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(More customer reviews)I recently purchased the Nikon Coolpix S5 to replace my ailing Sony Cybershot P-8. The P-8 was my 3rd Cybershot and I'd never had a Nikon before.
While browsing for new cameras, I'd settled on the Canon IXY 700 as a replacement. However, my friend motioned me over to look at the S5. I'd looked at some of the other Coolpix models and didn't like the menu setup. I figure the menu is something that is going to be used a lot, so I wasn't going to consider any cameras with hard-to-use menus. I'd disqualified a Kodak EasyShare model earlier for that very reason; wanted to buy American, but alas, the menu was horrible. First impressions make or break a sale. And my first impression upon seeing the S5's menu was that it was very easy to use. And it has been.
The camera takes fairly decent pictures. However, not much of a difference vs. my previous Sony P-8 (3.2mp). I was hoping for a bit of an improvement, but didn't really see anything that impressed me overall that was "different."
The root of my review, though, is the design flaw that I believe this camera has. I'd taken several pictures at a going-away party recently and noticed that it looked like there were water splotches on the lens as there were white stars in the pictures. I took the camera to a photo lab and they blew the lens off in the case of any dust being on it. No water marks were visible on the lens (and the white splotches/stars in the pictures were never in the same place twice). When that didn't fix the problem, a photographer friend suggested that there might be dust on the sensor; although that doesn't explain the spots being in different places in each picture. I should note that not every picture has these spots. The common element seems to be that they are all evening, low-light situations using the red-eye flash function.
I took the S5 back to the place of purchase and exchanged for an identical unit. However, the problem has not gone away. A fellow from work noticed that the majority of the spots appear on the right side of the photos. Rarely are any (or any significant number) on the left side. Also, we were speaking of distance to object regarding the different photos, but near (~3 ft.) and far (~15-20 ft.) both resulted in similar splotchy problems. At this point, I suggested that perhaps the flash was too close to the lens and the rapid multiple flashing of the red-eye flashes was causing the bursts/splotches. My co-worker also suggested the lens being small may have played a factor in that, too.
That's where I'm at now. I believe my theory about the flash being too close to the lens is pretty close to the mark. I've never had this problem with any of my previous Sony Cybershots (and their lens to flash proximity was greater than the Nikon S5's).
As a result, I believe I'm going to request a refund and go with my original choice- the Canon IXY 700.
I did have one more nitpick regarding the menu- it takes a little menu jogging to turn off the photo info details on the viewer (something that was a one-button deal on the P-8). But other than that, the S5 has been very pleasant to use. I'm disappointed to have found this flaw as the Canon's a little heaver and little thicker than the S5.
So overall, it's a very nice camera. If the red-eye flash + low-light problem was fixed, I'd have no problems recommending this to anyone. As it is, I'd suggest finding a different model in the meantime as this is definitely a deal-breaker to have splotches/bursts/spots in one's photos. Simply not enough time in the day to digitally airbrush every single picture with these problems.
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Style meets performance with the Nikon Coolpix S5 Digital Camera. The sleek, stylish and compact design fits easily into your purse or pocket and still produces stunning pictures. 6 Megapixels and a 3x optical Zoom-Nikkor ED Glass Lens combine to create stunning photographs. Create picture perfect portraits with the One-Touch Portrait Button to activate the Face Priority AF feature to automatically find and focus in on a subject's face while the In-Camera Red-Eye Fix automatically removes most occurances of red-eye. Use Pictmotion to create an in-camera slideshow with your own music! Finally, use the included COOL-STATION dock to sync your camera to your PC or Mac. With these features and more, the Nikon Coolpix S5 packs tons of features into a stylish package that anyone can enjoy!Rotary Multi Selector makes feature selection fast and easy Voice memos In Camera Red-Eye Fix Face Priority AF automatically finds and focuses in on the subjects face for stunning portraits 23MB Internal Memory; SD Memory Card Slot An SD Card is NOT included, therefore we suggest purchasing an Optional 512MB memory card. It will allow you to store a lot more Video and images, as well as take advantage of the camera's high resolution abilities. PictBridge compatible for printing images without a computerUSB and A/V interface (A/V with COOL-STATION) Approximate Unit Dimensions (w x h x d) -3.7 x 2.3 x 0.8 inches / Unit Weight -4.8 ounces (without battery and SD memory card)
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