Nikon P5000 Performance

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Nikon Coolpix P5000 Performance

Timing and Performance

Slow to average speed for a consumer camera.

Mode switching
Startup/Shutdown
Power on to first shot	1.8 seconds	Time it takes for LCD to turn on and lens to deploy.
Shutdown	2.5 seconds	How long it takes to retract lens.
Buffer clearing time	3 seconds (3 seconds buffer clearing in LF 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.
Play to Record, first shot	0.7 second	Time until first shot is captured
Record to play	2.1 seconds	Time to display a large/fine file immediately after capture
Display recorded image	1.1 seconds	Time to display a large/fine file already on the memory card.
Shutter response (Lag Time):
Full Autofocus Wide	0.91 second	Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, zoom lens at wide angle position. On the slow side.
Full Autofocus Tele	0.93 second	Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, zoom lens at telephoto position. On the slow side.
Prefocused	0.058 second	Time to capture, after half-pressing and holding shutter button. Very fast.
Continuous AF	0.92 second	For most cameras, shutter lag is less in manual focus than autofocus, but usually not as fast as when the camera is "prefocused". On the slow side.
Cycle time (shot to shot)
Single Shot mode Large Fine JPEG	3.12 seconds	Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots. Only average for a camera of this performance class.
Single Shot mode 640x480 JPEG	2.44 seconds	Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots. Rather slow.
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	1.30 seconds (0.77 frames per second); 5 frames total; 3 seconds to clear	Time per shot, averaged over buffer length or 20 shots, whichever came first. Rather slow for a camera of this performance class.
Continuous mode 640x480 JPEG	1.03 seconds (0.97 frames per second); 3 seconds to clear	Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots. Rather slow.
Flash recycling	6.5 seconds	Flash at maximum output. Not terribly fast, but good, considering the power of the flash.
Download speed
Windows Computer, USB 2.0	977 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 P5000's performance ranges from slow to just above average for a camera in its class. Start-up time is slightly above average, but shut-down is average. Shutter lag times at wide angle and telephoto zoom settings are just over 0.9 second, which is on the slow side of average these days. On the other hand though, "prefocus" time (half-pressing and holding down the shutter button before the final exposure) is very fast, with a shutter delay of only 0.058 second.

Shot-to-shot cycle times are longer than average at about 3.1 seconds for large/fine JPEGs, but the camera captures frames continuously at this rate. Continuous-mode speed is very slow, at only about 0.77 frames per second (1.3 seconds per shot), and the camera can only capture 5 frames at this rate before slowing down even further to about 0.3 fps. Full power flash recycling time is also a bit below average at 6.5 seconds, but that's not all that bad, considering how powerful the flash is. Connected to a computer, download speeds are about average, so you may want to use a separate card reader to transfer the large 10 megapixel files from this camera. Bottom line, the Nikon P5000's timing performance is a bit of a disappointment for a higher-end "prosumer" model. It's responsive enough for most family and travel photo opportunities, but too slow for sporting events or active kids. (Although the very fast shutter response when prefocused is great, if your subjects lend themselves to prefocusing.)

Battery and Storage Capacity

Battery
Average battery life for a Lithium-Ion design.

Operating Mode	Number of Shots
LiIon rechargeable battery	250

The Nikon Coolpix P5000 uses a custom rechargeable Li-Ion battery for power, and ships with a charger. Battery life is about average, so we recommend you pick up a spare battery and keep it freshly 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 P5000 stores its photos on SD / SDHC / MMC memory cards or in approximately 23MB of internal memory, and no card is included with the camera.

Image Capacity with 23MB Internal Memory		Fine	Normal	Basic
3,648 x 2,736	Images	4	8	17
3,648 x 2,736	File Size	5.2 MB	2.6 MB	1.3 KB
2,592 x 1,944	Images	8	17	33
2,592 x 1,944	File Size	2.7 MB	1.4 MB	694 KB
1,600 x 1,200	Images	13	27	51
1,600 x 1,200	File Size	1.7 MB	864 KB	458 KB
1,280 x 960	Images	22	43	76
1,280 x 960	File Size	1.0 MB	542 KB	305 KB
1024 x 768	Images	34	62	114
1024 x 768	File Size	678 KB	373 KB	203 KB
640 x 480	Images	114	172	280
640 x 480	File Size	203 KB	136 KB	83 KB

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