Likes
- Wide view on LCD
- Great handling features
- Large text in menus
- DSLR-like controls
- Lots of flash options
Dislikes
- Clumsy face detection
- Audible operation noise
- Spotty flash coverage
- Slow burst mode
- Slow auto focus
- No RAW format
Conclusion
The preproduction model we first looked at was riddled with silly issues like incomplete and errant menus and missing features. There were lots of problems that we hoped would disappear on the final production model – and only some of those hopes panned out.
The 10-megapixel Nikon Coolpix P5000 filled in the missing features and menus but not with things that will attract true enthusiasts. Here is the problem. The camera is marketed for people who already own Nikon DSLRs and Speedlight flashes and who don’t want to haul 70 pounds of camera equipment to every birthday party they attend. Unfortunately, the P5000 really caters more to consumers who are moving up the digital camera food chain rather than down.
What I mean is this: the P5000 is stocked with picture effects and has no RAW file format. It has a trendy face recognition system, but it hardly functions and the auto focus system is quite slow. The P5000 can record movies, but the optical zoom is locked in this mode and the audio is cut off before the movie clip actually ends.
DSLR owners don’t care for picture effects and face recognition as much as they do for a good burst mode and a solid auto focus system – the P5000 has neither of these. The burst mode stutters and the auto focus adds lag time to an already slow camera. The P5000’s constant humming noise coupled with slow processing when viewing pictures makes it seem that the camera is working really hard.
The Nikon Coolpix P5000 is meant to bridge the gap between compact digital cameras and DSLRs, but it is definitely weighted towards compact models.
