Samsung NX200 Review
Introduction
The NX200 is the latest mirrorless compact system camera from Samsung, following last year's NX100 model. The remodelled, metal-bodied NX200 features a 20.3 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor, high speed capture and fast auto focusing, ISO range of 100-12,800, 1080p HD movie recording, 3-inch AMOLED screen, 7fps continuous shooting, 3D Panoramas and Samsung's unique i-Function lens. The i-Function button on compatible lenses allows users to control the NX200 by scrolling through manual settings (shutter speed, aperture, EV, WB, and ISO) and using the focus ring to change the parameters for each setting. The NX200 also has a special i-Scene lens priority mode, which allows users to select the scene modes, six different Smart Filters and the intelli-Zoom function. The Samsung NX200 costs £699 / $899 in a kit with the 18-55mm lens or the 20-50mm lens (UK only).
Ease of Use
The new NX200 represents a significant move away from its curvier and more consumer-focused predecessor, the NX100, sporting a more angular and harder-edged design that is designed to appeal more to the serious photography enthusiast than upgraders from a simpler compact camera. To that end, the NX200 moves away from the 14.6 megapixel sensor used in the NX100 and NX10, employing a new 20 megapixel APS-C CMOS that is around 1.5x physically larger than the Micro Four Thirds system and promises to rival the majority of DSLRs, whilst still maintaining a small camera body that is very similar to the likes of the comparable Sony NEX, Olympus PEN and Panasonic G-series. Since the launch of the NX100, things have moved on at a rapid pace, with the Sony NEX-7 turning heads, Olympus and Panasonic reducing the overall size of a Micro Four Thirds camera, and Nikon and Pentax joining the fray with even smaller interchangeable lens models (and even smaller sensors).
Unlike the all-plastic NX100, the Samsung NX200 has a mostly-metal body with a metal lens mount, which goes some way to explaining why the NX200 has jumped up in price to a more mid-level £699 / $899. First impressions of the NX200 are very positive, with even better build quality that we've come to expect from recent Samsung cameras. The NX200 has a more functional look the more futuristic NX100, with a serious all-black colour, sharper edges and a much more tactile curved handgrip that has a textured area where your fingers rest and a rubberised finish to the rest of the grip. The NX200 offers a logical and intuitive interface that strikes a good balance between providing easy access to the main features and achieving an uncluttered control system, whilst still managing to cater for both beginner and prosumer alike.
At 116.5 x 62.5 x 36.6mm, the NX200 is actually marginally smaller than its predecessor. Once again there's no viewfinder or built-in pop-up flash, and while beginners probably won't notice the lack of an EVF, being more used to holding a camera at arm's length than holding one up to their eye, they will undoubtedly miss having a flash, while the reverse is probably true for more experienced photographers. Flash is provided for by an optional accessory (SEF-15A) which slots into the Smart Shoe on top of the camera, but it's an extra expense, adds to the bulk of the camera, and obviously isn't as well integrated as some of its main rivals. There's also an optional EVF (EVF10) which slots into the same connector, with the same caveats regarding cost and size, and you can obviously only use the EVF or the flash at one time. Neither are provided in the standard kit or were additionally provided for this review, so we can't comment further on their performance.
We tested the NX200 with the Samsung 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens, which originally shipped with the NX10 but which now has the built-in i-Functionality. Although bigger than the newer, retractable 20-50mm lens which also ships in kit form with the NX200, the 18-55mm is optically stabilised, important as the NX system doesn't offer in-body stabilisation. We'd advise choosing the 18-55mm lens rather than the 20-50mm for this reason, unless you really need the latter's smaller dimensions.
The i-Function button is a rather innocuous looking addition to the lens barrel which when pressed activates a sub-menu of key options and allows you to change them simply by turning the focus ring. Consecutive presses of the i-Function button moves through the five available settings - shutter speed and/or aperture, exposure compensation, white balance and ISO. These settings can optionally be turned on or off in the main menu, allowing a degree of user customisation. In the i-Scene shooting mode, the i-Fn button cycles through the various scene modes and six of the ten filter effects that the camera offers and also allows you to use the intelli-Zoom function, which crops the image without any interpolation to (1.2x, 1.4x, 1.7x, or 2.0x the original.
Front | Rear |
While the i-Function button does provide a quick way of accessing certain key settings, I can't help feeling that the idea is best suited to a camera with an electronic viewfinder where you can hold it up to your eye, press the button and turn the focus ring with your left hand, and grip the camera with your right. Holding the NX200 at arm's length to view the settings while pressing the i-Function button and rotating the focus ring just seems a little cumbersome, especially when you can also use the rear control wheel to perform the same actions, something that I found myself doing by default.
Large metal neck strap eyelets are located on top of the NX200 at the sides, with the rear dominated by the fixed 3 inch LCD screen. On the left side of the body there are no controls. On the right is a plastic cover that houses a HDMI port for connecting the NX200 to a HD television or monitor and a DC In / AV Out port. Note that there is no remote socket for use with the optional remote shutter release, as on the NX100.
