Nikon has announced that it has received multiple honours at the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2026, including the Red Dot: Best of the Best distinction, awarded to the COOLSHOT PROIII STABILIZED / COOLSHOT 50i GII.
“The breadth of Nikon’s design work continued to be recognised across its imaging portfolio,” Nikon said, “with the ZR, Z5II, and NIKKOR Z 28–135mm f/4 PZ each securing Red Dot distinctions at the 2026 Red Dot Award: Product Design, one of the world’s most renowned design award programmes.”
Earning the competition’s highest honour – the Red Dot: Best of the Best award – the COOLSHOT series was recognised by the judges for how it “combines ergonomic precision with functional details for intuitive use”.
Nikon’s design work was further commended by the panel, with its first cinema camera, the ZR, highlighted for how it “skilfully translates professional film functions into a compact, integrated camera concept for versatile use”.
The Z5II was praised for “combining functional clarity, ease of use and sustainable design principles into a well-balanced system camera”, while the NIKKOR Z 28–135mm f/4 PZ lens was lauded for its “clearly structured operating logic”, delivering precision for professional film production.
The Red Dot Award: Product Design is one of the world’s most established design competitions, recognising products that stand out for their high design quality since 1955.
Entries from around the globe are evaluated by an independent jury of international design experts through a rigorous, multi-stage process, assessing key principles of good design including functionality, usability, responsibility, and aesthetic quality.
“These awards highlight Nikon’s ongoing commitment to delivering innovative products that combine advanced technology with thoughtful, user-centric design, empowering creators across photography and filmmaking,” it concluded.
More details on the awards are available on the Red Dot website.
