Nikon Coolpix S10 vs. 995

20,000 pictures and roughly 5.5 years after I got my first digital camera, a Nikon Coolpix 995, I’m ready to finally retire it in favor of a Coolpix S10. Both cameras are of course from Nikon’s famous ‘swivel’ range – once you use a swivel camera, you don’t want to go back to an ordinary camera. Shooting without being able to swivel just seems so… primitive.

Here are some initial impressions, comparing the S10 with the 995.

Positive:
* 10x optical zoom with image stabilization (the 995 had just 4x, and no stabilization).
* Big screen, much easier to see in sunlight.
* 6 megapixels instead of 3.4 in the 995.
* The S10 is much smaller and lighter than the 995.
* less than 1/3 of the price I paid for the 995
* Support for 2 time zones
* Faster startup time
* Much faster USB transfers (though still not USB 2)

So-so:
* unlike the 995, the S10 has an orientation sensor… but it’s not really reliable at all. Because of the many ways the camera can be oriented, I presume, the exif orientation data is basically wrong as soon as the camera is swivelled. I think I’ll just switch the sensor off.

Negative:
* No manual controls, not even focus
* Slow autofocus at the end of the zoom range in low-light conditions

And this is for all the people that want to make sure the Coolpix S10 works with your average GNU/Linux distrubution: yes, you can set it to usb ‘mass storage’ mode. I have not tried the PTP mode.

For a detailed comparison of specifications, have a look over at dpreview.com. Their comparison incorrectly states that there is no orientation sensor on the S10 – though arguably that’s not all that far from the truth given how unreliable it is.