Samsung NX100 – hands on preview

The Samsung NX100 is the next in line from the Samsung NX10, but has some very specific stand-out features to set it aside from its older brother. The ifunction lens is an intuitive feature built into the lens itself, which enables you to alter the aperture settings, shutter, scene modes and even white balance and ISO, by twisting the lens ring.

Samsung has launched a compact system camera with a difference – the Samsung NX100 complete with the ifunction lens. Myself and our editor in chief, Debbi Allen had the pleasure of checking out the brand new Samsung NX100, which was unvelied to the press yesterday in London.

The Samsung NX100 is the next in line from the Samsung NX10, but has some very specific stand-out features to set it aside from its older brother. The ifunction lens is an intuitive feature built into the lens itself, which enables you to alter the aperture settings, shutter, scene modes and even white balance and ISO, by twisting the lens ring.

Aimed to bridge first timers to photography and the expert users, this camera provides everything to all people; the easy to use and easy to understand settings as well as full manual control and a wealth of versatile lenses.

Other top features on board:

-Sound picture – records a snippet of sound to capture the atmosphere of the scene or simply record voice notes with your specific shot

- Smart filters  – these filters eliminate the need for post shoot editing as the majority can be done in-camera. Filters include Vignette, Half tone, Miniature and Sketch

- Retains the superb AMOLED 3″ screen from the NX10

- The ISO has been boosted to ISO 6400

First impressions: The Samsung NX100 feels like a very different camera from the Samsung NX10, despite sharing many of the same features. It’s modern in shape and design, veering away from the Samsung NX10′s traditional DSLR-styling. The lens function certainly is innovative and was easy to operate – just press the button on the lens to alter your settings, press it again to move to the next setting.  We look forward to using this out in the field to see how it affects handling.

The Samsung NX100 doesn’t have a pop-up flash like the Samsung NX10 – instead the flash is an optional accessory, as is an electronic viewfinder and GPS add-on, which all click into the hotshoe. It seems an odd thing to take away, when the primary ouser of this camera is likely to be beginner to intermediate users, but then hopefully the boosted ISO6400 goes some way in helping people out in low light.

All in all, it looks and feels like a neat package, and with the ever growing collection of lenses (the Samsung NX10 lenses are compatible) then it seems like a pretty solid system to buy into. We can’t wait to get review samples to really put it thorugh its paces!

Take a look at some of the hands-on shots of the Samsug NX100