The Nikon Coolpix B500 is a bridge camera meant as a stop gap arrangement between DSLR and your basic point and shooters. It is one of the Best point and shoot camera available today under Rs.20,000 mark and comes with some pretty neat features for a camera at this price point. Headline features of the camera include a 16 megapixel CMOS sensor mated to a lens with 40x optical and 80x digital zoom. Pop-up flash, max ISO of 6400, full HD recording at 1920P and a 921,000 dots 3-inch LCD display at the back. The camera lacks any kind of manual controls which may count as one its biggest drawbacks.
When it comes to size design and build, the Nikon Coolpix B500 is definitely not small. It can be classified more as a mid-sized camera. The camera comes with a pretty comfortable grip and makes the camera quite secure in your hand. The handgrip is also textured which helps to add to an air of quality about the camera. When it comes to weight, the Nikon B500 is pretty lightweight and does not feel heavy at all despite its big size.
Design of the B500 is like any other Nikon bridge camera. It has a boxy DSLR like body. On top there’s a dial though which you can switch between various shooting modes. Mind you the camera does not offer any fully manual shooting mode, but still there’s a lot to choose from. Just in front of the dial is the shutter release button which is surrounded by the zoom rocker. Another zoom button can be found beside the lens for quickly moving in and out of a scene. Next to the dial lies the pop up flash.
Back of the Nikon Coolpix B500 is occupied mostly by the 921,000 dots 3-inch LCD display which doubles up as the ‘viewfinder cum live view’ of the camera. The B500 does not have any viewfinder. All shooting has to be done through the live view only. To the right of the display are various buttons for various camera functions. The buttons are laid out in a pretty conventional way. There’s a four-way navigational pad in which each button has its own dedicated function. Around the navigational pad are four more buttons again with their dedicated function. At the center of the navigational pad is the OK button which can be used to set various menu functions and so on.
Coming back the LCD display, the B500’s display has limited tilting capacity in which you can move the screen up and down and pull it out of the body. But the screen cannot be rotated fully to face the subject which means this is not really a camera for taking selfies. Also, the screen does not have any touchscreen controls.
Just like any other point and shoot camera, the Nikon B500 performs and gives best result when it is used in bright lighting conditions. When used in such condition, the images produced by the B500 are sharp and shows good amount of details with little noise. But the story changes as lights outside goes down. Images become noisy and colors lose their appeal. Since this is a superzoom camera, let’s talk about it a little as well. Images taken at full optical zoom, i.e. 40x are better than the images taken at widest angle. Digital zoom is best avoidable since images become progressively bad as you go up the ladder.
Pros
- Snapbridge
- 40X optical and 80X digital zoom
- 4fps shooting
- 1/4000s max shutter speed
- Built-in VR/IS\
- Lightweight
Cons
- No touchscreen
- No viewfinder
- No weather sealing
Ratings
- Design and build: 7/10
- Features: 7/10
- Performance: 7/10
- Value for money: 6/10
Nikon B500 Specifications
- 16MP – 1/2.3″ BSI-CMOS Sensor
- ISO 80 – 3200
- 23�900 mm F3.0-6.5 Zoom Lens
- Optical Image Stabilization
- 3″ Tilting Screen
- 7.4 fps continuous shooting
- 1920 x 1080 video resolution
- Built-in Wireless
- 541g. 114 x 78 x 95 mm
Nikon Coolpix B500 Price
| Camera | Price in Rs. | Price in USD |
| Nikon coolpix B500 digital point and shoot camera | Check price on Amazon.in | Check Price On Amazon.com |
Nikon Coolpix B500 Sample Images
YouTube Reviews
A short and sweet review of the Nikon Coolpix B500, where all the headline features of the camera has been looked into.
Overall, the Nikon Coolpix B500 is a good compact point and shoot camera if you take pictures of family and friends and want to carry it around when you travel. As long as you shoot in daylight, it’s ok. Don’t even think of doing anything else with it, because if you do, you will face the great limitations of a point and shooter.
Featured Image : Karl Conrad