Samsung has really gone to town with noteworthy new product launches at IFA this year and the latest addition to its range of interchangeable lens cameras - the NX200 - is on that list. The NX200 gets a 20.3 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor (a significant jump on last years 14.6 megapixel NX100 model) along with an all-metal body, 7fps continuous shooting (with 100ms Advanced Auto Focus), 100- 12,800 ISO, video recording at 1920x1080/30p, a 3.0-inch VGA AMOLED display and a capability upgrade for its i-Function lens.
The idea behind Samsung's i-Function lens is to let you control key camera parameters using the lens itself, so you're not distracted from taking the shot. Shutter speed, aperture, exposure value (EV), white balance (WB), and ISO can all be toggled in this way. i-Function 2.0 on the NX200 adds control of the intelli-Zoom function and on-board creative features such as "Smart Filter".
New lenses have also been added to the i-Function range - an 18-200mm zoom and fixed 16mm, 60mm and 85mm.
Like the previous models (and many other cameras in the compact interchangeable lens category) the flash isn't built-in. In this case the add-on flash is hot shoe mountable (something we were happy to see Sony introduce recently on its NEX-7).
There's also a 3D Panorama function, the ability to add a sound recording to still images and ergonomic improvements - namely the addition of a rubberized grip and more tactile coating all-round for the 4.6 x 2.46 x1.44-inch aluminum body.
Samsung has also added the Sound Picture function to the NX200, so that a snippet of sound can be recorded to accompany a still image to add even more memories to a photograph.
The Samsung NX200 is expected to start appearing on shelves at the end of September at a price of US$900.
- Samsung NX200 key specifications: