The bottom line, as always, is image quality. During the studio session, I alternated between the Nikon J1 and my Nikon D3s DSLR (with a 70-200mm VR II lens). Of course, it's not fair to compare images between the two--we all know which camera would win--but I did see some shots from the J1 that exhibited the same spot-on exposure and rich, vibrant colors when the lighting was good.

I kept the J1's ISO as low as possible, pushing it only to around ISO 400 on a few occasions, with noise reduction turned off. Again, judging from a quick look, some shadowy areas exhibited image noise, even at lower ISOs. That isn't surprising considering the camera's physically small sensor, but according to PCWorld's chart of the , Nikon does know how to make a small-sensored camera that performs well.

I found the Nikon 1 J1 a lot of fun to shoot with, and I think the J1 has the potential to be more than just a cute camera for snapshots. The real deal-sweetener for existing Nikon owners will be when the FT-1 F mount adapter comes out in the coming months, allowing those with a selection of Nikkor lenses to use their existing DSLR lenses with the Nikon 1-series cameras.

As for formal results, we'll tell you what we find out in the upcoming full review.