Nikon Coolpix S10

Review summary: In the market for a digital camera to fit in your pocket? Macworld takes a look at six contenders.

Review summary: The Coolpix S10 ($400) is the latest swivel-body digital camera from Nikon. It's the followup to the lackluster (in my opinion) Coolpix S4, which wasn't nearly as impressive as the original Coolpix 900-series cameras that came before it.

Pros: Very good photo quality ; Unique swivel-lens design ; Optical image stabilization ; Large, sharp 2.5" LCD ; good low light and outdoor visibility ; Powerful flash ; Tons of scene modes ; In-camera help system ; Handy D-Lighting and Best Shot Selector ...

Cons: No manual controls ; Audio sync problem in movie mode ; Slow focusing at telephoto end ; low light focusing was pretty lousy ; Image stabilization not available in movie mode (electronic only) ; Right thumb tends to rest on LCD, blocking view and ...

Verdict: Despite being an improvement over its predecessor, the Coolpix S10 still turns in battery life numbers that are about 10% below average for the group. Compared to the smaller ultra zooms, though, it's actually above average

Review summary: Here is another compact ultra-zoom designed to appeal consumers by packing a 10X stabilized optical zoom lens into a compact body. While the Nikon Coolpix S10 manages to do so, it does it with very poor ergonomics which make using it rather frustrating.

Pros: Folds into compact size for 10X zoom, Good color accuracy, Excellent macro capability, Good build quality, Good flash range, Good LCD visibility

Cons: High image noise starting at ISO 400, Some corner softness, Optical distortion, Occasional over-exposure, Above average chromatic aberrations, Slow focusing at telephoto

Review summary: Small, but beaten by Panasonic's similar TZ3.