Digital Camera World » Nikon 1

Nikon V2 review

jmeyer — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 15:33:23 +0000

Nikon V2 review: has enough changed in the V2 to warrant an upgrade over the Nikon 1 V1? Our testing team put Nikon’s new CSC to the test.

Nikon has replaced the Nikon 1 V1 with the Nikon 1 V2, an update that promises to be an evolution of the existing camera and is what Nikon hopes will attract more serious photographers – the ones who are more likely to buy additional lenses and other accessories down the line.

Here Amy Davies of our testing team takes a look at what it has to offer in our Nikon V2 review video.

Nikon V2 Review Video Transcript

The Nikon V2 is a replacement for the V1, and sees some interesting changes to the body shape, when compared to the previous model.

Perhaps not considered serious enough for advanced photographers, the V1 was never as popular as its smaller brother, the J1. Now, Nikon has done plenty to try and appeal to more enthusiast users.

It now has a larger hand grip, which gives the camera a much more DSLR style feel. There’s also been a mode dial added at the top here – this makes it much easier to quickly switch between modes such as aperture priority and shutter priority – previously these were hidden away in a menu.

The new hand grip makes it much easier to hold and it feels very secure in the hand, especially when shooting one-handed.

To switch on the V2, you actually have two options. You can flick this switch here – but for speed, and grabbing those quick shots, you can also activate the camera via the lens. Simply press this button here and twist the lens round and the camera switches itself on.

Just to the right of the mode dial is another dial which can be used to alter aperture or shutter speed, depending on the shooting mode. It’s a handy dial and very easily reached by the thumb, which is again useful when shooting one-handed.

To make changes to exposure compensation, first you need to hit this button on the four-way pad, and then use this dial to scroll to the setting you want. It’s a little bit of a shame there isn’t a standalone dial for exposure compensation.

Near the aperture and shutter speed dial is a small function button, which can be pressed to access some of the key settings, such as white balance and autofocus. It would have been good if some more functions could have been accessed from here, or extras added on via a customisable menu.

On the back of the camera is a 921,000 dot screen. Although it’s viewable from a good range of angles, and doesn’t suffer too badly from glare or reflection, it is a shame that it doesn’t tilt and articulate, and it’s not a touchscreen.

To change the autofocus point, you need to tap the OK button and use the arrow keys to scroll around the scene to the point you want. Although this isn’t too tricky, it would have been sped up by the addition of a touchscreen.

Down the left of the camera is a row of four buttons, including a Menu and Playback button. These can’t be reached when using the camera one-handed, but that’s not too much of a problem thanks to the Function button for the mostly common settings.

If you do need to delve into the menu, you’ll find it’s reasonably sensibly laid out. If you’ve ever used a Nikon camera before, you’ll more than likely be at home here.

Like the V1 before it, the V2 includes an electronic viewfinder. This 1.4 million dot device is very good and is a great option in brighter sunlight, or for those that prefer a traditional way of shooting.

The V1 didn’t have an inbuilt flash, only an accessory port for attaching an external flashgun. The V2 has both, with a pop-up flash which is activated via this button here, and an accessory port on top of the EVF here.

The Nikon V2 uses a new 14.2 million pixel CX format sensor and a new processing engine, so we were pretty hopeful that image quality would be good. Luckily, we’ve found that images are punchy and vibrant, with excellent colour reproduction and plenty of detail.

Nikon J3: price, release date, specs confirmed

jmeyer — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 09:54:55 +0000

Nikon confirms official Nikon J3 price, release date and specs at CES 2013 and launches its smallest Nikon 1 camera to date

Nikon has launched its smallest Nikon 1 camera body to date, confirming speculation by revealing the official Nikon J3 price and and specifications at CES 2013.

The Nikon announcement comes just months after last September’s launch of the Nikon J2. Measuring just 101×60.5×28.8mm, the Nikon J3 has the world’s smallest body for a CSC with a CX-format sensor, Nikon says.

Like the J2, the Nikon J3 can shoot 15fps and offers a Slow View mode, which lets photographers record slow-motion movies, and Live Image Control, allowing users to preview effects before taking the picture.

The 14.2-megapixel Nikon J3 also promises an improved Snapshot function, as well as an Advanced Movie mode that lets photographers make changes to exposure settings while recording movies.

The Nikon J3 boasts an ISO range of ISO 160 to 6400 and comes in silver, red, white, black and beige. Like the entry-level Nikon S1 announced at the same time, the Nikon J3 boasts the world’s shortest release time lag and world’s fastest continuous shooting, according to Nikon.

The Nikon J3 price tag will be £579.99 / €719.00 for the 10-30mm kit, or £719.99 / €899.00 (Black & White only) for the 10-30mm & 30-110mm kit.

