Samsung NX3000 Review

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NX3000 Overview Tech Info

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Basic Specifications
Full model name:	Samsung NX3000
Resolution:	20.30 Megapixels
Sensor size:	APS-C (23.5mm x 15.7mm)
Kit Lens:	3.13x zoom 16-50mm (24-75mm eq.)
Viewfinder:	No / LCD
Native ISO:	100 - 25,600
Extended ISO:	100 - 25,600
Shutter:	1/4000 - 30 sec
Max Aperture:	3.5 (kit lens)
Dimensions:	4.6 x 2.6 x 1.5 in. (117 x 66 x 39 mm)
Weight:	13.6 oz (385 g) includes batteries, kit lens
MSRP:	$529
Availability:	06/2014
Manufacturer:	Samsung
Full specs:	Samsung NX3000 specifications

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Kit with 20-50mm Lens

Kit with 20-50mm Lens
Kit with 16-50mm Lens

20.30 Megapixels	Samsung NX	APS-C size sensor

Samsung NX3000 Review -- Now Shooting!

by Mike Tomkins
Preview posted 05/08/2014

Updates:
01/02/2015: Samsung NX3000 Field Test

The Samsung NX3000 slots into the company's product line between the earlier NX300 and NX Mini mirrorless cameras, a position previously occupied by the NX2000. In doing so, it aims to pair the best of both worlds: the affordability of the NX Mini, along with the much larger sensor size of an NX-mount camera.

So long as compact size and performance aren't your primary concerns, the NX3000 offers you a chance to save some of your hard-earned cash, or perhaps put the savings towards lenses or accessories to accompany your new camera body, as pricing is quite competitive with kits starting as low as US$479 (see below).

Although it's not as compact as the NX Mini -- it's just a little taller and wider, but close to twice as thick thanks to the larger sensor and lens mount -- the Samsung NX3000 is still just a touch smaller than the NX300 in both width and depth, and only a smidgen taller. It's also handily lighter than that camera, and not a whole lot heavier than the smaller-sensored NX Mini. Its handsome body features styling quite similar to that of the NX300, although its hand grip is rather shallower than that of its higher-end sibling.

On the inside, the NX3000 boasts the same sensor size and resolution as found in the NX300, and it yields the same sensitivity range, to boot. It's not the same chip, however, as the NX3000 lacks the on-chip phase detection pixels of the pricier model. We understand that with the exception of its image sensor, the NX3000's imaging pipeline is also more similar to that in the similarly affordable (but smaller-sensored) NX Mini, which also relies solely on contrast-detection autofocus.

The NX3000 also resembles the Mini in a few other ways. It shares the same cellphone-like MicroSD storage slot and 2,330mAh slimline rechargeable battery pack as found in the NX Mini, and also has a similar three-inch LCD monitor. (That's a little smaller than the display found in the NX300, and also quite a bit lower-resolution.) However, it lacks the touch-sensitivity of both siblings, relying solely on physical controls in the interests of saving a little in production cost. And it also trails both the NX300 and Mini somewhat in terms of burst performance.

Those changes, though, mean you get a much larger sensor than you'll find in the NX Mini, as well as the image quality advantages that should bring. And it also translates to a significantly lower list price than the NX300 -- and that despite a newer version of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom in the product bundle. Where the NX300 still ships with last year's Lightroom 4 release, the NX3000 -- like the Mini before it -- will arrive with Lightroom 5.

The Samsung NX3000 is available with a stabilized, 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 power zoom lens in place of the usual 18-55mm optic. It's the first time the company has delivered the 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 Power Zoom ED OIS as a kit lens, and if you're a video shooter, that's a nice change. No longer will you have to splash out on a lens if you want shake-free zoom during video capture. Pricing for this kit is set at around US$529.

The NX3000 can also be purchased bundled with the unstabilized 20-50mm f/3.5-5.6 lens that shipped with the NX2000 for $50 less, at only about US$479.

As well as Lightroom 5, the NX3000 will also include DNG Converter and iLauncher software in its product bundles, and it will be available in the same three body color choices as the NX300: black, brown, or white. Both kits include an SEF-8 external flash, and will be available from June 2014.

Samsung NX3000 Technical Insights

by Mike Tomkins | 05/08/2014

Sensor. At the heart of the Samsung NX3000 is a 20.3 megapixel, APS-C sized CMOS image sensor. Although it has the exact same 5,472 x 3,648 pixel output resolution as that of the NX300, it's not the same sensor. There are no on-chip phase-detection autofocus pixels in the NX3000's imager, and so it must rely on contrast-detection autofocus. Total resolution is 21.6 megapixels, and the chip has a standard Bayer RGBG color filter array.

Processor. Although its image sensor is radically different, the NX3000 shares the same image processor as featured previously in the NX Mini, and its imaging pipeline is in other respects similar.

Sensitivity. The Samsung NX3000 offers a sensitivity range of ISO 100 to 25,600 equivalents, in either 1/3 or 1EV steps. There is, of course, also an Auto ISO function.

Click to read Samsung NX3000 tech insights!

Samsung NX3000 Field Test

High image quality, retro design and a nice feature mix

by Jason Schnieder | 01/02/2015

The Samsung NX3000 is the entry-level member of Samsung's popular family of interchangeable-lens NX APS-C-format Compact System Cameras. It's solid, well-made, and beautifully finished, and it's a genuine fashion statement, especially the gleaming white test sample I received. Its neo-retro design in lustrous enamel clad in a faux leather textured material offset by a classic chrome-finished top plate is definitely eye-catching, and I wish I had a buck for every person who stopped to ask, "Wow, that's a cool-looking camera; what is it?" Fortunately, it's not just a pretty face. That beautiful body is ergonomically contoured, fits perfectly in small or large hands, and is extremely well balanced when fitted with either the standard short zoom Samsung 16-50mm (24.6-77mm equivalent) f/3.5-5.6 Power Zoom ED OIS lens or the 45mm f/1.8 2D/3D lens (69.3mm equivalent) high-speed portrait lens that was furnished as an alternative.