Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Camera!
Review: After having read through all the reviews I thought I'd contribute my input on this camera since a lot of people had something negative to say.I'm a former Coolpix 5000 user and went for the newer version handing down my older version, and I must say the 5400 is indeed a better camera. Before I get into that, I must first say that if you're a beginner user or searching for your first digital camera, the 5400 is probably not for you and I would recommend investing your money on a high end Canon which focuses on point and shoot, quick and easy, no fuss photos. Although this camera does have point and shoot capabilities, the camera is clearly designed to be tweaked and played with to get a professional image. This camera is the grade in between a consumer and professional camera and you'll immediately see and feel that when you begin to use the camera. As for what remarks I've seen regarding fuzziness, blurriness or quality of images... the 5400 produces crystal clear, professional images once you've taken the time to learn how to use the camera and produce the images. If you're not willing to sit down and learn how to use the camera, you're wasting your money. Of course, if you're a previous Nikon Coolpix user it will be a relatively easy learning curve. Frankly, who cares where the camera was made? Every element on the 5400 works and functions great. Nothing on the 5400 has been overlooked or "skimped" over. This camera's been on the top 10 at PC World for months since its release and for good reason. My favorite feature compare to the 5000 is that I'm not always removing the lens cap to do simple tasks such as downloading images into my computer. The menu is also a lot better and it's a lot easier to navigate between the different shooting modes. The features have already been thoroughly reviewed by other users, but overall this camera is an excellent camera with more features and absolute control then you could imagine. If you want to be creative about photography and get quality, professional images, then this camera is undoubtedly meant for you.
Rating: 
Summary: A digital beginner's impression: Very good, but not perfect
Review: Although I have had years of experience with conventional cameras in both 35mm and medium format, the Nikon Coolpix 5400 is the first digital camera I have owned. I had grown weary of traveling with a 35mm and several lenses, or even more bulky medium format cameras.
Other reviewers have amply written about the features of this camera. I am going to focus on performance.
The Coolpix 5400 has good optics. I have shot the equivalent of several rolls of film on it. The photos have been crisp, had faithful color rendition without any glaring digital artifacts, and really don't need any software manipulation. So far, so good.
All is not roses, however. The Coolpix 5400 is very, very, very slow in writing from the a/d converter to the flashcard. Fire off a bunch of shots in continuous mode and get ready to wait. And wait some more. Smokers will have time for a cigarette or two; others could take a short bus ride or file their nails. It's that bad. I find this to be inexcusable in a camera sold at the original price point of the 5400. In fact, a lot of less expensive cameras are quicker. Canons don't seem to do this as poorly as the Nikon 5400 and Sony with its new V3 may be the fastest prosumer camera on the block for the time being. I think most other name brands will be quicker also. I should point out everything is relative: all point and shoot and prosumer digital cameras will be much slower than a digital SLR.
Another shortcoming: the autofocus in dim light problem that has been amply documented by other reviewers. This has not bothered me that much, but it is a problem to be aware of (this problem is not unique to Nikon).
A former shortcoming, the lack of a RAW file format has been rectified. You can now download firmware enabling RAW files from the Nikon USA website. It is up to you whether you want to utilize the RAW format. RAW is essentially uncompressed, but I doubt you'd be able to discern any real differences between a RAW or JPEG photo at normal print size.
Were it not for the glitches I listed above, I'd highly recommend the camera to just about anyone. As it is, the Coolpix 5400 is suitable for someone like a landscape photographer who takes a long time to compose a picture and has some patience; but it's not for the person who wants to take action shots and review them quickly.
The Coolpix 5400 has been recently discontinued by Nikon, and, depending where you shop. the price has dropped from a bit to enormously. That may make its few flaws more acceptable to the new buyer. My advice: shop around and try to use the camera you are interested in buying as much as possible. Online reviews can provide a good guide, but you really need to put your hands on a camera and run through the controls to see if it is right for you. What feels good in my hand may not in yours.
Hope this has been of some help.
Rating: 
Summary: Nothing new
Review: At this price you should be getting more for your money these days. The camera takes good photos but so do many other PS (that's piont and shoot for you southern folk, and you don't start a sentence with And). Getting back to reviewing this latest Nikon one good thing is it has 15 scene selections for those that are photo challanegd. This is a big plus for newbees but if you're paying top dollar you'll be in A or S mode anyway.
If you use the LCD for composing it's a bit small.
Good things are the 28mm wide end (but the Nikon 5000 had that).
The extra telephoto end is a little longer compared to the 5000 but comes at a price (smaller f stop).
A good camera but the new Canon G5 is already making Nikon lower the price.
Rating:
Summary: Great Camera
Review: Don't listen to this guy who said its a step backwards. The LCD is fine for all but the visually impaired, and excellent in bright sunlight (light that many LCDs have trouble in). 1.5 inches is fine, and is too small an issue to detract from its overall strength. Basically an LCD is for framing and reference, not for showing your pics to family and friends,; thats what prints are for, or even the TV out cable.
