Nikon COOLPIX L26 16.1 MP Digital Camera with 5x Zoom NIKKOR Glass Lens and 3-inch LCD (Red) (OLD MODEL)

This camera is awesome! It's to the mind what Gigabytes of memory is to a computer. I would not categorize myself as a shutter-bug by any stretch, but I do like to capture the occasional 'special moments, which this camera performs perfectly. Mostly though, I will be using this camera to gather the same sort of information where years ago I used the Polaroid, which was information one would usually relegate to a notepad. The features in this camera allow you to do just about anything you would ever need from a camera, and the picture are crystal clear. I say 'about' because I am sure I haven't even scratched the surface as to the capabilities of this camera. It was easy to set up as a simple point and shoot, so I was literally taking pictures in a few minutes. But even before I set up the camera for simple 'point and shoot", I read the direction meticulously and suggest this to be the best approach for everyone. Because even though you may not understand everything at the time you read the directions, it will all become clear to you when you come across it again while manipulating the buttons on the camera itself. I would sincerely say in no more than a weeks time of using this camera I was expert enough to accomplish anything I wanted to do. In all the reviews I read regarding this camera, I would say the women were spot on, whereas the men generally were to critical. Trust me as a man I can say it is in our nature to over-think just about everything! Trust me, I used to be one of those types! But, alas, eventually I learned that everything isn't exactly rocket science!! The price was great, I can only think the reason is, it's a new product and they want to get of to a good start. I can tell you this, I have spent more than twice as much for less than half the quality and features I have found in this camera. Definitely a great value! I am retired now from a career in mechanical engineering, where my use of a camera was primarily for gathering technical information. It is different now but not all that much, because I still use a camera for gathering information. :) ON THE NEGATIVE: About the camera (per se), NOTHING! But in regard to a camera case, I was unable to find a case to match my lifestyle and the size I would have perferred. The ideal case for me would have had an armored exterior, and interior with just enough room to hold the camera, two AA batteries and a extra SD memory card. A horizontal belt loop equal to the horizontal length of the case, and suitable for mounting on a 1-1/2 inch ( nylon web ) belt. The opening would be at the top with the camera situated ( shutter release button up ),and opening equal to half the height of the camera. I was not able to find a case of this description but I found one that was somewhat close, that was also featured at Amazon.com, in close proximity of this camera. I finally purchased the 'Case LOGIC' case, that featured a small, silver, belt loop style, ( Carabiner ) and added armored protection, of my own design, that included a ('Zytel') panel sewn in a ('U' shape configuration) within a piece of ('micro-fiber) cloth. The armor was then assembled in the case, such that the Camera when sitting (shutter release button up) was cradled in the U-shaped protector. Otherwise, without the (armor) the 'Case LOGIC' case would be perfectly fine for just about everyone. Nice case! I hope this information is helps someone. Live Good and Happy!

I own some very expensive Nikon camera e.g. a D800 etc. I wanted this to stuff in my pocket and carry to parks or places for My wife to use or me without dragging the big gear along. I slipped and fell on my butt on a wet slope but caught myself with my elbows and empty hand. Apparently the shock did something to the camera because after that the lens would not focus or retract to off any longer. The camera never touched the ground or came into contact with anything. Apparently its not very durable.

Bought this one for my mother's birthday coming up soon. What prompted me buy it was the fact my niece has the Nikon Coolpix L20 ( I think that's it anyway ) and it always took good pictures. I had also bought my wife and daughter the Nikon Coolpix L22 and neither one of them have complained one bit. They both went threw (combined) five cameras, from various manufactures (Olympus being one of them) and nothing came close to the quality and ease at which you can use these Nikon Coolpix series cameras. They are fantastic little cameras. I tested this one out when I first got it to make sure it worked alright and it's just as it should be. This model has a better optical zoom and bigger MegaPixal count than previous models and for the price it beats out a ton of the other cameras it's size. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another one at all. The video is of real good quality also. Took the wife's camera to a concert last month and the quality of the video and sound were really good. I was surprised to say the least, as it was a rock concert and I figured the sound would be distorted. Nope, good picture and sound, and that was on the L22, so I can only imagine the L26 will even be better with it's better optical zoom. It uses two double A batteries. The whole family uses the Duracell Rechargeables, which saves you a bunch of money over time. The memory cards for the Coolpix series are getting pretty cheap also, so no worries about expensive cards. Have you wanted a digital camera or just wanted to upgrade what you have? Buy it. Thinking of a gift for someone, even a person who's never used a digital camera? But it. It's not overly complicated like some can be and they will love it. I've only bought Olympus (digital) for myself over the past 13 years, BUT when the time comes to replace my DSL camera with a newer model, it'll be a Nikon that replaces it.

