Nikon Coolpix S4 6MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Zoom

by Nikon

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 7.1 x 3.2 inches ; 7 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B000AXMEDI
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (60 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,490 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: April 18, 2005

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Nikon's Coolpix S4 combines 6.0 effective megapixels and an amazing 10x optical Zoom-Nikkor lens for stunning 14 x 19-inch prints. The versatile swivel design fits in a pocket! An incredible, bright 2.5 inch LCD makes for easy image composition and playback. Nikon's Exclusive Feature System includes Face-Priority Autofocus for great portraits, In-Camera Red-Eye Fix to automatically fix red-eye, and D-Lighting to lighten overly dark images, and 16 Scene Modes to set the camera for great pictures in situations like panoramas. New On-Screen Help eliminates the guesswork by providing explanations for all main menu functions. The Coolpix S4 gets you closer to the action!

10x Zoom-Nikkor Glass Lens (35mm equivalent: 38-380mm)
Made with world-renowned Nikkor optics, the lens features 12 elements in 9 groups and incorporates 2 aspherical elements, allowing for a lightweight, compact lens design.

Excellent image quality. Capture a broad range of pictures, from wide angle to a long telephoto to extreme close-ups, all in a camera that will fit into your pocket.

Incredible, Bright 2.5-Inch LCD
Frame and review your images with the big, 2.5-inch LCD.

Help Function
The Coolpix S4 includes an in-camera help feature that explains the function of specific menu items. In-Camera "instant tutor" helps the user better understand different features of the camera.

Selectable GUI (Graphical User Interface)
The user can select how they want to see the menu options on the camera's LCD. Choose the traditional Menu Item View or the all new Icon View.

Selecting Icon View displays all the menu options on one screen; no scrolling through a list of menu options. Menu Item View displays complete name of each feature.

LCD Gridlines
Turn on gridlines (composition lines) that are displayed on the camera's LCD; aids in framing the shot.

Helps user ensure horizon lines are level and architecture is perfectly vertical, resulting in better pictures.

Versatile Swivel Design
The slim, compact design adds a surprising twist by integrating its 10x Zoom-Nikkor lens into a unique swivel design The swivel design allows for unique and effortless camera angles.

Power
Two AA alkaline batteries included
Convenient and readily available power source. AA batteries are carried at most stores, worldwide. Get approximately 160 shots with alkaline batteries, or 290 shots with optional Coolpix rechargeable AA batteries, or 450 shots with lithium batteries. You will never be without power with an extra set of AAs on hand. With Coolpix rechargeable batteries you will always be ready to shoot.

13.5 MB Internal Memory
SD Slot for optional memory card
No memory card is required for taking pictures. Images can be copied between internal memory and SD cards.

Cameras can be demonstrated without a memory card. Camera is ready to go right out of the box! Plus, users can continue to take pictures when memory card is full.

Accepts SD Memory Cards
Compatible with any size Secure Digital (SD) Memory Card. You'll have a wide range of SD card sizes available for use in the Coolpix S4.

TTL White Balance with 5 Mode
Manual or Preset
Incandescent, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, and Speedlight
Select Automatic White Balance, choose one of 5 manual settings, or Preset to a white or gray card. Always get an accurate color balance, regardless of lighting conditions.

Shutter Speed Range
2 seconds to 1/1000 second
Capture a wide range of exposures from low light (using slow shutter speeds) to action (using faster shutter speeds to freeze movement). Maintain creative control over your images with a wide range of shutter speeds--take long exposures or catch the action--it's your choice!

Exposure Compensation
+/- 2 EV in 1/3 EV increments
Increase or decrease exposure when using Automatic mode. Ensures you get the exposure you want, giving you great pictures every time.

3-Mode TTL Metering System
256-Segment Matrix linked to AF area
Center Weighted and Spot AF in select Scene Modes
Nikon's exclusive 256-Segment Matrix Metering creates incredible exposures. Select Scene Modes use Center Weight or Spot AF metering for additional control over the exposure. Properly exposed images are achieved automatically.

