The standard in ear headphones come with silicon tips which in my
experience when using them have the knack of falling out of your ears when
walking or doing exercise. The idea with memory foam is that it expands when warm;
the tips will expand gently inside your ear and create a seal. Creating this
seal is what can create a better and more comfortable feel when listening to
music.
When first trying
them out I felt a little differently when using these compared to the silicon
tip and take some getting used because the feel in different in your
ears but the seal it creates a block out from the outside world which music’s
the music seem louder there benefiting the people around you as well.
After using the
tips for 4-5 months I cannot say that I fully prefer the memory foam tips to
the standard silicon, they make the music sound a lot more whole when listening
to the music which can only be an improvement. When using them in the gym I now
have no problem with losing headphones be that during cardio or weight lifting
which is a vast improvement to constantly putting the silicon tips back in my
ear as they keep falling out in my experience. Generally I feel that changing
the tips has enhanced my listening experience when using my in ear headphones
and would recommend them to anyone who constantly uses this style of headphone
like myself.
The S3100 is based on the design features of being easy to use and small and compact you are are able to fit it into your pocket and if you want to take a picture just point and shoot. Showing off a range of scene modes you are able to pick the situation you are in and it will adjust the setting of the camera to get the best shot possible. Rocking at 14 megapixel CCD sensor is for those who just want to take simple photos the camera is a plain and simple point and shoot.
The camera is very easy to use, using the zoom which is positioned round the shutter release you are able to zoom up to 5x using the optical zoom into your subject and simply just focus and take a photo. The camera when using it seemed a little bit slower than I expected from a compact camera and some others in the same price range I know to have a faster focus time. When taking a photo of a landscape I was pleasantly surprised at some of the results as it was able to take a good shot as long as you had a good few seconds to take the photo.
In a compact camera these days consumers expect a good performing continuous shoot mode so they can keep up with subject weather that is kids running round the house or their dog in the park and when using this shoot mode on the S3100 is seemed very unresponsive and slow so if you are using it this this kind of environment your result would be poor.
Navigation through the different setting was very simple and easy to use, just pressing the record button you could put it into video mode without having to change it into video mode in the settings. Being able to select the different scenes was very easy again which shows how Nikon know who the camera is aimed at and have made the different feature easy to access to take advantage of. For those wanting to do a little but more with the camera the only setting you will be able to have fun with is white balance as this range of camera does not support any kind of manual setting what so ever.
My overall conclusion of the camera being that if you are after just a very simple point and shoot camera for landscapes and taking picture of the family then this will be perfect for you, with a range of colour you will be able to find one that fits your style but for those expecting a high performance compact camera this would not be a camera I would recommend. It struggled in macro mode when trying to take pictures of small details and objects up close but the landscape features seemed to be good. Personally does not suit my needs for a camera but would be good for someone looking for just a very simple point and shoot.
Nikon J1 - Initial thoughts
When you first take a look at the camera you can tell it is a camera which is aimed at the consumer market and this is clear from the size of the camera and also how it is designed. The design is very sleek & sexy which will appeal to the consumer market which will care about how the camera looks when they are using it but that is not the only appeal to the camera cause the power inside this little body is a force to be reckoned with in the compact systems market Slightly smaller sensor than the standard micro four thirds mirror camera range currently on the market but don't let that put off the camera as what you may think it lacks in spec it will make up for in quality images and video!
User Experience
Using the camera is a pleasure when you are using both the image and video aspects of the camera, using the crisp and sharp screen you get a good indication to the quality of the image before you get home and get it on the computer or print the image. The easy access to the flash is perfect when in low light situations it truly lights up the whole area and the images produced when using the flash are surprising in terms of the quality of expect. I have found when using other camera when you are focusing to take to take the photo it is a slow process and sometimes the moment you were waiting for has passed by the time the camera has focused, not with the J1 the camera has the fastest focusing time in the camera market at the minute, it is very impressive how fast the camera has focus and you are able to take a very crisp and high quality image in a matter of seconds which when I have used the bigger DSLR camera this is not an experience I have been able to have which really shows you the power of this camera.
Usability
When navigating through the camera weather that is going through and changing the settings manually or you are just going through the photos and scroll wheel on the back makes this a pleasant experience and this in pairing with the easy to use menu system will not scare anyone who dares to play with the settings who is new to the word of photography. It is clear what every button does and the camera is not littered with buttons which have not purpose on the body when they could just be in the menu.
Modes
The camera has a series of modes which will allow the new users of this style of camera to learn about all the different settings or allow them to just use the camera in automatic and let the camera do the work and allow them to get some excellent results. There is mode such as programmed auto which will allow to adjust a few of the settings but the camera still does some work, Shutter priority which allow you to create images with longer exposures, aperture priority creating images which will make the subjects of the image pop out and really make a crisp image and full manual mode which would be fantastic for DLSR to use if they are just wanting to use a camera with a smaller body but still wanting the same features that they can access on the bigger more powerful cameras.
Lenses and accessories There is a series of different lenses that can be purchased with the camera and different boxed bundles that can be purchased as standard with the camera. When purchasing the camera I highly recommend you go for the twin lens kit as this gives you the 10-30mm lens (wide angle) and the 30-110mm lens (zoom lens) for most people these lens will be all you will ever need as this allows you to zoom into subjects and also get a wide angle landscapes you are after. The reason I recommend to get the twin lens kit is cause you'll pay about £50 more for the package but if you wanted to get the zoom lens separateyou will pay around £150 for it so you are making a saving you are getting a better range of images as with the one lens you will only be getting wide angle shots which for most users will put them off using the camera due to the limitations one lens will give you.
Portability The camera is very compact and this is perfect for people who love to travel either on holidays or days out, want to be able to go places and take quality photos but not want all the size and weight that having a DLSR system requires. I carry the camera in the LowePro Streamline which is a small bag but I use this cause normally I wouldn't carry bags on a day out but the weight of the camera when using it in the bag is minor and having the bag is worth it for the quality of the images you are getting, although we would all love a camera that with just shove in your pocket you wont be able to do this with the J1 but a big coat pocket would be perfect for this camera so the size is slightly awkward but you will put up with the just a little to big body to have the power of a camera like this with you.
Conclusion
This camera is perfect for someone wanting to pay a little bit more money for a lot more quality than your standard point and shoot, want the near quality of DLSR systems but in a compact body and the portability that comes with a camera this size, want to be able to get into photography but not be thrown in at the deep end as the camera allows you to use all its different modes to the users advantage and if you love the idea of changing the lenses on your camera and want a professional feel the the pictures you are taking then this camera is perfect for you! I have had this camera for about 2 months now and it has not put a foot out of place and that is why I rate the camera so highly as it ticks all my boxes. The only down side to the Nikon 1 range is the current lack of lenses but Nikon are saying on the website they're working on more lens for the product, I would mainly like to see more a lens with a large zoom then the 30-110 as in rare situations you are limited to what you can take but that would be the only thing I can take away from this camera. Take a look at some of my sample images and see the quality of the camera for yourself.
