I really wanted to like this camera, but even though it is head and shoulders better than the previous iterations of this line (P5000, P5100, P6000) the P7000 still has a bit to go before being my preferred camera in this category. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and on the exterior the P7000 is exactly this. Nikon has adopted the size, shape and buttons and dials approach of the Canon G11/G12, however there are some distinct differences; the flash is a pop up, increasing the angular distance from the lens (reducing red eye) and the lens is a 28-200mm F/2.8-5.6. There is also no swivel screen.
The good news is that the images are amazing. I found that even 3200 ISO was quite usable in black and white, and the noise was well controlled throughout the range. The macro function works well and there was a level of customisation. However there were some handling issues that made this camera hard to live with. The AF was flaky at times, missing the focus a little too often for my liking, the manual mode is crippled by animated menus that just dont keep up with a seasoned SLR user, and there are some strange choices and implementations to the quick access menu dial and the customisable buttons. All of these issues could and should be addressed a firmware update, but only time will tell us if Nikon will do this.
3200 ISO @ 200mm f/5.6
