Nikon Coolpix P6000 Packs Integrated GPS, Geotagging

When I first saw this camera a few weeks ago, I knew I had to get some hands-on time with it. The Nikon Coolpix P6000 ($499, September) has integrated GPS for geotagging, a ridiculously large sensor (13.5 megapixels), and manual features plucked from the company’s DSLR line. One of the most interesting things about this—to me, at least—is that Nikon is usually a photography purist and flaunts more manual features than it does new-fangled ones. (It hasn’t jumped on the 720p bandwagon, for instance, and only just released its first touchscreen and intelligent Auto models.) I’m excited about the camera, obviously, but it’s also exciting to see Nikon doing something trendy.

Nikon, already an Eye-Fi partner, embeds photo files with their altitude, longitude, and latitude, which makes it possible to geotag them using a third-party program. Interestingly, the P6000 has a LAN port, with which you can quickly transfer photos to Nikon partner myPicturetown (or your desktop, too, I suppose).

As said, the P6000 also has plenty of specs and features that remind us of a DSLR. Here’s what you get:

• 4X wide angle lens
• 2.7-inch LCD
• Optical viewfinder
• Optical image stabilization
• ISO 64-6400 (Auto ISO up to 1600)
• Programmed Auto, Shutter-priority Auto, Aperture-priority Auto, and Manual modes
• Users can adjust the saturation, hue, and sharpening
• Can shoot in monochrome
• Can shoot in RAW format, and come October, Nikon’s ViewNX software will be able to open and view them
• Pop-up flash
• Nikon’s Best Shot Selector
• SD/SDHC support