On the front of the Samsung NX200 is a small focus-assist and self-timer indicator lamp, lens release button, and the metal NX lens mount. Located on the bottom of the camera is the shared SD / SDHC / SDXC memory card slot and battery compartment, protected by a plastic lockable cover. The BP1030B (1030mAh) battery provides up to 320 shots under the CIPA testing standard, a 100-shot reduction from the NX100. Also found on the bottom of the camera is a metal tripod mount which is commendably located in-line with the centre of the base.
The NX200 uses the same built-in dust-removal system as the NX100 and NX10, which vibrates the sensor 60,000 times per second to remove any unwanted specks from appearing in your images. By default this feature is turned off, something of an oversight by Samsung, so make sure to enable it so that it works every time you start-up the camera (it only takes about one second). You can also perform a manual sensor clean at any point.
The NX200 has a so-called Smart Shoe that will accept compatible Samsung flashguns (currently the SEF-42A, SEF-20A and new SEF-15A models) and other accessories such as the previously mentioned EVF and the GPS unit (GPS10). Also found on top of the NX200 are four holes for the speaker, holes marked left and right for the stereo sound, a small dial for setting the shutter speed and zooming into and out of images during playback, and a tactile shutter button encircled by the on/off switch.
There's a traditional round dial with a positive click for the different exposure modes, now located on the far-right, which is a typical feature of DSLR cameras and enables you to quickly change between the various options. The usual selection of Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual are available for the more experienced photographers, and the more beginner-friendly Scene modes, Smart Auto and i-Scene mode are also accessed via this dial.
Front | Side |
When the i-Scene shooting mode is selected, the NX200 automatically recognise what type of lens has been attached and suggests a list of scene modes to choose from that are tailored to that specific lens. While this helps to narrow down the usual vast number of choices, it would have been more effective if combined with the Smart Auto shooting mode, rather than being a stand-alone mode, as you still have to pick from the scene modes that are presented to you. This shooting mode now also lets you select six of the ten filter effects that the camera offers.
Smart Auto is Samsung's equivalent of the intelligent auto modes now found on most competitors models. You simply point the NX200 at a scene or subject and the camera hopefully recognizes it from 16 commonly used presets and automatically adjusts its settings to deliver optimum results. This means that it's not necessary for the user to manually delve into scene modes to call up the likes of 'landscape' or 'flower', essentially making the NX200's operation merely a case of point and shoot.
In practice the Smart Auto system works very well, with the NX200 usually picking the most appropriate combination of settings for the current situation. Obviously not all situations are covered by the scene modes that the system uses, but it does work for the majority of the time. It makes it possible for the less experienced photographer to easily take well-exposed, sharp pictures of people, scenery and close-ups by simply pointing and shooting the camera and is more intuitive than the traditional scene modes (which are still available).
Also found on the mode dial is the familiar Video icon. The NX200 can record high-resolution Full HD 1080p 1920x1080 and 720p, 1280x720 movies in the 16:9 aspect ratio and standard VGA 640x480 or 320x260 movies in the 4:3 aspect ratio, all using the H.264 format at 30 frames per second (you can optionally shoot 720p at 60fps).
The Movie mode is accessed by selecting the Movie option on the shooting mode dial and then pressing the shutter button to begin recording, or via the new dedicated one-touch record button on the rear of the camera. Stereo sound is recorded during video capture via the small internal mics on top of of the camera. The HDMI port allows you to connect the NX200 to a high-def TV set, but unfortunately Samsung have decided to cut costs and not include a HDMI cable as standard in the box, which means that you'll have to purchase one separately to take advantage of this camera's HD connectivity.
You can shoot movies using any of the creative modes, giving you lots of control over exposure, and you can also change the aperture and shutter speed during recording, albeit at the expense of recording the mechanism on the soundtrack. The NX200 offers the ability to set the white balance. metering and use any of the Picture Wizard settings during video recording as well as still images, which instantly lends an interesting art-house effect to your home movies, you can set a video to be played back at various slower or faster speeds (x0.25, x0.5, x1, x5, x10 and x20), the self-timer and image stabilizer can be used, a fade-in or out can be set, and a voice clip can be added.
Front | Top |
You can also use a zoom lens during recording with focusing set as for still images by half-pressing the shutter button. On the negative side, you'll find that if you choose continuous auto-focus, areas of the video will be blurred before becoming sharp again as the camera tries to refocus and the noise of the AF system is a little intrusive. Using manual focus is trickier but will ultimately produce better looking and sounding movies. On a more positive note, having the AF system is better than not being able to auto-focus at all, as with a lot of current DSLR cameras that offer video recording. Hand-holding the NX200 during movie recording inevitably leads to obvious shake, so for best results you'll need a dedicated video tripod.
Completing the NX200's shooting modes are the Panorama and Magic modes. The former captures either a Live Panorama, which allows you to also capture subject movement at several points during a sweeping panorama, or a 3D panorama. The latter mode provides a choice of 10 Smart Filters and 12 Magic Frames, including Soft Focus for a warm ambience and Half-Tone Dot for a comic-book look.