16 Scene Modes
4 with Scene Assist (first four listed)
Portrait, Night Portrait, Sports, Landscape, Beach/Snow, Close-up, Copy, Backlit, Sunset, Party/Indoor, Night Landscape, Dawn/Dusk, Museum, Fireworks, Panorama, Voice Recording
Automatically sets the camera for optimum performance in most popular picture-taking situations. Scene Assist is available in 4 popular Scene Modes (portrait, night portrait, landscape, sports); these offer additional assistance for framing, focus and exposure. The Coolpix S4 makes taking great photographs easy. The sleek, sexy design is comfortable and cool. The controls are well marked, making it easy to access all the timesaving functions. The Voice Recording Mode will record up to 5 hours of audio (on a 256MB card).

Macro Mode
Close Up
Take incredibly sharp macro images as close as 2.5 inches using Close-up Scene Mode with the built-in Zoom-Nikkor lens--no attachments necessary!

Movie Mode with Audio
15 frames per second
Time-Lapse Movies
Movie size is user selectable (TV 640x480; Small 320x240; Smaller 160x120). Movie length is determined by the amount of memory available. Your camera operates as a digital video camera to record a movie with sound. File is saved in QuickTime format, which makes it easy to share with others.

Noise Reduction Mode
In Dawn/Dusk and Night Landscape Modes Noise is minimized when using either the Dawn/Dusk or Night Landscape Scene Modes Capture clear, sharp images, even with long shutter speeds.

5 Mode Built-in Flash
Auto, Flash Cancel, Slow Sync, Anytime Flash, Red-Eye Reduction There is an appropriate flash mode for almost any lighting situation. Get the shot you want with the light you need.

Autofocus Face-Priority AF
Contrast detect Autofocus system. Face-Priority AF can be activated in Portrait Scene Mode and will set focus on the face when taking a picture of a human subject. Incredibly sharp images from close up to infinity. Face-Priority AF will assist in getting sharp, incredible portraits of people.

AF Assist Lamp
Provides extra light when focusing in low light situations. Enables sharp focus even when the subject is not well lit.

D-Lighting
Automatic compensation for insufficient flash or excessive backlight. User selectable in image playback mode; saves a copy of the picture with the correction made without affecting the original image. Incredible versatility for the end user. Enables them to adjust images taken in a low light situation when the flash is not strong enough, or when harsh back light causes underexposed foreground detail--all done incamera (no computer).

Nikon's Exclusive In-Camera Red-Eye Fix
When the flash is set for red-eye reduction, the camera automatically removes most instances of redeye from the subject(s) before writing the image to the memory card.

Instances of red-eye are removed while the picture is being taken. Produces excellent pictures with no redeye! No extra steps necessary--just download and print!

Best Shot Selector (BSS)
Press and hold the shutter release; the camera will take a series of images, saving the one with the sharpest focus.

Ensures sharp focus when shooting in situations where a slow shutter speed could result in motion blur.

Five Color Options
Standard Color, Vivid Color, Black and White, Cyanotype, Sepia Get creative by selecting one of 5 color options. Choose the mode that best suits the output: standard color for beautiful prints; vivid color for e-mail/internet; black and white for dramatic shots; and sepia or cyanotype for brown or blue tones.

Create old style photos with the sepia option, or imitate an Ansel Adams shot with the black & white option. The only limit is your imagination!

Date/Time Imprinting
Prints indicate the date and time the picture was taken. A great archiving tool for those who need to know when an image was taken.

PictBridge Compatible
Connect the Coolpix S4 to a PictBridge compatible printer and print images stored on the camera, either in internal memory or on the SD memory card. Print images directly from the camera; no computer required!

One-Touch Upload
Easily upload images from the camera to the computer via the included COOLSTATION dock at the press of a single button. Makes moving images from the camera to the computer fast and easy.

Quick Review
View images stored in internal memory or on inserted SD card at the press of a single button. Zoom in to see a detail view of the image.Zooming in allows you to check details in the image--for example, to see whether everyone's eyes are open.

Voice Memo Function (in playback)
Record vital information regarding the image that was shot. Camera will record up to 20 seconds per image. This is a quick method for recording important shooting data or special information about an image.

In-Camera Cropping
Photo Trim
Use zoom and 4 position rocker buttons to select part of a picture; camera saves this as a new image without changing the original picture.

