Nikon Coolpix S3100

61

"The Coolpix S3100 generally produces well exposed images although on occasions the camera underexposed a touch in bright conditions with colours accurately reproduced."
ephotozine.com | talking about the S3100's image-quality

Reasons to buy the Nikon Coolpix S3100

Wide angle
Wide angle lens
26 mm
Panorama
In-camera panoramas
Stitches together multiple photos into a panorama
Shutter lag
Barely any delay taking photos
570 ms shutter lag
Thickness
Thin
0.7"
Fastest shutter speed
Fast shutter speed
1/2000 of a second
Canon PowerShot A480

39

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot A480

Macro focus
Great macro
1 cm
Fastest shutter speed
Fast shutter speed
1/2000 of a second

differences

Advantages of the Canon A480

Macro focus Much better macro capability 1 cm vs 10 cm
Help
Focus on subjects 10x closer to the lens
Aperture Wider aperture f/3.0 vs f/3.2
Help
At its widest zoom, the A480's lens captures marginally more light (0.2 f-stops)
True resolution Slightly higher true resolution 9.8 MP vs 9.7 MP
Help
Almost the same
Sensor size Slightly larger sensor 1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm vs 1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm
Help
Almost the same
Longest exposure Longer exposures 15s vs 4s
Help
Around 4x longer exposures
Canon PowerShot A480 Learn more about
the Canon A480

Advantages of the Nikon S3100

Wide angle Much better wide angle 26 mm vs 37 mm
Help
Around 30% better wide angle
Size Significantly smaller 93x57x18 mm vs 92x62x31 mm
Help
More than 40% smaller
Image stabilization Image stabilization Sensor shift vs None
Help
Helps eliminate blur caused by small camera movements
Movie format Higher resolution movies 720p @ 30fps vs 480p @ 20fps
Help
Shoots high resolution HD (720p) video at a higher frame rate
Panorama Can create panoramas in-camera Yes vs No
Help
Stitches together multiple photos for a wide perspective
Screen size Larger screen 2.7" vs 2.5"
Help
Around 10% larger screen
Thickness Much thinner 0.7" vs 1.2"
Help
More than 40% thinner
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen 230k dots vs 115k dots
Help
2x higher resolution screen
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 3,200 ISO vs 1,600 ISO
Help
The S3100's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better
Zoom Slightly more zoom 5x vs 3.3x
Help
Around 2.5x more zoom
Weight Lighter 118 g vs 140 g
Help
Around 20% lighter
Nikon Coolpix S3100 Learn more about
the Nikon S3100
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent compacts, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot A480 Canon PowerShot A480
39 vs 61
Explain scores
Nikon Coolpix S3100 Nikon Coolpix S3100
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Nikon Coolpix S3100. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a compact with a ultra compact.

advice

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similarities

Compared to recent compacts

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Weight Light weight Help
A480:140 g
S3100:118 g
Lowest price Inexpensive Help
A480:$137.15
S3100:$131.95
Sensor type Lower-end sensor types Help
CCD
Continuous shooting Slow continuous shooting Help
A480:0.8 fps
S3100:0.7 fps
HDR Neither has in-camera HDR Help
You could do HDR manually
Screen size Very small screens Help
A480:2.5"
S3100:2.7"
Touch screen No touchscreens Help
More buttons
Screen resolution Low resolution screens Help
A480:115k dots
S3100:230k dots
Movie format Poor movies Help
A480:480p @ 20fps
S3100:720p @ 30fps
Zoom Poor zoom Help
A480:3.3x
S3100:5x

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Canon PowerShot A2200

Canon PowerShot A2200

Compact

$147

Light sensitivity (boost) Has boost light sensitivity
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Sony Cybershot W530

Sony Cybershot DSC-W530

Ultra compact

$171

Aperture Has a slightly wider aperture
Image stabilization Has better image stabilization
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Macro focus Slightly worse macro focusing
Sony Cybershot DSC-W570

Sony Cybershot W570

Ultra compact

$135

Aperture Has a slightly wider aperture
Image stabilization Has better image stabilization
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Macro focus Significantly worse macro focusing
Sony Cybershot DSC-W610

Sony Cybershot DSC-W610

Ultra compact

$108

Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Macro focus Slightly worse macro focusing
Canon PowerShot A1200

Canon PowerShot A1200

Compact

$69

Supports 24p Records movies in 24p
Lowest price Is slightly less expensive
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker

Canon PowerShot A480 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Canon PowerShot A800

Canon PowerShot A800

Compact

$84 - $90

Lowest price Cheaper
Weight Significantly heavier
True resolution Slightly lower true resolution
Canon PowerShot A490

Canon PowerShot A490

Compact

$102

Lowest price Cheaper
Weight Heavier
Canon PowerShot A495

Canon PowerShot A495

Compact

$109

Lowest price Slightly cheaper
Weight Heavier
Canon PowerShot A1300

Canon PowerShot A1300

Compact

$109 - $119

Wide angle Much better wide angle
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Macro focus Worse macro capability
Weight Heavier
Nikon D5100

Nikon D5100

Entry-level DSLR

$500 - $597 body only

$600 - $697 with 18-55mm lens

Sensor size Much larger sensor
True resolution Much higher true resolution
Size Much larger
Weight Much heavier

Nikon Coolpix S3100 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Nikon Coolpix S2600

Nikon Coolpix S2600

Compact

$122

Sensor size Slightly larger sensor
Movie format Does not take movies
Panorama Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching
Nikon Coolpix S3300

Nikon Coolpix S3300

Compact

$120

Macro focus Significantly better macro capability
Zoom Slightly more zoom
Aperture Narrower aperture
Panorama Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching
Canon ELPH 100 HS

Canon ELPH 100 HS

Compact

$106 - $189

Movie format Higher resolution movies
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Wide angle Worse wide angle
Panorama Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching
Canon PowerShot A3200 IS

Canon PowerShot A3200 IS

Compact

$122 - $174

Aperture Wider aperture
Macro focus Much better macro capability
Wide angle Worse wide angle
Panorama Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching
Nikon Coolpix S4100

Nikon Coolpix S4100

Compact

Movie format Higher resolution movies
Screen size Significantly larger screen
Image stabilization No image stabilization
Panorama Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching

appearance

Canon PowerShot A480 Nikon Coolpix S3100
Canon PowerShot A480 Nikon Coolpix S3100
Canon PowerShot A480 Nikon Coolpix S3100

discussion

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