Turning to the rear of the NX200, the 3-inch, 614,000-dot rear LCD screen is the same impressive unit from the NX100, incorporating AMOLED (Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode) technology that provides a number of key advantages over traditional LCD screens. These include easier viewing in bright sunshine and a very wide viewing angle, 10,000 times faster refresh rate than conventional LCDs, less power consumption and a high contrast ratio of 10,000:1.
To the right of the LCD is a familiar round navigation pad with four buttons above and two below. Starting at the top are very handily placed buttons for instant movie recording and setting the exposure compensation, then the self-explanatory Menu button. Unfortunately the NX100's AEL button for locking the exposure has been sacrificed to make room for the Movie Record button.
The main menu system on the NX200 is very straight-forward to use. There are five main menus - Camera, Movie, Custom, Settings and GPS - presented as a row of horizontal icons, and due to the large LCD screen and restricting the number of on-screen choices to six, the various options and icons are clear and legible. If you have never used a digital camera before, or you're upgrading from a more basic model, reading the easy-to-follow manual before you start is a good idea. Unfortunately Samsung have chosen not to supply it in printed format, so you can't carry it with you for easy reference.
The fourth button is the useful Fn, which now provides quick and easy access to virtually all of the most important camera settings (16 in total) via the brand new and very useful Smart Panel. This is an intuitive graphical interface that allows you to move around and choose the main camera settings via a combination of the LCD screen, the navigation wheel and/or the shutter speed dial on top of the camera.
Used in combination with the four directions on the navigation pad that set the Display, which cycles through the various display modes on the LCD screen, Auto-focusing mode, ISO and Self-timer/Drive, you really can access most of the NX200's key options with one press of a button, although changing them takes a couple more presses. Completing the rear controls are buttons for playing back and deleting your images, with the latter also doubling up as the Custom button, which activates the Optical Preview (essentially a digital Depth of Field Preview) by default and can be alternatively set to either One Touch White Balance or One Touch RAW+.
Memory Card Slot | Battery Compartment |
Surrounding the four navigation pad buttons is a circular control wheel which is used for, amongst other things, changing the aperture by turning from left to right and back again. As with the shooting mode dial, this is a common feature found on some DSLR cameras, so you'll be right at home if you've used a DSLR before - compact camera users will need to become accustomed to using this dial. In the Shutter Priority and Manual modes things are actually unexpectedly easy, as the Zoom dial on top of the camera comes into play. You simply turn the rear control wheel to change the aperture and use the Zoom dial to set the shutter speed.
Unlike a conventional DSLR camera which uses a phase detection auto-focus system, the NX200 employs the same Contrast AF system that is commonly used by compact cameras. Experienced photographers will now be tutting loudly at the thought of having to use a traditionally slower system, but thankfully this decision hasn't resulted in a slow and unpredictable AF - quite the contrary in fact. The Samsung NX200's focusing speed is now on a par with most DSLRs, with a new autofocus algorithm that delivers precise autofocusing in as little as 100ms. As well as the out-and-out speed, there were also very few occasions when the NX200 failed to lock onto the subject, especially when using the centre AF point, which can be usefully set to one of four different sizes.
There are four AF Area modes on offer, including Selection AF with a selectable focus area, Multi AF, Face Detection, and Self-Portrait Tracking, with Single, Continuous and Manual AF Modes available. Manual focusing is assisted by the 'enlarged display' function. Once you have selected manual focus mode on the lens barrel, turning the manual focus ring automatically increases the magnification on the LCD display, which is a big help in getting the focus spot on. This is real, non-interpolated magnification, very useful for accurate manual focusing - provided you find a way to steady the camera. The screen cleverly returns to normal magnification when you stop using the manual focus ring for a few seconds. Metering options include Multi, Center-weighted and Spot, while the ISO range runs from 100-12800. There are 7 white balance presets plus Auto and Custom settings and the ability to set a precise Kelvin value, and if you can't make up your mind the white balance, exposure and even the Picture Wizard settings can all be bracketed.
The start-up time from turning the NX200 on to being ready to take a photo is impressively quick at less than a second. The NX200 successfully achieves focus virtually all of the time with the 18-55mm kit lens, helped by the AF assist lamp - the NX200 doesn't have any notable problems locking onto the subject in low-light situations. It takes about 1 second to store a single full-resolution JPEG image, allowing you to keep shooting as they are being recorded onto the memory card, with a brief LCD blackout between each image. Storing a single RAW image takes around 6 seconds, and unfortunately it does lock up the camera while the file is being written to memory- you'll quickly grow tired of seeing the onscreen message "Processing" when shooting in the RAW format.
The Samsung NX200 has a very good Burst mode which enables you to take 7 frames per second for up to 11 JPEG images at the highest image quality, or 8 RAW images, but again be prepared to wait for a long time for the camera to process all the images - it's so slow for RAW images that an on-screen progress bar appears! There's also a special Burst mode that records 30 frames per second, albeit only at 5 megapixel JPEG resolution, with slower 15 and 10fps options also available.
