GADGET GIZMO REVIEW Nikon CoolPix A900 and B700

GADGETGIZMO

REVIEW
Nikon CoolPix
A900 and B700

The new A900 is not just another point-and shoot -Nikon is getting serious about ultra HD video, so it's their first compact with 4K video.It has a 20-megapixel CMOS sensor, 35x optical zoom, 3-inch tilting screen and is capable of 4K movie recording at 30 fps. The high zoom lens folds into the body of the camera when powered off, making it quite a portable camera.

Just to give you an idea, the 35x optical zoom equates to a 24 to 840mm lens in 35mm lingo. In addition, the screen can tilt all the way to the front to help you frame those crucial selfies. It should be priced at about US$300.

Next up with the DSLR-styling is the B700 (US$500). This has the same sensor as the A900 and retains the 4K video but it shoehorns a massive 60x optical zoom. In 35mm parlance, that means a 24 to 1440mm zoom. Notably, both have WiFi and Bluetooth. .

Ricoh WG-M2

This is Ricoh's latest waterproof action camera and it has an ultra-wide 204-degree field of view so that it captures all the action around you as you run, jump, ski, snowboard, climb, skate, bike, swim or whatever else catches your fancy. As you might have guessed from its appearance, it's a fairly rugged design: it can survive falls from 6.5 feet and works underwater up to a depth of 32 feet. As for the images, it can capture stills at 8 megapixels but video is where the game is at -it does 4K video at 30 fps. If you want higher frame rates, you will have to drop the resolution. It does 1080p video at 60fps or 720p video at 120fps. The controls are all designed to be easily operable, even with gloves. On top, there's a 1.5-inch colour LCD to help frame your shots. If you want to stabilize your video, there's a built in mode that will narrow the field of view and use that extra information from the lens to stabilize everything. It should retail for US$299.

ET26FEB16