Customer Reviews

Nikon Coolpix 5900 5MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I purchased this camera as a replacement for a stolen Canon SD300. The camera is very light and only slightly less compact than the SD300 (while having a much better grip). The 2" screen is bright with very high refresh rate. Similarly to the SD300, the user interface is easy to navigate and the camera rips through images very quickly. I actually prefer the interface and the number of manual settings of this Nikon. The lens is fantastic and provides very nice and crisp photos with little noise. I am very happy with its picture quality and plethora of manual settings. The auto-focus is, in my opinion, not as fast and robust as the Canon's 9-point AiAF. However, I still need to experiment with it more. Pictures taken in the macro mode are exceptional. In my opionion, this is currently the best compact camera in the $350 range. Highly recommended.

This is my first digital camera. Before this I owned a Pentax and a Canon SLR and a Canon ELPH APS camera. I was pretty set on getting a Canon, but after doing a lot of online research and visiting many camera stores, I decided on the Nikon CoolPix 5900 - and I'm glad I did.

As far as I can tell this camera beats every other in its price range on advanced features. I won't go over them here, you can look at the product description for a list of them, then go to the page for the Canon SD300 (or any other brand) and compair. Also note that the SD400, Canon's 5MP camera, is actually priced at $399 and the 4MP SD300 is at $349, though you can currently get discounts on both. More importantly, the standard image quality is on-par with Canon and Sony (the only real competition in this range if you ask me), and when you throw in in-camera red-eye removal and D-Lighting it goes a step beyond. I know there are many other quality companies making cameras in this price range, but after reviewing actual prints from just about every one, it became aparent that Canon and Nikon in particular always looked noticably better in my opinion.

Also of note are the quality Nikkor ED optics, sturdy and light aluminum body, 2" LCD with a stunningly (really) high refresh rate and an excellen user interface, 640x480 movie mode at 30FPS with sound and surprisingly long battery life.

I highly recommend this product to anyone looking into getting a digital camera or looking to replace their aging one.

As an amateur photographer, I did a lot of research before I decided that it is time to join the 21st century and buy a digital camera--Nikon Coolpix 5900. Why this camera and not the best selling Canon A95? Because Nikon Coolpix 5900 has the best reviews I've read, and I've read plenty in the past two weeks. Ultimately, it came down to three important specifications that every buyer wants and this camera has: durability, quality, and price.

Coolpix 5900 has several good qualities: nighttime photography, auto focus, and zoom/macro features. I have tried these features many times and the images turn out sharp. If there is any blurred image, then the camera will alert you and ask if you want to keep the image. Be aware that when the battery is low, the camera takes its time between takes.

I've had my camera for a week now and I play with it often. All the points noted by other owners in the reviews below about the Coolpix 5900 are quite valid.

My one gripe about the Nikon Coolpix 5900 is the red-eye problem indoor with poor lighting. I attended a friend's wedding and the pictures that I took of the bride and groom inside the church constantly had red-eye. (I didn't think that the church was poorly lit, but in retrospect it could be.) I stood in one place and tried all the flash settings and none of them remedied the problem. Nikon boasts, "Coolpix cameras can automatically detect and remove red-eye directly within the camera." My Coolpix did not deliver on that promise. That disappointed me and the manual was no help. Luckily for me though, I have a picture software that can fix the red-eye problem easily; however, it was a pain having to go through all the wedding pictures to fix them.

Update: I recently took pictures on the 4th of July at a friend's rooftop party from sunset to almost midnight. The pictures turned out well and the red-eye problem was not present even though the lighting was even worse at this event than my friend's wedding. I kept the camera on automatic flash the entire time. So, quite honestly, I'm not sure why there was a red-eye problem at my friend's wedding and not at this party.

Nikon Coolpix 5900 is a good camera overall despite the red-eye problem I experienced. For now, I'll give this camera a 4-star rating because it has more good qualities than bad.

Here's a link to some 3MP and 1 5MP random pics I took. Click on the dog to view more.
http://www.pbase.com/digitaltim/nikon_5900_pics


Overall I'm very happy with this camera.

I'm not crazy about the lack of sharpness, but I think it might be from motion blur. Some shots are fairly clear, but I'm often deleting fuzzy pics. I have a couple digital olympus cameras that are 2X the size, but much clearer. The 640 X 480 30fps videos w/ sound are great, especially considering its a compact camera - no complaints in the videos. The sound in the video is better than I expected, not perfect -->adequate. (my latest camcorder is a canon zr-85, which I'm weighing my opinions against in the video department) The cam lightens videos when needed. It's useful for candle or dimly lit rooms.

The camera feels solid, its fun to use, and easy. For me its a nice point and shoot.

