I just received my Nikon Coolpix S8200 so my initial comments are admittedly based on just a couple of days playing with the camera, however I noticed how few comments there were, so I thought prospective buyers of this camera should have some additional feedback on which to base their purchase decision. First of all, the other reviewers are right about the placement of the flash mechanism. This is one of the few times that I have had a Nikon camera where so obvious an error in design was made. I have long fingers and you can learn over time, but it is difficult to hold the camera steady without overlapping the flash. I didn't however let this feature detract from the other excellent features. The quality of the pictures are exceptional indoors and out. I have a Nikon D7000 and the S8200 camera compares favorably in a lot of ways. The mode dial offers choices not on previous Coolpix cameras. The 14X optical zoom is a major improvement over previous cameras like the P300 and for... Read more

I received my Nikon S8200 a few days ago. It is wonderful; easy to use; fast; and did I say, fast. The CMOS screen is better than my Nikon SLR. Downloading the photos to my Nikon Capture NX2 software on my iMac 24" screen results in photos that are nearly as stunning as my Nikon SLR.

My only gripe is the flash. Whoever decided to put the pop-up flash where it is either never uses a point-and-shoot camera or has little bitty toddler-sized hands. The flash pops up out of the camera right where your left index finger rests. The first time I used it and the flash was required, the flash never came out fully as my left index finger blocked it. The photo was lost.

Warning for critical photo shoots: if you are hoping to get your child's first step indoors where the flash will be required, be careful, you may loose the shot. You must practice a new way of holding your camera.

Page 12 of the supplied manual shows an artist's drawing of the left and right... Read more

i liked the specs on paper for the S8200, while the images look good viewed on screen, inspecting them at 100% view reveals noise and heavy processing specially in dim/dark areas of the image.

The AF in bright light is very fast, but struggles in dimmer lighting, even with the AF assist. Many times, it just refused to lock.
I have an S8100 and the S8100's images are much cleaner even when viewed at 100% and the AF locks MUCH better even in low light (although in the S8100, there is an annoying delay after the AF lock which is very prevalent specially in low light)

Other weird items:

1. annoying pop-up flash that can't be pushed down manually, but can be disabled by turning flash off. problem is, to retract the
flash, you need to turn off the camera
2. unable to turn off image review
3. loud beep for button presses. you can turn it off or on but nothing in between
4. pet mode selection on dial? huh? night portrait should be more... Read more