The COOLPIX S1000pj is the first compact digital camera* in the world to feature a built-in projector. With a simple touch of a button, the camera projects favorite photos or movies clips on any flat surface at up to 40 inches in size. Pictures can be projected individually, or as slide shows complete with music and added effects that enhance the experience. It's the fun new way to share pictures with family and friends in most any location.

This capability to project still images or movie clips gives birth to an entirely new form of communication as all participants visually share the passion of special moments together. For example, the COOLPIX S1000pj can be used to capture photos on a family vacation, and then serve double-duty as a personal theater in the evening as everyone enjoys viewing the highlights of the day projected on a wall or a ceiling. Whenever and just about wherever friends gather, the COOLPIX S1000pj's projector can add whole new life to the party by displaying nostalgic pictures or freshly shot images for all to enjoy. Parents can even use the COOLPIX S1000pj to display photos of their own artworks or other images on the ceiling to complement bedtime stories they tell their children.

A handy projector stand is included, as is a remote control that can be used to operate the projector, release the shutter, and more.

This all sounds super-cool and it might well be. But let's take a look at the projector specifications:

• It can project at distances between about ten and 80 inches.
• Image size is betwen five and 40 inches.
• Projector brightness is up to 10 lumens.
• The image has the equivalent of 640 x 480 pixel.
• Battery life while projecting: 1 hour

This means is that the ambient light level plays a big role when using the projector, and brightness will quickly drop off as you project farther away. Without having seen projection quality it's hard to predict how pleased users will be. This is potentially a quantum-shift technology, but only if it is good enough to really work.

What else can we say about the new Coolpix S1000pj?

You get fairly advanced image stabilization with both lens shift VR image stabilization and electronic/digital stabilization. ISO goes up to 3200 and the camera has motion detection that automatically selects higher ISO and faster shutter speed to compensate.

As far as size and weight go, you'd think that the projector makes the S1000pj large and heavy. It does not. The camera measures 4.0 x 2.5 inches and is 0.9 inches thick. That's not terribly tiny, but it's still compact and easily fits into a pocket. Weight is just 5.5 inches without the battery (who ever walks around without the battery in it?).

Controls are all standard and the display measures 2.7 inches diagonally. It has nice 230k resolution and anti-reflective coating so you can see it outdoors.

Nice features

There's face priority, of course, both for individuals and groups. The camera automaticvally detects up to 12 faces and makes sure they look as good as possible by optimizing exposure. Smile mode waits until the subject smiles before it releases the shutter, and Blink Warning detects if someone blinks, so that you can retake the shot. In this day and age of hyper-resolution, skin often looks less than perfect, and so there is Skin Softening that ensures a smooth skin tone, adjustable in three levels. High ISO helps with challenging lighting conditions, even though you usually trade image quality for it. The Scene Auto Selector helpfully tries to figure out what you're shooting and then selects the proper mode.

In playback there is face zoom and you can organize pictures and tag favorites. D-Lighting adds light and detail where necessary while leaving other parts of the picture untouched. You can also play with slideshow effcts and such, and apply color filters. All stuff that probably delights Ashton Kutcher. Us, less so as we prefer to do this stuff in Photoshop. Nothing exciting on the movie side of things--just standard 640 x 480.

Overall

Else, this is a nice 12.1 megapixel camera that comes in black or warm silver. We like the 5X zoom that starts wide, the high-res 2.7-inch LCD is large enough and remains quite readable outdoors thanks to an anti-reflection coating. The design is clean and uncluttered, and there's fairly extensive image stabilization. You also get the usual bevy of tricks and in-camera processing, but this camera is really all about the built-in projector.