Uses standard camera controls to trim an image to create a new image that is part of the original image.

Full Featured Bundled Software Nikon: PictureProject
Arcsoft: Panorama Maker
The bundled software will enable the user to set up a complete digital darkroom without having to purchase additional and costly image editing software packages.

This easy-to-use image editing software allows the user to easily edit, e-mail, and print images.

Easy E-mailing
With Nikon PictureProject software
Select image(s) to send and click the Mail button. Choose to send pictures as individual prints or a single index print and select image size from the drop down menu. It's that easy!

Small files are best for e-mailing, and PictureProject makes it easy to select and send small images, regardless of the size of the original image. Clicking the Send button opens a new e-mail with the pictures already attached. All you need to do is address the e-mail and add a message!

Product Description

CL) NIKON COOLPIX S4 DIGITAL CAMERA

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

120 of 125 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Coolpix S4: initital thoughts..., October 5, 2005

By 

R. Thompson "sixseven" (Novato, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Nikon Coolpix S4 6MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

I had this camera backordered through Amazon and received one of the first ones. I have used Nikon SLR cameras for roughly 25 years and have high standards and expectations for their products.

My initial reaction to the camera is that the lens is fantastic, but the overall design is lacking. It's as though it was rushed to market.

First the size. It's not small enough to be truly pocketable. I use my Contax U4R for that. The layout is also not as good as with the Contax, nor is it as intuitive. I find myself always putting my fingers on the wrong places, esepecially on the LCD screen. This is not a camera where everything feels naturally placed; then again, there's not a lot of room to work with here. I guess my preference would have been for Nikon to make the camera slightly larger and easier to handle, with a viewfinder and VR to boot. It wouldn't surprise me to see this same lens in exactly that type of product within three months time.

Besides those issues I do like the camera. The biggest limitation of "pocketable" cameras tends to be the limited zoom range. I was recently on a sailboat and a cruise ship, wanted to get photos of things I saw on shore, but didn't have the zoom range (with my Contax) to get close enough to the subject. The Coolpix S4 certainly solves this issue.

I find the images the camera produces to be quite sharp, without excessive edge enhancement. The camera also seems to focus without difficulty (for me), including situations in low light. I've been surprised at the quality of images from situations with relatively low light where I've switched off the flash.

The speed of operation with the camera is quite good; it starts quickly, is very responsive, and doesn't lag between shots.

Two caveats: first, I dislike the zooming system on the camera. Specifically, I would like the ability to defeat the digital zoom in the menu system. This camera doesn't allow that, so when you reach the limits of the optical zoom there is a "grey zone" where it's difficult to tell whether or not you're in optical or digital zoom mode. Though there is an indicator in the viewfinder the transition is a tricky one. Second, use AA lithiums with this camera. This is not really a "caveat" or limitation of the camera, but you will be amazed at the battery life you get using these batteries.

Why four out of five stars given the issues I've described? The Coolpix S4 is the only camera in this size range with a 10X zoom lens. Though it has its' limitations that lens truly distinguishes this camera, and sets it apart from the pack.

246 of 272 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Lens and flexibility are great; viewing & focusing are unusable, October 1, 2005

By 

Yacht shooter (Marina del Rey, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nikon Coolpix S4 6MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

I took delivery of my S4 yesterday afternoon and put it through its paces. The quality of the camera and the lens are absolutely terrific. However, when shooting indoors: it won't focus or yield a non-blurred image when shooting indoors in available light. If you're willing to use a flash all the time, it's fine, except for the fact that you can't turn off the "in camera red-eye correction" which sometimes leaves people and animals with a white hole where the pupil should be. In other words, the camera takes out the red, but it doesn't always insert the black pupil! If you shut off the red eye correction, then you get the glowing red eyes people hate to see. Hey Nikon, make the in-camera red eye correction a "feature" that can be turned on or off, independent of the multiple flash red eye correction. Right now you either have to take both or neither. NOTE: This is also the case with the Nikon 7900 that I bought for my wife but returned a day later because she couldn't use it to do indoor snapshots of her beloved animals. As she said, "With white pupils, the animals looked like they has lost their souls." What a shame because it too is a wonderful design.

