Nikon Coolpix P5100 Digital Camera Review

Model Design / Appearance (7.75)
The Nikon Coolpix P5100 is designed to combine the controls and interface of a DSLR with a compact digital camera’s body. It is supposed to appeal to DSLR owners who don’t want to haul around their equipment to every event. The body is compact but not thin so it doesn’t have the sexy flamboyant look of the Sony T200, for example.

The P5100 keeps function at the forefront; there aren’t many chrome highlights or visual draws, but functional buttons, like the column to the left of the LCD, similar to those on DSLRs. The multi-selector is pulled straight from low-end Coolpix cameras such as the Nikon Coolpix L15, although this is also found on the P5000. The P5100 looks like a “serious” camera; functional, but not ugly.

Size / Portability (7.0)
One of the big selling points of the Nikon P5100 is its size. It is more portable than a DSLR, but doesn’t match the flawless handling and superior image quality. The P5100 measures 3.8 x 2.5 x 1.6 inches and weighs 7.1 ounces without the battery and memory card. This isn’t trim enough to cram into a tight pants pocket, but will easily fit into a coat pocket, backpack, purse, or diaper bag.

The camera has chrome neck strap eyelets on each side and comes with a thin strap. The neck strap isn’t very comfortable; too skinny in our opinion. But it’s better than trying to dangle this hefty chunk from a wrist. The camera body is a combination of plastic and metal elements that makes it heftier than it looks.

Handling Ability (8.25)
The Nikon P5100 is pretty much unchanged from its predecessor in terms of looks and handling. That’s a good thing in this case: the P5100 and P5000 handle very well for being so compact. The P5100 has a nice hand grip that is defined enough to allow fingers to comfortably wrap around it. The hand grip is coated with a rubber-like material that feels silky and sticky at the same time; it feels great.

On the back of the camera, there is a matching rubber pad where the right thumb rests. The pad is curved slightly so that the top protrudes farther and keeps the thumb in place to support the camera from the back. The Nikon P5100 still isn’t as comfortable as a DSLR – there isn’t a wide base to support – but it’s as close as users will get with a camera this size.

Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size (7.75)
The controls on the Nikon Coolpix P5100 are a combination of DSLR and slim camera buttons. The high-end camera has a nice mode dial on the top that is easy to turn with its serrated edges, but wound tight. The jog dial to its right feels a little looser. The presence of a jog dial makes it easy to scroll through exposure adjustments; this feature is pulled straight from DSLRs.

The back of the camera also has a layout similar to DSLRs. There is a column of five buttons to the left of the LCD screen. These buttons are all properly labeled and protrude slightly so they won’t require a huge push from the fingers. On the right side of the back is a cheap multi-selector that was present on the P5000 but also borrowed from cheaper Coolpix cameras like the sub-$200 Nikon L15. The multi-selector has a central OK button and a single ring around it. The ring is flat so there is no tactile feedback about which direction the finger is pushing.

Overall, the camera’s controls are above average. The mode dial makes it easy to start shooting, the jog dial makes it easy to adjust the exposure, and the column of buttons provides easy access points for functions like deletion and display options.

Menu (7.5)
The Nikon Coolpix P5100’s menus look similar to other recent Coolpix digital cameras. They have a gray background with white text. The selected option appears with black text and a yellow background. There are few icons, and those few icons come alongside text. The following is the Recording menu.

Image Quality	Fine, Normal, Basic
Image Size	4000 x 3000, 3264 x 2448, 2592 x 1944, 2048 x 1536, 1600 x 1200, 1280 x 960, 1024 x 768, 640 x 480, 3984 x 2656 (3:2), 3968 x 2232 (16:9), 2992 x 2992 (1:1)
Optimize Image	Normal, Softer, Vivid, More Vivid, Portrait, Custom (Contrast, Image Sharpening with auto, normal, low, medium low, medium high, high, and off and Saturation with auto, normal, moderate, and enhanced options), Black & White (Standard, Custom with contrast, image sharpening, and monochrome filter with none, yellow, orange, red, and green options and Black & White + Color)
White Balance	Auto, Preset Manual (measure, cancel), Daylight, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Cloudy, Flash
ISO Sensitivity	Auto, Fixed Range Auto (ISO 64-100, 64-200, 64-400), 64, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 2000, 3200
Metering	Matrix, Center-weighted, Spot, Spot AF area
Continuous	Single, Continuous, BSS, Continuous Flash, Multi-shot 16, Interval Timer Shooting (30 s, 1, 5, 10, 30, 60 min)
Auto Bracketing	+/- 0.3, +/- 0.7, +/- 1
AF Area Mode	Face Priority, Auto, Manual, Center
Auto Focus Mode	Single AF, Full-time AF
Flash Exposure Compensation	-2, -1.7, -1.3, -1, -0.7, -0.3, 0, +0.3, +0.7, +1, +1.3, +1.7, +2
Flash Control	Auto, Built-in Off
Fixed Aperture	On, Off
Noise Reduction	Auto, On
Converter	None, Wide-angle Converter, Telephoto converter
User Setting	(shows two banks of current settings)
Reset User Setting	Yes, No
Distortion Control	On, Off