Cool new Nikons for Christmas

There are nine new Nikon Coolpix models in all shapes and sizes, headlined by an updated Wi-Fi model.

In the lead up to the festive buying season -- formerly known as Christmas -- there'll be nine new Coolpix models landing on our shores. The newborns range from basic models running off AA batteries to everything-bar-the-kitchen sink units. There's even a model with built-in Wi-Fi.

S-Series
These compact models all sport 3x optical zoom lenses and some form of non-digital image stabilisation. But the hero model is a Wi-Fi capable S51c, a replacement for last year's S50c. It may be a little ahead of its time, though, as hen's teeth outnumber free Wi-Fi hotspots in Australia. And there's no stripped-down Web browser to allow users to sign-up for the services that are currently available in capital cities.

P-Series
New to the P-series are these two very black units. There's the P50, which features a wide-angle 3.6x optical zoom lens, and the P5100, which boasts a 12.1-megapixel CCD sensor.

	Coolpix S51	Coolpix S51c Read our preview	Coolpix S700	Coolpix S510
Price	AU$399	AU$499	AU$649	AU$499
On sale	Mid-September	Mid-September	October	October
Colours	Silver, black, blue	Silver	Silver, black	Silver, black
Sensor (CCD)	8.1-megapixel	8.1-megapixel	12.1-megapixel	8.1-megapixel
Optical zoom	3x (38mm-114mm)	3x (38mm-114mm)	3x (37mm-111mm)	3x (35mm-105mm)
LCD size	3.0-inch	3.0-inch	2.7-inch	2.5-inch
Image stabilisation	Optical	Optical	Sensor shift	Optical
Wi-Fi	No	802.11b/g	No	No

L-Series
Nikon has replaced the entry level models in its Coolpix range. Both the L14 and L15 are powered by two AA-batteries, with the L15 featuring an 8-megapixel sensor and optical image stabilisation.

	Nikon Coolpix P50	Nikon Coolpix P5100
Price	AU$429	AU$649
On sale	October	October
Colours	Black	Black
Sensor	8.1-megapixel CCD	12.1-megapixel CCD
Optical zoom	3.6x (28mm-102mm)	3.5x (35mm-123mm)
LCD size	2.4-inch	2.5-inch
Image stabilisation	Sensor shift	Optical
Battery type	2 x AA (supplied)	Rechargeable Li-ion

	Nikon Coolpix L14	Nikon Coolpix L15
Price	AU$249	AU$299
On sale	October	October
Colours	Silver	Silver, black
Sensor	7.1-megapixel CCD	8-megapixel CCD
Optical zoom	3x (35mm-105mm)	3x (35mm-105mm)
LCD size	2.4-inch	2.8-inch
Image stabilisation	None	Optical
Battery type	2 x AA (supplied)	2 x AA (supplied)