Nikon 1 S2 mirrorless camera hits 20fps for $450

Spring seems to be turning into cheap interchangeable-lens camera (ILC) season. Following recent announcements of the Samsung’s NX Mini and NX3000 and the Sony A5000, Nikon jumps in with new versions of its two entry-level models, the Nikon 1 J4 — announced in April in Asia and Europe — and the for-the-newbie-on-a-budget Nikon 1 S2.

The S2 is really just a slightly updated version of the old-ish, and now cheaper J3, without a mode dial. But the S2 is probably worth the few extra bucks over the J3 just for the modest improvement in battery life. Most people won’t find the extra burst speed (20fps versus 15fps for the J3) or the 1080/60p (versus 30p for the J3) that much of an advantage. The S2 has the same version of the hybrid autofocus system as the J3, same sensor, and same display.

Of course, compared to its predecessor, the S1, the S2 gets a little more of a jump; notably, the newer, higher-resolution version of the CX-size sensor and a higher-resolution version of the fixed 3-inch LCD. The S2 bumps up to a newer version of Nikon’s image processing engine over both the S1 and the J3, so image and video quality might be better as well.

Compared to similarly priced models, it does have a performance advantage: most of the lower end ILCs use contrast autofocus, which tends to be much slower than the combination of phase detection and contrast AF that Nikon puts even in its cheaper models. And it has some of Nikon’s interesting current features which include motion snapshot; a clever slow view for figuring out your burst-shooting timing; and electronic image stabilization while recording movies. But its battery life is comparatively bad and it lacks Wi-Fi for connecting directly to your phone to upload images or for remote shooting. The optional wireless adapter will run you about $50.

The Nikon 1 S2 is slated to ship in June in two configurations: a single-lens kit with the 11-27.5mm f3.5-5.6 lens (29-74mm equivalent) for $450 USD and a dual-lens kit with the aforementioned lens plus the 30-110mm f3.8-5.6 lens (81-297mm equivalent).