynamic range enhancement.

Custom Image Presets

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18 scene modes are available and most of them are relatively common. There's a scene mode auto selector that automatically chooses between Portrait, Landscape, Night portrait, Night landscape, Close-up, Backlighting, and Other. Aside from these settings, the full list of S8200 scene modes is Pet Portrait, Sports, Party/Indoor, Beach, Snow, Sunset, Dusk/dawn, Food, Museum, Fireworks show, Black and white copy, and Panorama.

Drive/Burst Mode

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The default continuous shooting mode is a five shot burst that fires at about 6 frames per second, though we'll need more time with the unit to confirm. In addition, there are plenty of other burst options, including pre-shooting cache, which begins shooting before the shutter release is pressed. High-speed shooting over 60 frames per second is also available here, at the expense of resolution. Nikon also includes some advanced options like best shot selector and multi-shot 16, the latter of which takes 16 shots and arranges them in a single image.

Manual Controls

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The S8200's only real "manual" controls are basic shooting variables like ISO and white balance. From what we can tell, other details like shutter speed and aperture are off-limits.

Focus

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This camera's contrast-based autofocus system is capable of many different techniques, including face priority, 9-area automatic focus, manual spot focus, center spot, and subject tracking. Like many Nikon cameras, the S8200 supports either fixed or continuous focus, which can be helpful for tracking moving subjects.

ISO

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ISO sensitivity values extend from 100 to 3200, pretty standard for this class although we do sometimes see ISO 6400. It seems to us that no extended ISO options are available. Auto ISO samples between 100 and 1600 at default settings, however fixed range auto can be set to select from between either 100 to 400 or 100 to 800.

White Balance

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Five white balance presets are easily accessible from the main shooting menu, including an option intended for use with the built-in flash. But we always find ourselves using either Auto for shooting in the field, or Custom for shooting in the labs. Nikon's preset manual white balance measurement tool is found in the same menu.

Exposure & Metering

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Matrix (also known as "evaluative") and center-weighted metering methods are supported, and we're surprised to see spot metering left out. It's difficult to say what kind of performance and response we can expect from the S8200 without more time, so we'll be excited to try some real-world shooting with it down the line.

Image Stabilization

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The S8200 is equipped with lens-shift vibration reduction, an advanced technique that we don't always see in this class. Without strapping the camera to our stabilization rig it's impossible to judge performance, but Nikon is usually adept in this area.

Picture Quality & Size Options

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A wide variety of image dimensions and detail levels are available, including some with 16:9 aspect ratios. Unfortunately there is no ability to shoot in RAW mode and no compression quality settings to save memory space.

Other Controls

LCD

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The S8200's LCD may be the exact hardware used for the S8100. 921,000-dot resolution, 3.0-inches diagonally, anti-reflection coating. The monitor is excellent no matter what, with accurate colors and good brightness. It's a display we're happy to see return.

Flash

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Built-in flash is concealed inside a compartment on the left side of the top panel, and although the location is identical, flash is a key change for the S8200. The motorized flash assembly both extends and retracts automatically, which means the user has no manual control. Physically pushing down on it doesn't help. We have a feeling the Nikon designers deliberately opted for the idea of an entirely automatic machine complete with moving parts. Cooler yes, but we all know moving parts are the first to break.

Lens & Sensor

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Everything about both the lens and sensor have been improved. Zoom ratio has been increased to 14x, and the aperture has been opened up to f/3.3 (although this still isn't quite as wide as many competitive models). Meanwhile, the sensor has been replaced with another CMOS model, this one capable of 16.1 megapixel resolution. Further commentary is impossible without lab testing, but the spec sheet is certainly appealing.

Jacks, Ports & Plugs

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A mini-HDMI port resides on the right panel underneath a small terminal cover, and this could be used for streaming slideshows or video to a nearby HDTV. Above that is a standard mini-USB port for interfacing with a PC.

Battery

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The included rechargeable lithium battery is CIPA-rated at approximately 250 shots, placing it around the average for this camera size. After more time with the camera we'll be able to verify the validity of this claim.

Memory

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The S8200 is compatible with SD, SDHC, and fast SDXC memory cards. If you don't have one handy, 89 MB of built-in memory is available, though this is only enough for 11 full resolution shots.

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Conclusion

There's a fine line between "point-and-shoot" and "high-end ultracompact." Nikon, with the Coolpix S8200, is doing their best to raise the ceiling for point-and-shoot cameras, without actually venturing into true high-end territory. What design and specification changes have been made since the S8100 seem to have been for the best. We were impressed by the camera during our short time with it, thanks mostly to painless use and excellent handling. But only our lab tests can decide whether the boost in specifications really equal a boost in image quality. For now, the S8200 is simply full of potential, and we find ourselves looking forward to a full review with great anticipation.

Sample Photos

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Specs

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