The Nikon P6000 is a high-end compact with a wideangle 28-12mm lens, 13MP, and new features including Raw shooting and GPS, so how does it perform?

Product Overview

Overall rating:

88%

Nikon Coolpix P6000

Overall score:88%
Features:95%
Value:85%
Performance:85%
Image Quality:85%
Design:90%

Pros:

  • Ergonomics and handling, fringing control, grip

Cons:

  • Detail hampered by noise, underexposure, over-processed images

Product:

Nikon Coolpix P6000 Review

Manufacturer:

Price as reviewed:

£320.00

Image Quality

Exposure And Tone
The P6000’s metering system delivers pleasing results, though it’s prone to underexposure, occasionally giving images a muddy appearance. Images from the P6000 are saturated, with vibrant colours, and so are good for immediate use. They can look a little over-processed for some tastes, though.

White Balance
Indoors, the P6000 often applies a magenta or yellow cast to images taken either under fluorescent light, or a mixture of both day and fluorescent light. Outdoors, it continues with this slight warmth, which lends itself well in sunny conditions.

Detail And Sharpness
On lower sensitivities the P6000 can record a high level of detail. It takes a similar approach to sharpness as it does to colour, and straight out of the camera images are, on the whole, noticeably sharp. However, it seems as though this sharpness is compensating for the lack of detail the camera resolves, which isn’t quite as high as the Canon G10. One area where the P6000 does excel is with its control over chromatic aberrations, with just traces present.

JPEG And RAW
Thanks to the extra contrast and sharpening applied to the P6000’s images, its JPEGs are suitable for immediate use. When viewed at 100%, images can appear a little over-sharpened, enhancing the luminance noise present to give a slight gritty texture. Its Raw files are much smoother in texture, though softer because of this. As more chromatic aberration tends to be present in the P6000’s Raw images than in its JPEGs, it suggests that its suppression comes courtesy of in-camera processing rather than via the ED elements within the P6000’s lens.

Noise
Noise begins to be noticeable at around ISO 400, with chroma noise and the effects of noise reduction showing early in the ISO range, and this trend continues on higher sensitivity settings. Tested side by side, there were odd occasions where the P6000 managed to produce better detail than the Canon G10 at higher settings, but a lot of the time images simply look sharper because of the extra sharpening that has been applied in-camera.

  1. 1. Introduction
  2. 2. Features
  3. 3. Design
  4. 4. Performance
  5. 5. Image Quality
  6. 6. Value for Money
  7. 7. Verdict
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