Digital Bliss (Nikon Coolpix 3100)

Member Name: chrismoll

Product:	Nikon Coolpix 3100
Date:	29/05/05 (93 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: great features, great pre-sets, value for money

Disadvantages: no sounds on video

I began selling on e-bay and sales were suffering for lack of pictures so I decided it was time that I got in touch with the digital world and bought a digital camera! I went out with the mind set of wanting to spend no more than £100, thinking this would get me something basic that would last. I was persuaded to spend a little over £100 on this Nikon Coolpix 3100, and I was not disappointed!

I didn't know a great deal about digital cameras but I knew that I needed something over 2 mega pixels and with optical zoom. The Nikon offers 3.2 effective mega pixels, 3x optical zoom and a massive 14 scene modes! It is a small camera that fits perfectly into your hand but at the same time can fit in a pocket or bag with no problems. The display screen on the back is a great feature as you know exactly what you are taking and you can review the picture once it is done.

This may seem like a basic feature on a digital camera but the screen saves a lot of memory when shots don't come out as you may have wished. Rather than waiting until you get home to check how your pictures have taken you can simply refer to the screen, delete accordingly and take until you are happy with the result.

The memory card with the camera is 16mb which fits 144 pictures at 640 resolution which is about the same size as a small TV or 10 pictures at 2048* resolution which is double the size of a PC screen. The default size and one I would recommend is 1024 resolution, as this fits 68 pictures at PC screen size which is what most pictures will be used for.

There are endless features on this product so I won't bore you with in depth descriptions of each but just enough so you know its ins and outs. There are menus within the camera which allow you to choose a date imprint or not, format the memory card, change the language, date and setup of brightness. Also on each mode you can choose the strength of the flash, zoom in (to great extent) and whether or not the shot is a close up which changes the detail accordingly. The camera also features a self timer mode which is good for those family shots with no-one willing to step behind the camera!

The main feature of this camera is its amazing amount of pre-set features which allows those not too advanced in settings; take great pictures for every occasion. The 'mode wheel' allows many presets which change the quality of picture, flash and focus; which make a surprisingly big difference to the outcome of the picture. The modes included are the night portrait, sports shot (which allows you to take multiple pictures one after the other by merely holding down the button), landscape shots and portrait assistance. As well as these modes there is another selection on the mode wheel called "scene" - this gives a further 10 settings for party/indoor, beach/snow, sunset, dusk/dawn, night landscape, close up, museum, fireworks shows, copy (to copy text and line drawings), and back light. As you can see these presets cover almost everything and are a great help to get the best quality picture possible.

As well as these many features the camera also has a video mode which allows you to take videos of anything up to 320 seconds (just over 5 minutes). This is where the only bad feature comes about the camera is that the videos have no sound. This isn't a massive feature; it is a luxury to even have videos on a camera but if your going to do a job, its worth doing properly! Another great feature of the camera which works good, especially with the video mode is the cable you are given that allows you to plug the camera directly into your T.V. or a similar device (with the yellow, red and white connections). You can also use this to view your picture in a gallery mode done by one button on the camera. Other additions that come in the package with the camera are; a lead to connect to a computer, the manual on disc, a detailed book on use and tips, rechargeable batteries and recharger and also a full edition of Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0 which takes a little getting used to but can be used to a great extent. The battery life of the camera is good, it will easily last you a full day of photo taking and so no danger of running out on a trip that has been planned for weeks and missing that all important shot! It is easiest to recharge over night and used the next day but it can easily be charged to an average amount of battery power in a couple of hours.

I think that it is clear that from the amazing amount of features included with this camera that you won't be disappointed. I bought this camera about a year ago for a little over £100, so I imagine that it will probably under £100 now and without doubt worth every penny. The great thing about this camera is that it can be used to great extent by a beginner but also by someone who knows a lot about cameras and their uses. A must buy for anyone looking to find a cheap, reliable and feature packed digital camera!

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