Once you have captured a photo the Samsung NX200 has a fairly good range of options when it comes to playing, reviewing and managing your images. You can instantly scroll through the images that you have taken, view thumbnails (up to 40 onscreen at the same time), zoom in and out up to 14.2x magnification, view slideshows, delete and protect an image and set the print order. The Image Edit option offers a number of different ways to alter the look of an already-captured photo, including redeye fix, backlight, changing the photo style, resizing, rotating, face retouch and apply smart filters. The DISP button toggles detailed settings information about each picture on and off, such as the ISO rating and aperture / shutter speed, and there are small RGBY histograms available.
Image Quality
All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 20 megapixel SuperFine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 7Mb.
The Samsung NX200 produced images of excellent quality during the review period. The 20.3 megapixel APS-C CMOS megapixel sensor used in the NX200 produces noise-free JPEG images at ISO 100-800, with ISO 1600 also looking very good. ISO 3200 only shows a little noise, while the fastest settings of ISO 6400 and 12800 are quite a lot noisier and suffer from softening of fine detail and a loss of saturation, but the images are still perfectly usable for small prints and resizing for web use. The NX200 does apply quite a lot of noise reduction to the JPEGs, as demonstrated by the RAW files which have more noise at the comparable high ISO settings.
The images were a little soft straight out of the NX200 at the default sharpening setting and ideally require some further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop, or you can change the in-camera setting for JPEG files. The night photograph was excellent, with the maximum shutter speed of 30 seconds and bulb mode of 8 minutes allowing you to capture plenty of light.
Colours were vibrant without being over-saturated in the default Standard Picture Wizard mode, and you can always choose Vivid if you want even more punch or one of the other seven presets to change the mood of your JPEG images, with three customisable settings also available. The Panorama shooting mode and range of Smart Filters are welcome additions, although the new Magic Frames are rather less useful.
Noise
There are 6 ISO settings available on the Samsung NX200. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting, with JPEG on the left and RAW on the right.
JPEG | RAW |
ISO 100 (100% Crop) |
ISO 100 (100% Crop) |
ISO 200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 400 (100% Crop) |
ISO 400 (100% Crop) |
ISO 800 (100% Crop) |
ISO 800 (100% Crop) |
ISO 1600 (100% Crop) |
ISO 1600 (100% Crop) |
ISO 3200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 3200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 6400 (100% Crop) |
ISO 6400 (100% Crop) |
ISO 12800 (100% Crop) |
ISO 12800 (100% Crop) |
File Quality
The Samsung NX200 has 3 different JPEG image quality settings available, with SuperFine being the highest quality option, and you can also shoot in RAW format. Here are some 100% crops which show the quality of the various options, with the file size shown in brackets.
20M SuperFine (6.47Mb) (100% Crop) | 20M Fine (3.86Mb) (100% Crop) |
20M Normal (2.38Mb) (100% Crop) | 20M RAW (42.4Mb) (100% Crop) |
Sharpening
Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the camera images are a little soft at the default sharpening setting and benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop. You can also change the in-camera sharpening level.
Original (100% Crop) |
Sharpened (100% Crop) |
Night
The Samsung NX200's maximum shutter speed is 30 seconds and there's also a Bulb setting of up to 8 minutes, which is great news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 15 seconds at ISO 100. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like. The camera takes the same amount of time again to apply noise reduction, so for example at the 15 second setting the actual exposure takes 30 seconds.
Night Shot |
Night Shot (100% Crop) |
Picture Wizard
Samsung's various Picture Wizard options are similar to Olympus' Picture Modes, Nikon's Picture Styles and Canon's Picture Controls, offering preset combinations of different sharpness, contrast, saturation and colour tone settings, all of which can be changed. The nine available Picture Controls are shown below in the following series, which demonstrates the differences. There are also three additional Custom styles so that you can create your own looks.
Standard |
Vivid |
Portrait |
Landscape |
Forest |
Retro |
Cool |
Calm |
Classic |
|
Smart Filters
The NX200 offers ten creative filter effects that can be applied to both stills and movies.
Vignetting |
Miniature |
Fish Eye |
Sketch |
Defog |
Halftone Dots |
Soft Focus |
Old Film 1 |
Old Film 2 |
Negative |
Panoramas
The Panorama mode captures either a Live Panorama, which allows you to also capture subject movement at several points during a sweeping panorama, or a 3D panorama.
Live Panorama |
3D Panorama |
Sample Images
This is a selection of sample images from the Samsung NX200 camera, which were all taken using the 20.3 megapixel SuperFine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.
