Nikon P300: A Light-Swallowing, 1080p-Shooting Pocket Monster

This is Nikon’s answer to the Canon S95 pocket dynamo. The P300 pairs a 12.1-megapixel backside-illuminated CMOS image sensor (which picks up more light than a standard CMOS sensor) with a fast f1.8 lens. Max ISO is 3200. And it shoots 1080p video at 30fps.

It’s also got a new easy panorama mode seemingly borrowed from Sony’s pocketcams, creative filters like faux fisheye and a built-in HDR mode that combines multiple shots at different exposures in camera to create HDR shots. (Click to embiggen the specs box.)

The P300′s a little fatter than the S95, but if the photos deliver what’s promised on paper, it’s some extra bulge I can definitely handle. Other downside? No RAW photos, unlike its pro point-and-shoot competition. I’m guessing that’s where they shaved off the feature set to keep it down to $330, around $70 cheaper than the S95.