Nikon Coolpix S7c First Impressions Review

by Emily Raymond
Published on September 29, 2006

Navigation
Intro	Physical Tour
Components	Design / Layout
Modes	Control Options
Image Parameters	Connectivity / Extras
Overall Impressions	Conclusion

Model Design / Appearance

The Nikon S7c comes in a sleek black body that is made almost exclusively from very thin metal. The metal material makes it sound very durable, but bouncing it wouldn’t be a very good idea – especially with the large LCD screen on the back. The camera is designed much like the Coolpix S6 with its wavy figure and is very consistent in the entire ultra-slim S-series.

Size / Portability

The wave design allows for a relatively thin body in places while still giving the thickness the camera needs to fit the 3x lens internally. The 3.9 x 2.4 x 0.8-inch camera is built from metal but is quite light considering. Its 4.9 oz. weight does not include the card and battery, but both are very skinny and light and don’t add much to that number. There is an eyelet on the right side allowing for attachment of the included wrist strap. The ultra-slim wave design moves nicely into a pocket and there aren’t any protrusions to catch on anything as it slides in. Overall, the portability and size of the Nikon Coolpix S7c are its best assets.

 

Handling Ability

The S7c’s wave design not only helps it to slip into pockets, but aids in handling too. The wave is thickest at the lens and is thicker on the edge where the right hand grips the camera. The thinnest point is where the fingers rest. Besides the wavy design, the Coolpix has a thumb divot on the back with bumps in it to aid in handling. These features go a long way, but there isn’t much else besides that. The tiny zoom control doesn’t help in comfortable handling either; it is tiny and doesn’t move far so fingers will be cramped and sore if taking more than four or five pictures at a time. The other problem with the handling is that the left fingers are likely to wander in the path of the lens, leaving pictures with a close-up shot of your fingers.

 

The camera’s major controls are decently placed and sized. The one-touch portrait button, though, is quite thin and small along with the power button. The shutter release button is not enormous but is enough to do the job. I’ve discussed the zoom control before; once again, it is incredibly tiny and makes adjusting the zoom an uncomfortable process. On the back of the camera, the buttons are properly sized, spaced, and labeled. The navigational control is unique with its OK button in the center, a rotary dial surrounding it, and an outer ring that can be pushed like a traditional multi-selector. This is an inverse of the navigational control on the Canon PowerShot G7, which places the multi-selector on the inner ring and the rotary dial on the outside. The problem with the Nikon setup is that the outer ring is very thin, so it is hard to push with a finger to scroll through menu options. To scroll through images quickly, users need only to turn the rotary dial. That way, 10 pictures can flip by every second. I would prefer a thicker multi-selector ring to make navigating a bit more comfortable. Overall though, the controls are average for an ultra-slim model.

 

There are no tabs or organizational features in the menu system because each menu must be accessed from its own particular mode. For instance, users must be in the shooting mode to enter that menu which is shown below.

 

 

The selected item in the menu is highlighted with a yellow background. The font is large and very readable, which is nice on the eyes. The menu’s interface can be changed to display either icons or text within the setup menu, which is found by pushing the Mode button and scrolling around the electronic mode dial to the Setup icon.

 

 

There is a Help function available in the bottom right corner of the LCD monitor. In the playback mode, the menu is as follows.

 

 

Overall, the menu system isn’t tough to figure out even though it is different than the tabbed organized menus on other manufacturers’ cameras. Navigating is the biggest trouble with the skinny multi-selector ring. Users can move up and down through menus with the rotary dial, but the multi-selector is required to move horizontally. There is a Help function that can be accessed to explain all the different features and options; it is found by pushing the zoom switch toward the right.

 

The Nikon Coolpix S7c is fairly easy to use, although it is very different from other digital cameras in its interface. It is different because of its rotary dial and mode button that accesses an on-screen virtual mode dial. The on-screen mode dial sounds a bit strange, but it isn’t tough to figure out. Nikon tries to make the camera easier to use with options to change the menu interface from icons to text and to activate features such as a one-touch portrait button. There is also a help function that explains features and modes available from the zoom control.