1/125s · f/8 · ISO 100
18mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/5.6 · ISO 100
55mm
Download Original
1/500s · f/5.6 · ISO 100
55mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/8 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/100s · f/8 · ISO 100
25mm
Download Original
1/125s · f/7.1 · ISO 100
18mm
Download Original
1/60s · f/3.5 · ISO 200
18mm
Download Original
1/60s · f/5.6 · ISO 800
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 800
55mm
Download Original
1/40s · f/11 · ISO 400
18mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/6.3 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/250s · f/6.3 · ISO 100
22mm
Download Original
1/320s · f/6.3 · ISO 100
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/6.3 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/40s · f/3.5 · ISO 400
18mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 100
18mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 800
55mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/8 · ISO 100
18mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/8 · ISO 100
55mm
Download Original
1/40s · f/3.5 · ISO 400
18mm
Download Original
1/200s · f/3.5 · ISO 100
18mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/5.6 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/11 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/500s · f/3.5 · ISO 100
18mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 400
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 200
18mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/8 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 200
18mm
Download Original
1/125s · f/8 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/8 · ISO 100
48mm
Download Original
1/125s · f/8 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/100s · f/8 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/125s · f/8 · ISO 100
30mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/8 · ISO 100
55mm
Download Original
1/50s · f/11 · ISO 200
18mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/11 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/25s · f/3.5 · ISO 800
18mm
Download Original
1/40s · f/8 · ISO 400
18mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 400
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 400
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 400
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 400
55mm
Download Original
1/30s · f/16 · ISO 800
18mm
Download Original
1/40s · f/11 · ISO 800
55mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/3.5 · ISO 100
18mm
Download Original
1/160s · f/5.6 · ISO 200
55mm
Download Original
1/30s · f/8 · ISO 800
18mm
Download Original
1/60s · f/8 · ISO 400
37mm
Download Original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 400
55mm
Download Original
5/10s · f/8 · ISO 100
18mm
Download Original
1/4s · f/8 · ISO 200
18mm
Download Original
1/8s · f/8 · ISO 400
18mm
Download Original
1/15s · f/8 · ISO 800
18mm
Download Original
1/30s · f/8 · ISO 1600
18mm
Download Original
1/60s · f/8 · ISO 3200
18mm
Download Original
1/125s · f/8 · ISO 6400
18mm
Download Original
1/250s · f/8 · ISO 12800
18mm
Download Original
Sample RAW Images
The Samsung NX200 enables users to capture RAW and JPEG format files. We've provided some Samsung RAW (SRW) samples for you to download (thumbnail images shown below are not 100% representative).
1/125s · f/8 · ISO 100
27mm
Download original
1/160s · f/8 · ISO 200
84mm
Download original
1/60s · f/5.6 · ISO 800
84mm
Download original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 800
84mm
Download original
1/80s · f/6.3 · ISO 200
84mm
Download original
1/250s · f/6.3 · ISO 100
33mm
Download original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 100
27mm
Download original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 200
84mm
Download original
1/40s · f/3.5 · ISO 400
27mm
Download original
1/160s · f/11 · ISO 200
84mm
Download original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 400
84mm
Download original
1/160s · f/8 · ISO 100
73mm
Download original
1/80s · f/11 · ISO 200
84mm
Download original
1/25s · f/3.5 · ISO 800
27mm
Download original
1/80s · f/5.6 · ISO 400
84mm
Download original
1/30s · f/16 · ISO 800
27mm
Download original
1/40s · f/11 · ISO 800
84mm
Download original
1/80s · f/3.5 · ISO 100
27mm
Download original
1/160s · f/5.6 · ISO 200
84mm
Download original
1/80s · f/8 · ISO 400
84mm
Download original
5/10s · f/8 · ISO 100
27mm
Download original
1/4s · f/8 · ISO 200
27mm
Download original
1/8s · f/8 · ISO 400
27mm
Download original
1/15s · f/8 · ISO 800
27mm
Download original
1/30s · f/8 · ISO 1600
27mm
Download original
1/60s · f/8 · ISO 3200
27mm
Download original
1/125s · f/8 · ISO 6400
27mm
Download original
1/250s · f/8 · ISO 12800
27mm
Download original
Sample Movie & Video
This is a sample movie at the quality setting of 1920x1080 at 30 frames per second. Please note that this 15 second movie is 25.7Mb in size.
Product Images
Front of the Camera |
Front of the Camera |
Isometric View |
Isometric View |
Front of the Camera |
Isometric View |
Isometric View |
Rear of the Camera |
Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed |
|
Rear of the Camera / Turned On |
Rear of the Camera / Main Menu |
Rear of the Camera / Function Menu |
Rear of the Camera / iFn Menu |
Rear of the Camera / iFn Menu |
Top of the Camera |
Bottom of the Camera |
Side of the Camera |
Side of the Camera |
Front of the Camera |
Front of the Camera |
Memory Card Slot |
Battery Compartment |
Conclusion
Where the NX100 was aimed squarely at the compact camera owner wanting to upgrade to something more capable, the more serious and sober NX200 is appealing to the more experienced photographer looking for a more compact alternative to a DSLR, whilst not forgetting its beginner roots. It largely succeeds in more than satisfying both parties, with the sharper design, revised control layout and the introduction of the Smart Panel and full range of creative shooting modes paired with the new filter effects, frames and hand-holding auto shooting modes.
