Just when Nikon fans had given up on the company ever producing a serious enthusiast compact camera again (thanks to the arrival of the affordable DSLR), along came the P5000, the nearest thing to a high-end compact since the demise of the Coolpix 8800 and 8400 a couple of years back. It's a big leap forward from the previous, slightly disappointing P ('performance', apparently) series cameras, with a more complete feature set, a flash hot shoe and a much more sensible design (previous models were modeled on a bar of soap, and offered similar handling). Although nowhere near as advanced as the real big beasts of this sector, it is much more compact than cameras like the Canon G7, and it does come with a decent level of expandability (add on lenses, flash etc) - and it's very keenly priced. So is this the camera to put Nikon back on the enthusiast compact map? Let's find out, starting with the headline spec:
- 10 megapixel 1/1.8-inch CCD
- 3.5x Zoom-Nikkor lens
- Lens shift VR (Vibration Reduction)
- ISO 64-1600 (3200 in 5MP mode)
- BSS (Best Shot Selector) identifies and saves the sharpest image automatically from ten sequential shots
- P/A/S/M modes plus 16 scene modes
- Compatibility with system-expanding accessories
- Macro shooting enables shooting from as close as 4cm (1.6 in.)
- SDHC card compatibility
- Approx. 21 MB of internal memory
- Face-priority AF, In-Camera Red-Eye Fix, D-Lighting
- 2.5-in wide viewing angle TFT LCD with anti-reflection coating