Nikon Coolpix S8000 review

The world's thinnest 10x zoom camera is just 3cm thick

nikon coolpix s8000
The Nikon S8000 is the slimmest compact camera with a 10x zoom

TechRadar Verdict

Pros

  • +

    Long lens

  • +

    Well-made

  • +

    Good screen

Cons

  • -

    Imperfect image quality

  • -

    Slow to start

  • -

    Long lens makes it a bit niche

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

The Nikon Coolpix S8000 is a compact camera that manages to do something others don't - pack a 10x zoom into a compact chassis.

At just 3cm thick, the S8000 is the thinnest 10x zoom compact camera on the planet.

The problem with long zooms in compact cameras is obvious - squeezing all that glass into a slim, pocketable body is extremely difficult, which is why most non-DSLRs with a 10x zoom or longer tend to be DSLR-style "bridge" cameras.

Bridge cameras, while ideal for those looking to improve their photography without splashing out on a DSLR, are bulky, heavy and generally more expensive than their compact brethren.

nikon s8000

Not the S8000. It comes packing a massive lens into a body less than 30mm thick. It's a true telephoto lens, as well. Converted to 35mm, it measures from wide-angle, at 30mm, to a length many sports photographers would be happy with, at 300mm.

There's plenty else that appeals too.

In its fastest mode, the S8000 has a claimed top speed of 3fps; significantly quicker than most compact cameras and a reasonable speed for basic wildlife or sports photography.

nikon s8000

Alternatively, it's a powerful 720p video camera, recording 24fps footage for up to half an hour.

Consider the 3-inch, 920,000-pixel screen, all-metal construction and very high resolution (14.2 megapixels) and the S8000, on paper, could be one of the very best compact cameras money can buy.

Dave is a professional photographer whose work has appeared everywhere from National Geographic to the Guardian. Along the way he’s been commissioned to shoot zoo animals, luxury tech, the occasional car, countless headshots and the Northern Lights. As a videographer he’s filmed gorillas, talking heads, corporate events and the occasional penguin. He loves a good gadget but his favourite bit of kit (at the moment) is a Canon EOS T80 35mm film camera he picked up on eBay for £18.