A Nikon J3 release date is slated fro 7 February 2013.

Nikon J2 Video: what’s new in the latest Nikon 1 camera

jmeyer — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 14:12:31 +0000

Less than a year after its first foray into the compact system camera market, Nikon has revealed its replacement to the J1 in the form of the Nikon J2.

With the Nikon J2 release date set for this month, Amy Davies of our testing team takes a look at this new Nikon camera to see what it offers over its predecessor as the junior member of the Nikon 1 range of cameras.

Nikon J2 announced less than a year after J1

jmeyer — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 09:13:42 +0000

Nikon has officially announced it will launch the Nikon J2 in September, succeeding the manufacturer’s popular Nikon J1 model announced less than a year ago.

New in the Nikon J2 is the Creative Mode, a dedicated function butting giving access to a range of filters and shooting settings, such as Easy Panorama, Miniature, Selective Colour, Soft Filter and Night Portrait.

A preview option lets you see how an effect will look before you shoot.

A new Motion Snapshot function records a slow-motion movie and a still image, then combines the two to create a moving photograph.

Other features, such as the J2′s 10-megapixel CMOS sensor, ISO range, shutter speed, 1080p HD video recording and battery life all remain unchanged from the the Nikon J1.

The new Nikon camera is also available in a range of colours, including silver, red, pink and orange.

The Nikon J2 release date is scheduled for 6 September, with a price tag of £499.99, €604.00 and $549.95.

Nikon has also introduced a range of new accessories, headline by the Nikon 1 NIKKOR 11-27.5mm f/3.5-5.6 lens, which is also due for release on 6 September 2012.

The slim, 2.5x zoom lens is available in black or white and can power your camera on and off by rotating and retracting it, respectively.

The new Nikon lens will cost £179.99 / €217.00.

Finally, Nikon has also revealed the WP-N1 waterproof case, which is capable of going 40m below the surface and enables you to use all the functions of your Nikon J2.

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Nikon launches cashback offer on Nikon 1 kits

jmeyer — Thu, 31 May 2012 10:26:43 +0000

Nikon UK today has launched a new Nikon 1 promotion offering £50/€60 cashback on Nikon 1 J1 and V1 kits purchased before 31 August 2012 (inclusive).

Customers purchasing any Nikon 1 J1 or V1 camera or lens combination are entitled to claim £50 /€60 cashback. The promotion runs from 31 May – 31 August 2012 (inclusive) and all claims must be received by the 30 September 2012 in order to qualify.

For more information on the promotion, and how to submit your claim, please visit: www.nikon.co.uk/cashback.

Terms and conditions apply. Offer is subject to availability.

Nikon 1 pro model a ‘possibility’

jmeyer — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 12:38:04 +0000

Nikon has not ruled out the possibility of a more advanced version of its Nikon 1 compact system cameras, to include more manual control.

Speaking to our sister website TechRadar, Jeremy Gilbert, UK marketing manager for Nikon UK, said: “We are listening and trying to feedback what we hear. It’s mostly journalists and high-end photographers who would like us to produce one, but whether we should or not is a different matter.”

“A pro version would be quite nice,” Gilbert added, “But ultimately, we want pros to be buying our DSLRs, so while it would be pretty nice to have within the market, it’s so niche that I’m not sure it would help us to be the number one brand.”

The Nikon V1 and Nikon J1 were announced in September 2011, with the J1 going on to become the biggest selling compact system camera.

Read the full interview on TechRadar.

Nikon cashback offer on V1, J1 kits

jmeyer — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 10:36:34 +0000

A new Nikon cashback offer lets photographers claim up to £50 back on new Nikon 1 J1 and V1 purchases.

The promotion, which runs from 2 February through 2 April 2012 (inclusive) entitles customers to claim up to £50/€60 cashback on any Nikon 1 J1 or V1 camera or lens combination. Any claims must be received by 30 April to qualify.

For more information on the promotion, and how to submit your claim, please visit: www.nikon.co.uk/cashback.

Terms and conditions apply. Offer is subject to availability.

For more information about the Nikon 1 cameras, read the full Nikon V1 review and Nikon J1 review on our sister site TechRadar.

Nikon 1 J1 review

sraynes — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 14:19:33 +0000

Like the Nikon 1 V1, the 10.1Mp J1 has a CX-format sensor, which at 13.2×8.8mm is smaller than an APS-C-sized sensor and it results in a 2.7x focal length magnification factor. This enables the camera to be made much smaller than an SLR.

As the entry-level camera in the Nikon 1 series, the J1 has a three-inch 460k LCD and no viewfinder. Unlike the V1, however, it has a pop-up flash built-in.

Read our full review of the Nikon 1 J1 on TechRadar.