The Nikon Coolpix L5 is a 7.2-mega pixel camera with a great 5x optical zoom and a 2.5-inch LCD screen. Cnet has reviewed the L5 and they write: “Top among its features is its 7.2-megapixel CCD sensor and a 5X optical, 38mm-to-190mm, f/2.9-to-f/5.0 zoom lens with optical (a.k.a. lens shift) vibration reduction (VR). This method of VR is the most effective offered by Nikon.

Other variations on the theme include electronic, which combines info from sensors at the time of image capture with internal processing to try to remove blur from images that have already been shot; and mechanical, which shifts the CCD to compensate for shake. Unfortunately, Nikon doesn’t specify on its packaging which type is included with which cameras because it thinks that consumers don’t want to know, but if you check the technical specifications on the Nikon USA Web site, you can find out which type each camera has. The 2.5-inch LCD is a decent size but has only 115,000 pixels, so images appear coarser on it than on cameras that include LCDs with higher pixel counts.”

“Image quality from the Coolpix L5 was no better than average. Images weren’t as sharp as the ones we saw from the Coolpix L6 and had noticeable artifacts. The automatic white balance did a fine job in natural sunlight, but turned in very warm results with our lab’s tungsten lights. The tungsten preset was better, but still noticeably warm. The manual white balance we set provided the most neutral results. Since you can’t select specific ISOs, we were unable to run our usual battery of noise tests.

Given the Nikon Coolpix L5’s horribly slow performance and its so-so image quality, it’s particularly difficult to recommend it, especially since Nikon’s own 6-megapixel Coolpix L6 provides better image quality, though similarly slow performance, at a lower price. Canon’s 6-megapixel PowerShot SD600, also in this price range, doesn’t have image stabilization but offers much better performance and image quality. Plus, if you like the idea of simple operation, all you have to do is leave the Canon in auto mode and you’ll still likely get better results than you would with this Nikon. “