The new 20 megapixel sensor is the icing on the very generous cake, delivering excellent still image quality with a very usable ISO range of 100-3200 and full HD video complete with auto-focusing, full control over the exposure settings, stereo sound and a wealth of other options. The price of the NX200 is significantly higher than its predecessor, though, and there are a few unfortunate interface sacrifices, in particular the removal of the AEL button and the remote control socket, the complete lack of an integral flash or viewfinder and the very slow processing times when shooting in RAW mode, that detract a little from the camera's overall usability and its attractiveness when compared to certain key rivals.
The jury's still out on the new i-Function button, though, even with its greater customisability and number of options, with opinions divided about whether it's a genuinely useful innovation or just another way to differentiate the NX system from its competitors. Being able to change the camera's key settings via the focus ring makes sense when holding it up to eye-level, but just seems plain awkward when it's held at arm's length, something that the lack of an in-built viewfinder makes inevitable. We think i-Function is still a better fit for the older NX10 with its built-in EVF, or the NX200 with the optional viewfinder unit. We also think that the supplied 18-55mm lens supplied with our review sample is the better kit lens than the 20-50mm optic, offering a wider focal range but more importantly image stabilisation.
The NX200 offers all the advantages that a camera with a large APS-C DSLR sensor offers, namely better performance at higher ISOs and better depth-of-field effects than the smaller Micro Four Thirds format. I'd be happy to regularly shoot with any setting from 100-1600, and even 3200 is handy at a push. The fastest settings of 6400 and 12800 are less useful, although considering the amount of megapixels that have been squeezed onto the sensor, we're still very impressed with the NX200's overall performance.
Despite the significant increase in the asking price, making the NX200 more of a serious investment than its predecessor, it still occupies an enviable position in the market, rivalling key competitors like the Sony NEX-7 at a much cheaper cost, whilst outperforming the Micro Four Thirds crowd in terms of image quality at a similar price-point. If you can live with the slow RAW processing times and lack of a flash or viewfinder, the Samsung NX200 is an enticing new entry into the constantly evolving compact system camera market.
Ratings (out of 5) | |
---|---|
Design | 4.5 |
Features | 4.5 |
Ease-of-use | 4 |
Image quality | 4.5 |
Value for money | 4 |
Review Roundup
Reviews of the Samsung NX200 from around the web.
whatdigitalcamera.com »
Samsung's latest Compact System Camera (CSC) isn't looking to do things in half measures. With a huge 20.3-megapixel resolution across its large APS-C sized CMOS sensor and a brand new design could the NX200 be the best NX-series camera yet?
Read the full review »
ephotozine.com »
The Samsung NX200 is the latest compact mirrorless camera from Samsung and is an update to the 14 megapixel NX100. The NX200 has upgraded the APS-C sized sensor with a new 20.3 megapixel sensor made by Samsung, it's also introduced a new, more compact and more stylish design.
Read the full review »
Specifications
Image Sensor
Sensor Type | APS-C CMOS |
---|---|
Sensor Size | 23.5 x 15.7mm |
Effective Pixel | Approx 20.3MP |
Color Filter | RGB Primary Colour Filter |
Lens
Mount | Samsung NX |
---|---|
Usable Lens | Samsung Lenses |
i-Function
I-Effect: i-Scene (depends on Lens), Smart Filter (Vignetting, Minature, Fish-Eye, Sketch, Defog, Halftone Dot) i-Zoom: (x1.2, 1.4, 1.7, 2.0)
Image Stabilization
Type | Lens Shift (Depends on Lens) |
---|---|
Mode | OIS Mode1 / Mode2 / OFF |
Distortion Correct
Mode | LDC On / Off (Depends on Lens) |
---|
Dust Reduction
Type | Super Sonic Drive |
---|
Display
Type | AMOLED |
---|---|
Size | 3.0" |
Resolution | VGA (640 x 480) 614k dots (PenTile) |
Filed of View | Approx 100% |
User Display | Grid (4 types), Histgram, Icons: On / Off, Distance Scale: ft / m / Off |
Focusing
Type | Contrast AF |
