In the run-up to the CP+ 2019 tradeshow in Japan, Nikon USA has announced the Coolpix A1000, successor to 2016’s A900 model. The new Nikon A1000 still features a 35x optical Digital camera zoom in a compact, travel-zoom form factor, but offers a number of additional features and improvements over its predecessor in a slightly larger and heavier package.
Probably the most obvious upgrade from the A900 is the inclusion of an electronic viewfinder, a very handy feature for a long-zoom camera, providing additional stability when shooting while avoiding glare and reflections in bright conditions. The A1000’s EVF uses a 0.2-inch LCD panel with 1,166K-dot equivalent resolution, which means it’s likely a field-sequential display (each pixel cycles through red, green and blue colors in turn, rather than using adjacent subpixels of different primary colors to provide a full-color image). Frame coverage is specified at 98%, but magnification was not disclosed at the time of writing. The EVF has an eye sensor on the left, and the diopter can be adjusted from -4 to +4m-1 using a dial to the right of the EVF.
The Nikon A1000’s rear monitor gets upgrades too. Not only is it now touch sensitive, but it tilts down 180 degrees to face forward for selfies as well as tilts up 90 degrees providing more flexibility for shooting at difficult angles. The A900’s screen on the other hand was not touch sensitive and could only tilt up, to 180 degrees. While still a 3-inch TFT LCD panel, the aspect ratio has changed from 4:3 to 3:2, and resolution has increased as well, from 921K-dots to 1,036K-dots.
The Nikon A1000’s 35x zoom lens remains the same as the A900’s, offering a 35mm-equivalent optical zoom range of 24-840mm, a maximum aperture of f/3.5-6.9 and employing 13 elements in 11 groups with 4 ED lens elements. However, the A1000 adds a second zoom toggle control around the barrel of the lens and moves the Snap Back Zoom button there from the back to make it easier to zoom and acquire your subject while using the EVF. The lens still features Nikon’s VR (Vibration Reduction) optical image stabilization, and can focus as close as 1cm (0.4 in.) at wide angle in macro mode. The A1000 offers up to 4x digital zoom, as well as 2x Dynamic Fine Zoom which helps preserve fine detail better than traditional digital zoom.
Behind that lens is a 16-megapixel, 1/2.3″ backside-illuminated CMOS sensor. While pixel count is down from the 20-megapixel A900, we think that’s probably a good thing, as the A1000’s new sensor will likely provide better image quality, but of course that remains to be seen until we can test the A1000 in our lab. In addition, the A1000’s maximum ISO has been boosted from 3200 to 6400, which also bodes well for improved high ISO performance. The Coolpix A1000 now also supports RAW still capture mode in Nikon’s .NRW format, whereas the A900 only shot JPEG stills.
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