This camera takes stunning images with ease. Ive had it for a week. The more you get to know it and understand it, the better it will get, and so your pictures. To fully get the best out of it you'll need to be patient and read the manual, but out of the box shots on full auto are superb anyway.
The autofocus is quick, so long as you find some contrast to lock it onto, as with all autofocus, and shutter lag is virtually instant if you make sure focus is already locked onto the subject. Disable the 'shutter sound' beep via the settings menu, and you'll quicken shutter speed even more, to about 0.1 sec.
If people knock this camera its either because they dont have it and have only read about it or briefly tested it in-store, or because they dont understand how to use it. And maybe they have bad eyesight!
Rating:
Summary: Nikon's Coolpix 5400 is full of Great Features
Review: Finally decided to get the Nikon 5400 from Amazon at the regular Nikon suggested price, because I have grown to trust Amazon, and my impression is that the "lower priced" 5400's out there are mostly gray market. This made-in-Japan wonder, has not let me down. Have been using the 5400 about 10 days now. I took camera and manual up to a lean-to in the Adirondacks for an overnight, and had a great time trying the various features. I took pictures in the deep forest in a misty rain, using a Leki Photo walking stick as a monopod and got great results. I set the white balance for "cloudy" and colors were rendered accurately. Subsequently, on a clear day in the shade, with white balance set to "shade", greens were nice and warm - not blue as with slide film (unless you put on a filter.) You can even bring along a piece of white paper, aim the camera at it, and set the white balance precisely for any lighting situation. I have methodically plodded through the manual, and pleasant surprises abound. The camera is a joy to use, controls are well deployed. And with battery, it only weighs 13 oz - a backpacker's dream camera, with 28 - 116 zoom. This is possibly the only 5 MP camera on the market with a 28mm equivalent wide angle lens integral to the camera. In macro, it will focus as close as 1/2 inch! If you are into scenics and nature, this is the camera to own. The only down side so far is the viewfinder (the glass one you look through) which has a somewhat restricted view.
Rating:
Summary: Overall great camera - even better with rebate!
Review: Got a $200 rebate from Nikon on this camera and couldn't pass it up and never happier. Very good all around performance, a few small problems (no Focus Assist light and fairly small LCD are some) but overall a solid camera with a lot of features and unbeatable at the price.
For those who are having problems focusing in low light I have to ask, are you shooting on a tripod or by hand? Take advantage of the nice feature whereby this camera shows you the exposure time right on the LCD when taking pictures, at medium and low light levels the camera will often have an exposure time of 1 second or more, this will lead to a blurry shot if it's not heald perfectly steady.
If you are having blurry shots at low light, try the same shot on a tripod or just sitting on something solid, I bet the shot will be crystal clear and very bright (I took some late twilight shots tonight and they look almost like midday with the right settings!).
Many features seems advanced for a camera of this price range, and sometimes at the cost of point and shoot ability, but if you are looking for a good prosumer level camera I have to say this feels like a solid bet.
Rating:
Summary: A Pro's camera
Review: Having had some doubt about the ability to get high performance from a digital camera (below stratospheric costs), I decide to try the Nikon 5400. It has delivered consistent, fine images and allows many pre-set modes to shoot as well as manual control. A top piece of equipment with Nikon know-how.
Rating:
Summary: EXCELLENT CAMERA!
Review: I absolutely love this camera. I previously owned the Nikon CoolPix 990...... Nikon has come a long way since then. THe Nikon CoolPix 5400 has great features, takes clear, crisp photos.... and I especially love all the "scene modes" it has.... and I love the macro setting. You can get as close as 1 centimeter. I've enjoyed this camera and I love the results I get! Highly recommend!
Rating:
Summary: I'm inept
Review: I am 67 yrs old. After 340 photos I was unable figure out how to take an in focus photo at a range of 2 to 4 feet without a flash. So I calculate the camera is beyond me and returned it. Amazons policy of return is a real life saver. my web site is www.angelica14709.com
My pervious camera was a Sony DSC-S50 the photo of the bridge is with the S50 and the second picture on the main page is taken with coolpix 5400.
Rating:
Summary: Decent camera Nikons can always get the job done
Review: I bought this camera because of the price. I had a Canon, a 75, which I liked for the size, but was only three megapixel. I got this camera for about 275 after rebate.
This camera takes great photographs and has good battery life. Has a ton of manual features, which is great with digital season experiment and learn about shutter speed, aperture etc.
one thing to keep in mind when buying this camera or any other Nikon is that they use battery packs and not AA or AAA batteries, which makes getting juice one on the run difficult. I own a Nikon 8700 eight megapixel camera. It is just awesome, and this one is similar. Shutter lag can be a hassle to deal with less than the second I believe, but not as snappy as SLR.
One thing the body is made of metal, which I enjoy makes it feel rugged and safe plus the flash is built in and not a pop up super bonus.
If you buy and I think you'll enjoy this camera. Check the reviews online for all the specifics. Peace out
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