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Mirrorless digicams: Will YOU buy Nikon's 1 J1?

Last updated on: September 20, 2013 15:20 IST
Nikon 1 J1

Nikon's latest in this category has its highs and lows. Find out, if the 1 J1 is made for you.

Nikon 1 J1 is an interchangeable-lens compact imaging device that belongs to the '1' line-up of Nikon's mirrorless digicams. It is an entry-level model that may not curry favour with the professionals, for its EVF and LCD screen resolution are not that great.

However, its entire look is quite cute and sturdy. Though the camera boasts of an in-built flash, the sensor size is not too big and baffles the mind that only 10.1MP effective sensor could be inserted in an even smaller magnesium alloy body.

The J1 uses hybrid AF, to get the phase and contrast detection work in sync. There is the motion snapshot mode sported by J1 that can shoot full HD video at 70fps to be played back at 24fps.

The camera can be used with only a fixed number of lenses such as 30 to 110mm and 10 to 30mm lenses.

Some features such as the handheld multi-shot, High Dynamic Range modes and sadly, the sweep panorama are found missing from the camera. Some users might not be perturbed with the lack of these features, for this would be their first purchase but later, might regret on knowing about other contemporary cameras.

The two features Smart Photo Selector and Scene Auto Selector mode somehow make up for Nikon 1 J1. The latter when on, and before you release the shutter, recognises the scene at hand very well and configures the camera settings aptly.

The smart photo selector does its job by shooting many at once, 20 shots to say, while checking for poor and blur composition. You can ultimately choose from the last, best 5 shots delivered by the camera to you.

Mirrorless digicams: Will YOU buy Nikon's 1 J1?

Last updated on: September 20, 2013 15:20 IST
Nikon 1 J1

Power and storage capabilities

The device is powered by Nikon's proprietary EN-EL20 lithium-ion battery. Under CIPA ratings, with flash used only half the time, you can achieve 230 shots.

At the maximum, the full HD video recording time limit is 70 minutes on a single full charge. You do not get battery life info the way you get on V1, J1's sibling.

The camera is shipped with a wall charger and your work is secured on any of the SD/SDHC/SDXC/UHSI cards. The videos get compressed in MP4 AVC/ H.264 format and the audio remains AAC and the final video has .MOV suffix to it. The stills are compressed in JPEG/12-bit NEF format.

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Mirrorless digicams: Will YOU buy Nikon's 1 J1?

Last updated on: September 20, 2013 15:20 IST
Nikon 1 J1

Videos and stills

Nikon 1 J1 records videos at 1920 x 1080 aspect pixels and frame rates of 30/60fps, with stereo sound.

The options of auto sensitivity -- low, medium, and high comes to the video sound. The wind noise filter can be turned off and on but is not much effective. The effect of black or white fades, in or out is available.

For slow-mo video recording, you can shoot at 400fps at 640 x 240 aspect pixels or at 1200fps at 320x240 aspect pixels, but sadly, slow-mo can last only up to 5 seconds on record time. Full HD video recording can be done up to 20 minutes.

The optical zoom is available under video mode but there is no integral image stabilisation. The lens bundled does feature vibration reduction (VR). There are two stills shooting mode namely, regular auto, and smart photo selector.

The latter wisely reads the given and configures for best camera setting while the former captures more shots. The burst mode of Nikon 1 J1 is the fastest of all.

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Mirrorless digicams: Will YOU buy Nikon's 1 J1?

Last updated on: September 20, 2013 15:20 IST
Nikon 1 J1

The lens bundle

Aperture of 30 to 110mm lens covers f/3.5 to f/16 (wide angle) and f/5.6 at full telephoto. You can easily achieve remarkable background blur. With 10 to 30mm lens, the indoor/studio shoots can be won with best quality.

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Mirrorless digicams: Will YOU buy Nikon's 1 J1?

Last updated on: September 20, 2013 15:20 IST
Nikon 1 J1

Articulated design

You get a high-quality feel with the magnesium alloy design. The buttons and dials are responsive along with the multi-controller that does fairly well too. The lenses when taken out of the bundle can be easily attached to the device and made to work rather quick.

The screen at the rear consists of a 3-inch wide LCD with a resolution of 460,000 dots. Scenes can be composed easily under bright light. The viewing angle is wide, both vertically and horizontally.

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Mirrorless digicams: Will YOU buy Nikon's 1 J1?

Last updated on: September 20, 2013 15:20 IST
Nikon 1 J1

Be happy about

Nikon 1 J1 has quite a small and solid build of magnesium alloy. Its low light performance is remarkable and the auto focus is appreciably fast while shooting. Also, you can shoot at 60fps, not usually discovered in contemporary compact cameras.

The camera keeps digital noise in check.

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Mirrorless digicams: Will YOU buy Nikon's 1 J1?

Last updated on: September 20, 2013 15:20 IST
Nikon 1 J1

What shall stop you

The sensor size of Nikon 1 J1 is smaller than other CSCs and its battery life is disappointingly below average. The controls are confusing and the flash is not a robust one.

Though you can switch to other lenses only few are applicable. The low light performance at high ISO mark is unacceptable. The only way to change exposure compensation is that you go through the menus and then do it.

There is no viewfinder, just the screen to act in its place. For these shortcomings, the price of the device is way too much.

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Mirrorless digicams: Will YOU buy Nikon's 1 J1?

Last updated on: September 20, 2013 15:20 IST
Nikon 1 J1

The bigger picture

Nikon 1 J1 does not have a distinct image among other point and shoots, so expecting DSLR-like quality and assuming it to be a bridge camera by nature is not acceptable.

The lens bundle can be bought at a fair deal without shelling much from the pockets but a sensor that gives only 10.1 effective MP count cannot really get you too far.

It is a camera that delivers quality work and introduces the interchangeable lens camera market within its clan but ultimately, Nikon's give and take suffers. J1 does not even have good in-camera filters, which is too common now-a-days in point and shoots.

Overall, this mirrorless camera is relatively good.

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