The camera took fantastic photographs---when it felt like working. Starting a few days after I purchased it, the lens would refuse to open when I turned the camera on. "Lens error" would flash on the screen and it was impossible to operate the camera in that state. The only way to solve this problem was to remove the batteries, replace them, then turn the camera back on. This is not something I would expect from a brand-new camera. When I called Amazon, the customer support department was very helpful and professional. They instructed me to call Nikon, whose customer service department was terrible. The representative told me to "just" remove the batteries and replace them each time the lens error occurred. The company did not seem concerned that a brand-new camera would already have such a problem. I would not consider buying a Nikon again. The quality of the camera was very poor to the point of equipment failure and customer service was abysmal.

I truly deeply LOVE this camera; it is sooo easy to use and the quality is there. It even lets you select the final size of your photos in pixels. Uploading pictures is a PLEASURE, NOTHING COMPLICATED IN USING IT, unlike other digitals. It is truly a point and shoot camera! I take photos of fast moving puppies and it keeps up with them, no blurs! I recommend it to all! The price was more than worth it without having to spend thousand(s) of dollars. It is meant for the amateur photographer and is simply an absolute VERY TRUE JOY to use! I can't say enough about this VERY excellent camera. Wish I had had it years ago, but maybe it would not be the excellent camera it is today! This is the VERY best digital camera I have ever used and meets all my needed requirements, especially for the puppies in picture taking! It replaces the KODAK cameras I have used over the last 11 years with Kodak now going out of business in this area anyway. I recommend it to all amateurs, well worth the money which is not that much.

This camera I found takes great close up shots in AUTO or any other settings. There are some things that I LIKE and things I DISLIKE on this camera: LIKES: 1) Easy for anyone to point and shoot especially on AUTO. This is the easiest mode to use and one for beginners. 2) Has manual mode settings such as: Outdoors, Incandescent, Florescent, Low Lighting and more! 3) Can manually turn the flash on and off in both picture mode and video mode. 4) Close up pictures come out very detailed and clear. 5) Uses AA Batteries - I tried regular ones and they work but do not last long. Just tried the Lithium ones and they last for months! DISLIKES: 1) The video format on the file is AVI versus the MPEG and AVI takes up lots of file space. 2) Videos are OK, but not near as good as my video camera, in a pinch, they will do. 3) Could not find the Anti Shake for still pictures. The reason that I need anti shake is I have a friend who takes group pictures with this camera and she has a slight shake and every picture she takes with this camera is a little blurry. However, when I take pictures of a group say dancing fast on the dance floor or even posing, it comes out clear as I am very very careful NOT TO SHAKE! 4) The pictures are pretty clear, especially the outdoor ones and close up pictures...however, my Samsung Galaxy phone with an 8MP camera takes SUPERB shots and has the ANTI SHAKE on it. Suggestions: This camera would be very good to give someone as a first camera or even to treat yourself to a lower cost camera. However, I WOULD NOT SUGGEST this to you if you tend to shake when you take a picture as the picture may come out BLURRY. *** To make sure the pictures are not BLURRY - 1) Hold the camera steady and firmly. 2) Press slowly the shutter button. 3) DO NOT SHAKE or be in a hurry when taking pictures with this camera. This camera I will continue to use because of the AA battery feature and I do like the camera. Is it perfect? No, if you want a better camera, get one with ANTI SHAKE and pay about 50 dollars more! My true rating is 3.5 stars rounded off to 4.0 (to the nearest decimal).

I've ordered many things from Amazon, but this is the first item I've returned. I wanted a simple but effective point-and-shoot camera that takes decent pictures. The general operational layout is actually pretty good. The CD-based reference manual is pretty well written. The problem is in the execution. The easy automatic mode, or whatever it's called, did not work well. I'd try to take a picture in my back yard at dusk, but the flash may or may not be invoked and the image is blurry. I was careful to wait until the white brackets turned green before fully depressing the button. I tried other scenes with varying results. When the camera does take a good picture, it's really good. Unfortunately it's not all the time. This is the first Nikon I've owned. The other brand I've used never gave me this problem. One other thing. It says deep in the reference manual that your image storage card (not included with camera) has to be class 6 or higher if you're going to shoot movies. I can understand that, but such information should be more prominent.

I have always liked Nikon Coolpix cameras because they don't break like other brands do which is why I purchased this despite some of the bad reviews. I had an older model one and wanted to get a new one because the battery door broke (Camera still works great though) on the old one. It takes nice photos and has some nicely improved features and options such as you can select and delete multple photos at a time instead of doing just one at a time. That saves me time. I take pictures for a local animal shelter's online pet search program and the pictures come out clear and nice. No problems at all. If you get a fuzzy photo you just need to switch to a setting that works well. "Easy auto" does not take as nice of photos as the "portrait" option does. There is also a "pet photo" option too I am going to play around with. All in all, good price, nice pictures and videos too! Easy to use! Thanks!