Its tough to say whether or not I'd buy this again. The pics are good, not excellent. I think alot of the sharpness problems would be fixed with a tripod. I'm really happy with the video quality from this camera, but I'd look at other cams before deciding.

I have been researching/shopping for my first digital camera for a little while now. My first camera was Nikon 6006 and after 14 years is still producing amazing pictures. That probabaly played a role in my leaning towards Coolpix. I have been using 5900 for 4 days now. So far this is what I know
-Easy to shoot (without a tripod)
-I don't like reading manuals and so far didn't have to
-Bought a 1 GB Ultra 2 SD card from Costco(89), easy to install and format (not as fast as I thought it would be)
-Good quality movie capture (not the audio part), although that is not what I intend to use it for
-Not overly impressed with digital zoom, optical works as it is suppose to

Haven't decided on a printer yet. If you plan to buy one of the Epson printer, buy it with the camera or else you would not be able to use the advertised rebate. (Read the fine print on back page of rebate form.) From what little I have read so far, I am not leaning towards Epson. I will report back in a few weeks after I have used the photo software and made some prints.

I just recently purchased the 5900 a couple of weeks ago, and have been extremely pleased with the quality, features and ease of use that this camera brings. I used to own a Coolpix 4300 and it too gave me great shots. But one thing that the 5900 improves on besides the in-camera red-eye sensor, is the fact that I no longer have to contend with a camera lens cover. When you hold this camera, you know you have a sophisticated piece of equipment. It doesn't feel like some cheap toy you picked up from the toy store. For it's size, it has nice balance. Quite simply the best camera for the buck. If there was one thing I would improve on, it would be to add better photo editing software.

I purchased this camera after being disappointed with the Pentax 5Si. This camera is the best camera I have ever owned and far cheaper than some of the other models out there for the same megapixel. The pictures came out extremely crisp even though the setting was for the middle-level quality; it came out better than if you were to take the picture with a regular film camera. The color was vibrant as opposed to too dark due to underexposure. The flash is also strong given the size of the camera. The indoor shots were not severely dark due to the lack of flash power as would be the case for most ultracompact cameras. While this is not an ultracompact camera, it is fairly small and portable. I think the quality of the pictures makes up for the slightly larger size. Perhaps the best part about the camera is that there is an alert should your picture be blurry. This comes in handy because it is not always possible to judge picture clarity with a small LCD. The "blur warning" will save you the frustration of discovering upon development that you took a blurry picture.

Update: I used this camera extensively on a two week trip and here's what I have to add/change. My opinion for the quality and color of pictures this camera takes hasn't changed. I have had difficulties taking pictures in lowlight (e.g. museums, churches). The blur warning comes on no matter what if you force the flash off. As a result, some pictures which are noted as "blurry" end up being perfectly fine and vice versa. It gets annoying but my way around the problem being that I have lots of memory is to keep all the photos and wait until I see them on the computer before I delete. Overall, I still love the camera.

Likely the best bang for the buck (=value) of all the portable digital cameras out there. I have a Nikon 8700 as a primary camera at work and got the 5900 as a backup and for travel. This is an excellent choice. Resolution is great once autofocus locks in. Went on a trip to Ireland with my father who has a Minolta Dimage A1 and my sister who has a Canon A95. Resolution is just as good and the 5900 is easier to tote than both. Zoom is better on the A1. Only mimimal complaint is that it autofocus is a bit more fussy than than other two (as well as my 8700) but once done, picture is just as good. Love the various scene modes-makes photography tons of fun experimenting with them on the same shot. Took 750+ pictures in Ireland! Try that with a conventional camera! Battery charge was excellent-lasted one week while using camera in "on" several hours per day.

I've had this camera for about 3 months now. Quality of pictures is very good, as well as its video.
Problems I've encountered: (1) very difficult to capture an image at low light even if i play with the different preset modes - I always get a double-image picture, shutter is SO SLOW (2) my camera has this flaw - when the "blurred picture" warning is ON, it does the opposite; saves blurry pictures and gives 'blurry warning' on clear pictures.
UPDATE: 8/20/05 - I mentioned that it is difficult to capture an image at low light; I have just read one review for nikon 7900 regarding this - to use the BACKLIGHT MODE (I probably missed this one). I tried the mode and took a picture of an object in total darkness and it worked! I was amazed at how clear the picture appeared. NOW, I RATE THIS CAMERA 4 STARS.

I researched several cameras on amazon and after reading reviews, i decieded to take a chance on this camera. It definitely matched up to its other reviews. Beautiful pictures ... I use it at work for architectural projects every day. I was also worried that this camera would end up looking like a toy.. but it definitely does not and its small size makes it extremely easy to carry around. Anyways.. for this price (and then some) you can not ask for a better camera.