In addition to the novel swivelling lens barrel, the 2500 also dispenses with a rangefinder and relies solely on the LCD monitor. Nikon have clearly worked hard on this aspect of the camera as it provides good visibility even when placed in direct sunlight. We were also impressed with the battery performance which in a rather unrealistic test involving switching off the power saving options and burning the battery down as fast as possible, still yielded well over an hour of use. We noted that the LCD panel was quite warm to the touch after this test, but not worryingly so.

Design considerations aside, it is in the areas of ease of use and image quality that the 2500 really excels. The menu is based around that found on the more advanced COOLPIX models but omits many of the manual settings such as ISO, image sharpening, aperture, shutter speed etc. Instead, Nikon have opted to provide an extensive range of preset "scenes" such as Night, Landscape, Museum and Fireworks show. These presets variously alter flash settings, shutter speed, focus etc. to help get you the best image in given conditions. Unique to Nikon is the Best Shot Selector which takes a series of up to 10 images, compares them, and stores the image with most detail to the memory card. We found that in most conditions the 2500 produced excellent images, often belying its two-megapixel resolution. Outdoor, the sophisticated exposure system was difficult to trick although some images taken in very bright sunlight required a small amount of brightening. Colour balance was also good and unusually, can be calibrated against a white background.