Navigate Review Jump to review page...

Nikon Coolpix S200 Performance


Timing and Performance

Good to below average speed for a consumer camera.

Startup/Shutdown

Power on
to first shot

 2.5 seconds

Time it takes for LCD to turn on and lens to deploy.

Shutdown

 2.1 seconds

How long it takes to retract lens and stow in your pocket.

Buffer clearing time

 2 seconds
(Large/Fine JPEG)

Worst case buffer clearing time. This is the delay after a set of shots before you can remove the card. Some cameras won't retract their lenses and shut down until the buffer is cleared.
Mode switching

Play to Record,
first shot

 1.8 seconds

Time until first shot is captured

Record to play

 2.8 seconds

Time to display a large/fine file immediately after capture

Display
recorded image

 1.2 seconds

Time to display a large/fine file already on the memory card.
Shutter response (Lag Time)

Full Autofocus Wide

 0.51 second

Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, zoom lens at wide angle position.

Full Autofocus Tele

 0.52 second

Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, zoom lens at telephoto position.

Prefocused

 0.066 second

Time to capture, after half-pressing and holding shutter button.
Cycle time (shot to shot)
Single Shot mode
Large Fine JPEG
 2.15 seconds

Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots.

Single Shot mode
640x480 JPEG

 1.93 seconds

Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots.

Early shutter
penalty?

 No

Some cameras refuse to snap another shot if you release and press the shutter too quickly in Single Shot mode, making "No" the preferred answer.

Continuous mode
Large Fine JPEG

 1.22 seconds (0.82 frames per second);
2 seconds to clear

Time per shot, averaged over buffer length or 20 shots, whichever came first.

Continuous mode
640x480 JPEG

 0.71 second (1.40 frames per second);
1 second to clear

Time per shot, averaged over buffer length or 20 shots, whichever came first.

Flash recycling

 3.2 seconds

Flash at maximum output.

Download speed

Windows Computer, USB 2.0

 785 KBytes/sec

Typical Values:
Less than 600=USB 1.1;
600-769=USB 2.0 Low;
Above 770=USB 2.0 High

*Note: Buffer clearing times measured with a Kingston Ultimate 133x SD memory card. Slower cards will produce correspondingly slower clearing times. Slow cards may also limit length of bursts in continuous mode.

The Nikon Coolpix S200's performance is a mixed bag, ranging from quite fast to below average. Startup time was average, at 2.5 seconds. Shutter lag is quite good at both wide angle and telephoto, and very fast when the camera is "prefocused" by half-pressing and holding down the shutter button before the final exposure. Shot-to-shot cycle times are about average for this class, at about 2.2 seconds for large/fine JPEGs, but the camera captures frames continuously at this rate with a fast enough memory card. Continuous-mode speed is below average at 0.82 frames/second, though again, the camera captures frames continuously at this rate until the card is full. Flash recycling time is quite fast however, at only 3.2 seconds after a full-power shot. Connected to a computer, download speeds are a little above average, so you probably won't feel a need for a separate card reader. Bottom line, the S200 is responsive enough for most family photo opportunities, but its continuous shooting mode may be a bit slow for sports, kids, or pets.

Battery and Storage Capacity

Battery
Average battery life for a lithium-ion design.

Operating Mode Number of Shots
Lithium-ion rechargeable battery
(CIPA standard)
230

The Nikon Coolpix S200 uses a custom rechargeable lithium-ion battery for power, and a charger is included with the cameras. Though runtimes are about average for a lithium-ion design, we strongly recommend you pick up an extra battery and keep in charged and on-hand for extended outings.

The table above shows the number of shots the camera is capable of (on either a fresh set of disposable batteries or a fully-charged rechargeable battery as appropriate), based on CIPA battery-life and/or manufacturer standard test conditions.

(Interested readers can find an English translation of the CIPA DC-002 standards document here. (180K PDF document))

Storage
The Nikon Coolpix S200 stores its photos on SDHC / SD / MMC memory cards or in approximately 20MB of internal memory, and no card is included with the camera.

Image Capacity with
20MB Internal Memory		 Fine Normal
3,072 x 2,304
Images
6
12
File Size
3.7 MB
1.9 MB
2,592 x 1,944
Images
-
16
File Size
-
1.4 MB
2,048 x 1,536
Images
-
26
File Size
-
864 KB
1,024 x 768
Images
-
90
File Size
-
254 KB
640 x 480
Images
-
169
File Size
-
136 KB

We strongly recommend buying a large capacity SDHC/SD memory card at least a 1 GB or 2GB card, to give yourself extra space for extended outings. (Check the shopping link above, cards are really cheap these days, so no reason to skimp.)

 

Buy the Nikon S200

Your purchases support this site

Buy the Nikon S200


Navigate Review Jump to review page...