Nikon Coolpix S630 12MP Digital Camera with 7x Optical Vibration Reduction (VR) Zoom and 2.7 inch LCD (Ruby Red)

After looking at most of the cameras that fit the needs of my wife, I chose the Nikon - S630 COOLPIX. I read dozens of reviews - some good and some not so good. I think that the poor reviews were mostly from people who had too high expectation of this little NIKON. Well here is mind review. The camera is small and the controls are well thought out.The camera fits easily in a pocket or purse. One of the best features is the 7X zoom lens, that works great. I took a picture of a wall and window to a restaurant in the City Centre, Las Wages and then zoomed in thru the window to see a chef making Japanese Sushi, awesome pics. The camera is fast and the quality of the pictures is almost as good as my expensive DSLR. The only thing is does not take pictures while swinging the camera around, but who does that? The camera worked well in dark situations on AUTO. and also with the flash turned off. I shot sunsets and scenes in the desert with good quality. Inside shots were better than I thought they would be. The old camera was a Canon and it took great pics too, but the S630 Coolpic was even better to my surprise.Another great feature is the lens is out in a second or less ready to shoot, so you don't miss a shot. We got about 200 shots per charge on the rechargeable battery and used a 4 GB memory chip which gave over 1250 pictures at the highest quality. I have yet to use the movie feature and some of the other manual features. The camera can even tell when a person smiles or blinks - amazing. If you are looking for a compact camera and very good quality, this Coolpic S630 fit the bill for me. Now my wife want her Christmas present back, so she can shoot some pics and she did and her pictures came out great too. She liked the Zoom right by the release button. the 2.7 inch view is plenty big too! Happy hunting for a camera at $200 with a case and memory chip too. :)

I have been a dedicated Nikon 35mm fan for years, but this is my first Nikon digital camera. I did debate very long between the SLR series and the Coolpix line, but in the end, the compact design and the lighter weight of the Coolpix nudged me in that direction. So far, I am not disappointed.The menu structure is different from the Olympus menu system I had become used to, but a short session with the Nikon owner's manual quickly showed me how to access all the functions. Perhaps it is because I had used another band of digital camera for the last few years, I did not originally find the Nikon menu quite as intuitive. I had no trouble changing over however, after less than an hour or so.The Coolpix is clearly designed as a point and shoot digital camera. Personally, I favor more of a wide angle style than what this camera delivers, but the zoom range is quite nice and very useable. Automatic modes are the default for everything. In my initial testing, I found very few photos that were not acceptable using the fully auto everything. Excellent optics and a vibration compensation system yielded very crisp hand held images. Good marks for this area.While there is no full manual operation for the S630, there are shooting modes galore that will provide settings to isolate the subject from the background using larger apertures (portrait modes) or favor smaller apertures for greater depth of field when photographing scenic views. There is even an extreme close up mode, similar to the macro mode of many 35mm cameras. Other overrides will allow you to modify the flash effects (fill in, red eye reduction, off and others), fire bursts of shots (depending on exposure up to several per second), set automatic intervals (pre-determined) or even some in camera creative effects. While it did take some getting used to the controls, the S630 again took high marks in this area.One of the features I really like about the Coolpix S series in general is the large, compared to my older digital camera, viewing screen. I was even more pleased to find I could superimpose a small grid as an aid in composition. I was trained on a 4x5 view camera and had a grid screen for my old Nikon F2S, so this was like coming home for me. I would have liked some intermediate lines in addition to the three by three box pattern, but even this simple implementation will prove useful.The S630 uses an exclusive rechargeable battery. I suggest buying at least one spare battery with your camera. While the battery is rated at well over 200 exposures before needing to be recharged, I'm sure Mr. Murphy will be at the party you are photographing and your battery will die, just as you are about to snap that great celebrity photo you dreamed about taking. The S630 makes the external charger as part of your purchase package and an AC cord is an option. If you like being able to run on standard batteries, this may be less than desirable for you, but I like the rechargeable feature from an environmental standpoint. Call this an even trade.I was disappointed in the lack of an uncompressed format to save images in. My last digital camera had a RAW format that while not used for every photograph nonetheless was used often enough I miss not having it. You do have some selection in the JPEG compression, however, so I have to be content with that. Your photos do look their best using the maximum pixel count, so you will want a high capacity card. I urge you to get at least a 4 GB card to supplement the minimal onboard memory.Now we come to my only real dissatisfaction with the S630, and that has little to do with the camera itself. I hate the software suite Nikon supplies. I must digress a moment here. If you use a high capacity SD card, one that is 4 GB or more, you may not be able to read the card with the card reader built into your computer. While technically still an SD card, the SDHC series cards use some internal difference to break the 2 GB barrier. Whatever the reason, you should purchase an external reader capable of handling the SDHC format cards.Without an external card reader, you need to plug the camera into your computer and use the Nikon Transfer software to transfer the images to your computer. While the plug fitting on the camera looks like a mini-USB, I could not get a mini-USB cable I already owned to fit the socket. I needed to use the Nikon supplied cable. My computer would not recognize the camera until I loaded the software. The transfer process is slow and the interface is clunky at best. I also have my own photo retouching software and do not need the software Nikon supplies. With an external card reader, the process is greatly simplified: remove the SD card, pop it in the reader and transfer the images just like any other file collection. An external reader will also provide a faster transfer speed.All together, I found the S630 a very nice travel package. This camera will deliver some very high quality images without the bulk of an SLR. You can easily fit a spare battery, spare memory cards and the camera into a small case not even the size of a case for sunglasses. Well worth the price until you really need the versatility of a digital SLR.6/30/2009Recently returned from 10 day trip to Japan. The camera performed flawlessly and delivered photos even better than I expected. Great available light shots, very good flash fill in, good video in karaoke bar and wonderful overall grab shots. My only complaint is I wish it had a wider wide angle, but I knew this going into the trip. Used the telephoto at maximum to capture details at the top of castles, shrines and temples; great results there made up for the lack of a wider view.

This is a replacement camera for an earlier model Coolpix I had for several years and then broke. I was very happy with the earlier model, but this one has more bells and whistles and has a much better zoom. It also has a metal case, unlike the last version's plastic shell. I use it primarily for still shots, but it does have a video function, and is great to take when travelling and you don't want to haul a camcorder around too. It uses an SD memory card, available with up to 2 gigs of memory- plenty for storing hundreds of photos or several short videos. The rechargable battery is the square EN-EL12 type. Nikon claims you can get 200 shots before needing a recharge but I've found it to be a little less than that. Get a spare. Nikon has somewhat simplified the menu access on the Coolpix from earlier models. It's easy to move through the menu tabs and select the item you want. Downloading photos is easy. It comes with software, but I don't use it- just dump it right to my hard drive with the included mini usb cord. I'm very happy with overall camera and image quality. The only drawback is the recharge time it takes between shots.

This is actually my second Coolpix 630. My first one was stolen. I immediately ordered another one because dollar for dollar no other camera can produce the results I got from this small and handy powerhouse.The zoom is great at 7X optical, and 12 megapixel gives me all the resolution any normal user will ever need. Easy to use features, including an "auto" that does all the work for you. I can even make movies.I studied long and hard before I bought and my research paid off handsomely. I strongly recommend this product. My only suggestion is to spend the $40 for a 150X memory card for ultra-fast operation between shots.