Outdoors there's an even more severe problem with the S4: I have more than a thousand pictures of yacht races and boats on a commercial website; all taken with a Nikon 8800 that I'm crazy about. Today I tried shooting boats with the S4 and it was a complete bust. It was a classic cloudy bright day with terrific glare off the water and sky; and it was nearly impossible to use the S4's LCD finder to compose my pictures. No matter what angle I tried, the glare on the screen was almost impossible to penetrate. What good is a 10x zoom if you can't aim the camera??? And before you ask, I did adjust the screen brightness from dim to very bright, and no matter which setting I used I ran into the same problem. On the other hand, when standing in some shade, I did a terrific telephoto shot of a parrot's head from about 10' away that when blown up to 11x14" showed every head feather clearly.

I returned the S4 to my long suffering camera store and bought a Canon SD550. I've already satisfied myself that it does fine indoors where focusing and available light shots don't seem to be a problem (although it too produces red eye, but not nearly as bad as the S4's); and the optical finder makes taking my yacht pictures a snap (no pun intended). An 11x14" enlargement of a dock shot was crystal clear, with bright realistic colors. Following the advice of some of the Canon 500 owners, I keep the resolution Extra Fine, and the color adjustment to Vivid, and in these modes it seems to be the equal of any film camera I've ever used.

Please Nikon, realize that doing away with the optical finder to make the screen 1/4" higher is a DUMB thing to do; unless you want to deliver the entire serious amateur and professional market for compact cameras to Canon. Please give us a revised S4 that has an optical finder, available light capabiilties equal to the Canon SD550, and either 2 separate redeye controls, or only the customary flashing light.

And while you're at it, why did you add your terrific Vibration Reduction mechanism (fabulous on the Nikon 8800), only to the movie mode of the S4? DOUBLE DUMB. The vibration reduction feature is really needed whenever you're using a 10X lens; please give it to the S4's successor for still pictures also.

Please understand, I've been using Nikons for more than 40 years and I love them. I love my 8800. But to cause me to return both an S4 and a 7900 in the same week means that you're now doing some things terribly wrong. Please get back on track as soon as you can!!!

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars You gotta remember what this camera was designed for., July 20, 2006

By 

Yoda117 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nikon Coolpix S4 6MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Zoom (Electronics)

I'm hearing a lot of FUD with this camera, and I can't understand why. The camera was designed as a simple digital point and click with a good optical zoom. Additionally, Nikon wanted to resurrect the swivel design that fans have been asking for ever since the last model was on the market. To this extent Nikon has delivered, albeit with some short comings. The device has a quick start up time, much quicker than I expected based on the interface. There is an automatic mode and a scene mode to accomidate the ease of use features (remember, easy camera... not a lot of manual control). Optical zoom is awesome, and as usual, Nikon delivered on the optics and photo quality. I've taken photos at night, in low-light, rain, etc. and I've had no problems that I don't normally have with non-SLR digitals. If you go through and take a little time, you'll find that the multiple scenes can be quite an advantage at times. Yes, I would prefer the option for manual controls, but again... I understand what this camera was designed for. I don't understand what people are saying with power conumption. With the batteries supplied, I got about 60 pictures (mostly indoors). With disposable lithiums, I got about 430 pictures before I had any issues... most of those using the flash.

So now let's talk about the tradeoffs. First off, there's no viewfinder. That's a minor annoyance, but not a show stopper (the LCD on the S4 is very nice). Next up we have the flash which can really wash out a picture. Okay, either use it judiciously or switch to a scene mode that takes care of that problem. Same with the speed of the shutter (if I remember to do so, I'll toss up some action pics from a professional baseball game... you can see the ball with no distortion). Now here is the biggie... shudder. Especially in low-light this can be an issue. What boggles my mind is that Nikon offers image-stabalization for this camera in movie mode, but not in image mode. Does that makes sense? I didn't think so either. And even Nikon has agreed that it was a stupid move. To their benefit, Nikon has acknowledged that they are going to fix the issue in the next firmware update (though when that will be is a mystery).

Stuff like that keeps me from giving it 5 stars.

The end result. People who want a simple camera with good resolution and a strong zoom will enjoy this camera. People who don't want a camera that is almost 100% automatic won't like this camera.

YMMV