---|---|
Mode | Single AF, Continuous AF, MF |
Focusing point | Selection: 1point (Free selection) Multi: Normal 15points, Closeup 35pointsFace Detection: Max. 10 faces |
AF-Assist Lamp | Yes |
Shutter Speed
Type | Electronically controlled vertical-run focal plane shutter |
---|---|
Speed | Auto: 1/4000sec. ~ 30sec. Manual: 1/4000sec. ~ 30sec. (1/3EV step) Bulb (Limit time: 4min.) |
Exposure
Metering System | TTL 221 (17 x 13) Block segmentMetering: Multi, Center-weighted, SpotMetering range: EV 0-18 (ISO 100 · 30mm, F2) |
---|---|
Compensation | ±3 EV (1/3EV step) |
AE Lock | Shutter Button half press |
ISO Equivalent | Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800 (1 or 1/3EV step)* AUTO ISO upper level is selectable. (Less than ISO3200) |
Drive Mode
Mode | Single, Continuous, Burst (5M size only), Self-timer, Bracket (AE / WB / PW) |
---|---|
Continuous | JPEG: High (7fps) up to 11 shots, Low (3fps) up to 15 shots selectableBurst: 10, 15, 30fps selectable, 30 shots by 1 release RAW : High (7fps), Low (3fps) selectable up to 8 shots |
Bracket | Auto Exposure Bracket (max ±3EV), WB, PW |
Self-Timer | 2 - 30sec. (1sec. step) |
Flash
Type | External Flash only (Bundle with SEF8A) |
---|---|
Mode | Smart Flash, Auto, Auto+Red-eye reduction, Fill-in, Fill-in+Red-eye reduction, 1st Curtain, 2nd Curtain, Off |
Guide Number | 8 (at ISO 100) (SEF8A) |
Angle of View Coverage | 28mm wide-angle (Equivalent to 35mm) (SEF8A) |
Sync. Speed | Less than 1/180sec. |
Flash Compensation | -2 - +2EV (1/2EV step) |
External Flash | Samsung External Flash available (SEF42A, SEF20A, SEF15A: Optional) |
Synchro (Flash attachment) | Hot Shoe |
White Balance
Mode | Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent (W, N, D), Tungsten, Flash, Custom, K (Manual) |
---|---|
Micro Adjustment | Each 7 steps in Amber / Blue / Green / Magenta axis |
Dynamic Range Expansion
Smart Range On / Off
Picture Wizard
Mode | Standard, Vivid, Portrait, Landscape, Forest, Retro, Cool, Calm, Classic, Custom (1 ~ 3) |
---|---|
Parameter | Contrast, Sharpness, Saturation, Colour |
Shooting
Mode | SmartAuto 2.0, Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Manual, Lens Priority, Magic, Panorama, Scene, Movie |
---|---|
Scene Mode | Beauty shot, Night, Landscape, Portrait, Children, Sports, Close-Up, Text, Sunset, Dawn, Backlight, Fireworks, Beach & Snow, Sound Picture, 3D Photo |
Sound Picture | JPEG OnlySound Recording Time (Before and after shooting each 5sec or 10sec) |
Image Size | JPEG (3:2):20.0M (5472 x 3648), 10.1M (3888 x 2592), 5.9M (2976 x 1984), 2.0M (1728 x 1152), 5.0M (2736 x 1824) : Burst mode onlyJPEG (16:9) : 16.9M (5472 x 3080), 7.8M (3712 x 2088), 4.9M (2944 x 1656), 2.1M (1920 x 1080)JPEG (1:1) : 13.3M (3648 x 3648), 7.0M (2640 x 2640), 4.0M (2000 x 2000), 1.1M (1024 x 1024) RAW : 20.0M (5472 x 3648) |
Quality | Super fine, Fine, Normal |
RAW Format | SRW |
Color Space | SRGB, Adobe RGB |
Magic Frame (Magic Mode) | Old Album, Old Film, Wave, Full Moon, Old Record, Magazine, Sunny Day, Classic TV, Wall Art, Holiday, Billboard 1, Billboard 2, Newspaper |
Smart Filter (Magic Mode) | Vignetting, Miniature, Fish-Eye, Sketch, De-fog, Halftone Dots, Soft Focus, Old Film1, Old Film2, Negative |
Image Play
Type | Single image, Thumbnails (3 / 15 / 40 images), Slide show, Movie |
---|---|
Smart Filter | Miniature, Soft Focus, Old Film1, Old Film2, Halftone Dots, Sketch, Fish-Eye, De-fog Negative JPEG (3:2) : 5.9M (2976 x 1984), 5.0M (2736 x 1824), 2.0M (1728 x 1152) JPEG (16:9) : 6.2M (3328 x 1872), 4.9M (2944 x 1656), 2.1M (1920 x 1080) JPEG (1:1) : 6.0M (2448 x 2448), 4.0M (2000 x 2000), 1.1M (1024 x 1024) |
Editing | Smart Filter, Red-eye fix, Backlight, Resize, Rotate, Face Retouch, Brightness, Contrast, Vignetting |
Movie Clip
Format | MP4 (H.264) |
---|---|
Compression | Movie: H.264 , Sound: AAC |
Mode | Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Manual |
Recording | With Audio or without Audio (user selectable, recording time: 25 minutes) |
Frame Rate | 60fps (1280 x 720 Only), 30fps |
Image Size | 1920 x 1080, 1280 x 720 , 640 x 480, 320 x 240 (Default: 1920 x 1080) |
Movie Editing | Still Image Capture, Time Trimming |
Sound | Stereo |
