Focus speed
Accurate exposure
Nice build
The price once discontinued :)

Kit lens is slow and I find it large for the size of the body
Control layout is between menus and buttons that may confuse DSLR nikon users
No integrated flash

So ... I wanted a smallish camera, responsive, discrete, good battery life, RAW files, and with decent IQ.
All of the above is delivered by the V1, no question about it.
Once I got used to the menus I can easily switch ISO, PASM mode, use the remote, turn on/off VR, use the rear display or use the viewfinder.
It is comfortable to walk around with the camera, it captures good images, the RAW files are easy to process, for traveling the 10mp resolution is enough.
The mechanical shutter is not loud at all, the electronic shutter is completely silent, the high speed electronic shutter is a nice curiosity, also the slow motion videos at very high frame rates per second are nice to try, but i do not know if I'll use them more than for playing a bit.
The electronic viewfinder has a white balance that does not reflect reality. It is obvious it is an EVF, but it does the job. I like to be able to see the menus and setting in the EVF. I can have the rear display off and be completely discrete.
If the camera is in standby, using the EVF can be slow. It takes a bit to wake up. For some reason the rear display can be used quicker after the camera goes to standby.
The kit lens is, well, a kit lens... It does the job, but it is bigger than I would like with this tiny body, and the max aperture is only f3.5. I want to get an adapter and try my Nikon F-mount SLR lenses on this little body. But hey - it has VR and I can shoot at 1/10 of a second and still get good images, so ... I'm just being picky. It works and works well. Wide open, the lens is prone to flaring, so either shoot it a bit closed or do not shoot into direct light sources. Wide open, the lens also has some color fringing, but this can be corrected in PP.
The camera can be used on a small tripod, and triggering with the IR remote makes the use completely stable, allowing for great night shots. When doing night shots, I recommend having it focus once, then switch it to manual focus, as the focusing speed in low light can be slow.
I always have the camera set for AF-A (automatic area) continuous focus, and matrix metering. It just plain works and seems to know where I want to focus.
The lack of an integrated flash has not bothered me so far. If I need flash I tend to use off camera flash, and for that I need my DSLR.
In my experience it is better than the Olympus E-PL1 (with kit lens). I get better IQ. Same for the Sony NEX-5N (again with the kit lens). The Nikon 1 V1 has better IQ.
The menus in the V1 are easier to navigate than the E-PL1 and the NEX-5N.
High ISO performance is better with the NEX-5N.
The Nikon V1's focus speed is in a different league. The V1 is like a DSLR in good light and ok in low light. The Sony NEX-5N is the slowest, regardless f light level. The OlympusE-PL1 is ok in good light.
I love the fact the V1 uses the same battery as my D800.

Customer Service

not needed

Similar Products Used:

Olympus EPL1
Sony nex 5n
Canon S95