Digital Camera Home >
Digital Camera Reviews > Nikon Digital Cameras >
Nikon Coolpix 2000
"Picky Details" for the Nikon Coolpix 2000 digital
camera
(Timing, Power, and Storage Info)
Timing
I measure both cycle times and shutter delay times for cameras I test, using
a special test system I built for the purpose. Here are the numbers I collected
for the Nikon Coolpix 2000:
|
Nikon Coolpix 2000 Timings
|
|
Operation
|
Time (secs)
|
Notes
|
| Power On ->
First shot |
5.09
|
On the slow side.
|
| Shutdown |
2.49
|
About average for telescoping lens camera.
|
| Play to Record,
first shot |
2.2
|
A little slow.
|
| Record to
play |
1.22-3.77
|
Time to display a large/fine file after capture. About
average. (First number is for when camera has already finished saving
the image to the memory card. Second number is for immediate switch
to playback mode after capture.)
|
| Shutter lag,
full autofocus |
0.77-0.80
|
A bit faster than average. |
| Shutter lag,
manual focus |
n/a
|
(no manual focus option) |
| Shutter lag,
prefocus |
0.24
|
Time to capture, after half-pressing shutter button.
Somewhat faster than average. (Average is ~0.3)
|
| Cycle Time,
max/min resolution |
5.89/5.55
|
Rather slow - The Coolpix
2000 apparently has no buffer memory, so little difference between first/second
and subsequent shots. (First to second is even slower for some reason,
about 8.7 seconds.) |
The Coolpix 2000's "bargain-priced" design shows most strongly in
its startup and cycle time performance. The camera apparently has no buffer
memory, so shot to shot times are quite sluggish by current standards. On a
positive note though, shutter lag is better than average. (Although still too
slow, IMHO - Shutter response is the Achilles heel of all current consumer digicams.)
File Download
The Coolpix 2000 uses a USB port to connect to a host computer. I clocked
it's download speed at 351 KBytes/second when connected to my 500 MHz G4 PowerMac.
This is a fairly typical download speed for an entry level camera. (Cameras
I've tested have generally ranged between 300 and 600 KB/second, with most
coming in a bit over 300KB/sec.)
Power
The Coolpix 2000 is powered by a set of four AA batteries. As always, I
*strongly* recommend that users purchase a couple of sets high-capacity NiMH
rechargeable batteries and a good charger. To see which batteries are best,
visit my current "shootout"
page for NiMH AA cells, and read my review
of the Maha C-204F, to learn about my favorite battery charger.
|
Operating Mode
|
Power
(@8.4 volts on the external power terminal)
|
Est. Minutes
(4 1600 mAh NiMH cells)
|
| Capture Mode, w/LCD |
381 mA
|
144
|
| Capture Mode, no LCD |
n/a
|
n/a
|
| Half-pressed shutter w/LCD |
472 mA
|
116
|
| Half-pressed w/o LCD |
n/a
|
n/a
|
| Memory Write (transient) |
416 mA
|
n/a
|
| Flash Recharge (transient) |
1023 mA
|
n/a
|
| Image Playback |
298 mA
|
184
|
Battery life on the Coolpix 2000 is pretty good, particularly for a camera with
no optical viewfinder. (Optical viewfinders can really help battery life, by letting
you avoid the power-hungry LCD display much of the time.) With a projected run
time of 2 hours and 24 minutes in capture mode, a set of batteries will last a
reasonable amount of time. Note too though, that this still isn't a terribly long
time, if you're away on an extended outing: Definitely plan on buying at least
two sets of good-quality NiMH batteries and a good charger to go along with them.
(See the links above for my recommendations for batteries and chargers.)
Storage Capacity
The Coolpix C2000 stores its images on Type I CompactFlash cards, and ships
with a 16 MB "Starter Card" from Lexar Media included. - The "Starter
Card" is just like any other CF card, the labeling is simply Nikon's way
of emphasizing that you'll really want to buy a larger memory card along with
the camera. (Cards are so cheap these days, there's no reason not to get at
least a 64 MB unit, so you'll have plenty of room for your photos: 64 MB would
provide space for about 68 full resolution/highest quality images.) Here's a
table showing image capacity, sizes, and approximate compression ratios for
the various size/quality combinations of the Coolpix 2000, on the provided 16MB
card:
Image Capacity vs
Resolution/Quality
16 MB Memory Card
|
Fine
|
Normal
|
Economy |
| High
Resolution 1632 x 1224 |
Images
(Avg size) |
17
928 KB
|
39
408 KB
|
69
232 KB |
Approx.
Compression |
7:1
|
15:1
|
11:1 |
Medium Resolution
1280 x 960
|
Images
(Avg size) |
38
416 KB
|
70
228 KB
|
129
124 KB |
Approx.
Compression |
6:1
|
10:1
|
19:1 |
Low Resolution
640 x 480
|
Images
(Avg size) |
76
208 KB
|
160
100 KB
|
250
64 KB |
Approx.
Compression |
4:1
|
9:1
|
14:1 |
Back to Coolpix 2000 main review
Up to Imaging Resource digital cameras area.
|