Smart Filter | Vignetting, Miniature, Fish-Eye, Sketch, De-fog, Halftone Dots, Soft Focus, Old Film1, Old Film2, Negative |
Multi-Motion Recording | X0.25 (640, 320 only), x0.5 (1280, 640, 320 only), x5, x10, x20 |
Quality | High Quality, Normal |
Storage
Media | SD, SDHC, SDXC (guarantee up to 128GB) |
---|---|
File Format | RAW (SRW), JPEG (EXIF 2.21), DCF, DPOF 1.1, PictBridge 1.0 |
Capacity (1GB) | 20M: RAW 1720M (3:2) : Super Fine 94, Fine 185, Normal 27210.1M (3:2) : Super Fine 192, Fine 368, Normal 5305.9M (3:2) : Super Fine 318, Fine 593, Normal 8342M (3:2) : Super Fine 827, Fine 1393, Normal 1806Burst (5.0M) : Super Fine 371, Fine 685, Normal 95416.9M (16:9) : Super Fine 116, Fine 227, Normal 3337.8M (16:9) : Super Fine 246, Fine 467, Normal 6654.9M (16:9) : Super Fine 379, Fine 699, Normal 9722.1M (16:9) : Super Fine 799, Fine 1354, Normal 176213.3M (1:1) : Super Fine 147, Fine 284, Normal 4137M (1:1) : Super Fine 272, Fine 513, Normal 7284M (1:1) : Super Fine 454, Fine 823, Normal 11301.1M (1:1) : Super Fine 1344, Fine 2062, Normal 2508Movie : 1920 x 1080 30p : High Quality 8m 54s, Normal 10m 16s 1280 x 720 60p : High Quality 8m 21s, Normal 9m 32s 1280 x 720 30p : High Quality 14m 47s, Normal 16m 37s 640 x 480 30p : High Quality 37m 16s, Normal 43m 14s 320 x 240 30p : High Quality 119m 57s, Normal 145m 49s? These figures are measure under the Samsung standard. |
Languages
17 Languages (Korean, English, Danish, German, Dutch, Swedish, Spanish, Italian, Czech, French, Portuguese, Polish, Finnish, Russian, Norsk, Simplified / Traditional Chinese)
Direct Print System
PictBridge | PictBridge |
---|
GPS
Type | Geo-tagging w / Optional GPS Module (WGS84) |
---|---|
Function | -Location Name (OSD) (English and Korean only) -Google Map Link (with intelli-Studio) |
Interface
Digital Output Connector | USB 2.0 (HI-SPEED) |
---|---|
Video Output | NTSC, PAL (user selectable) HDMI 1.4a (1080i, 720P, 576P / 480P) |
Power
Power Source | Type | Rechargeable battery : BP1030B (1030mAh) Charger: BC1030 |
---|---|---|
Battery | 160min / 320shots (CIPA Standard) |
Physical Specification
Dimension | Dimension (WxHxD) | 116.5 x 62.5 x 36.6mm (excluding the projection part) |
---|---|---|
Weight | 220.4g (without battery and memroy card) | |
Operating Temperature | 0 ~ 40°C | |
Operating Humidity | 5 ~ 85% |
S/W and PC OS
Bundle PC S/W | Intelli-studio 3.0, Samsung RAW Converter 4, Adobe Reader |
---|
System Requirement
Windows | General | PC with processor better than Intel Pentium III 500MHz (Intel Pentium 800MHz or higher recommended) Windows XP / Vista / 7 Minimum 256MB RAM (512MB or more recommended) 250MB of available hard disk space (1GB or more recommended) USB portCD-ROM drive 1024 x 768 pixels, 16-bit colour display compatible monitor (24-bit colour display recommended) Microsoft Direct X 9.0c or later |
---|---|---|
Intelli-Studio 3.0 | Windows XP SP2 / Vista / 7 Intel Core 2 DuoTM 1.66GHz or higher / AMD Athlon X2 Dual-Core 2.2GHz or higherMinimum 512MB RAM (1GB or more recommended) 250MB of available hard disk space (1GB or more recommended) 1024 x 768 pixels, 16-bit colour display compatible monitor (32-bit colour display recommended) USB 2.0, Microsoft DirectX 9.0c or laternVIDIA Geforce 7600GT or higher / ATI X1600 series or higher# 64-bit editions of Windows XP / Vista / and 7 are not supported | |
Samsung RAW Converter 4 | Windows XP / Vista / 7 Intel Pentium, AMD Athlon Processor(Intel Pentium 4, AMD Athlon XP or later recommended)* Multi-core processor ready (Intel Core i7, Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Duo, AMD Phenom II X4, Phenom X4, etc.) 1GB or more RAM recommendedMinimum 100MB of available hard disk space1024 x 768 pixels, Full colour (24-bit or higher) colour display compatible monitor | |
Macintosh | General | Power Mac G3 or laterMac OS 10.4 or later Minimum 256MB RAM (512MB or more recommended) Minimum 110MB of available hard-disk spaceUSB portCD-ROM drive |
Samsung RAW Converter 4 | Mac OS X v10.6 / v10.5 / v10.4Power PC / Intel Processor-based or compatible computer (Core 2 Quad or later recommended) 1GB or more RAM recommendedMinimum 100MB of available hard disk space 1024 x 768 pixels, 24-bit colour display compatible monitor |
Loading comments…