Fuji FinePix E550 Digital Camera
The Fuji FinePix is an affordable 6 Megapixel camera that is packed with easy
to use features that are so well designed you may not need to ever read the
manual to figure out how it works. An intuitive interface is but one area of
many where Fuji has endeavoured to introduce an affordably priced digital camera
that represents a value you will want to tell your friends about.
To be sure, to bring a camera in at this price involves making trade-offs
and the skill is in the details. Let us make this clear, the picture quality
is outstanding, although we feel it could have been better
in it's video mode for capturing videos in low light circumstances. But then
again, this is the true for the majority of digital cameras, and if you are
going to be shooting many videos, it makes sense to invest in a dedicated digital
video camera. So this is more of a quibble.
Indeed, in it's core function as
a digital camera, we were pleasantly surprised at how fast it could boot
up and shoot photos. We had been used to slow digital camera start up times,
so
that when we turned on the the Fuji Finepix we were startled to be taking
pictures virtually immediately! This is an important feature. One of the headaches
of
digital photography is the slow boot times, which means that many moments
are over before the camera is ready to start taking pictures. Because this
camera can take photos so quickly, you now have the ability to take photos
one after another with virtually no delay, unlike so many other cameras. I
could never figure out why other digital camera makers would release products
that were so slow. Kudos to Fuji for finally creating a reasonably priced camera
that performs as fast as cameras costing four times as much. Bravo! However,
be sure to take note that this isn't the case when using the flash, as the
flash takes a second or two to warm up between pictures... oh, back to the
old days!
The Finepix E550 sports a generous 2-inch LCD monitor for previewing photos.
This is as large or larger than many cameras that cost twice as much, and the
visual
quality is outstanding. This makes taking photos a lot easier under difficult
lighting situations, or if you have trouble seeing. It's the perfect camera
for shooting photos of your children or grandchildren.
The body feels substantial but is light and easy to carry. It feels well in
the palm of your hand, although I have handled other cameras that fit better.
It doesn't feel awkward in any way, unlike other cameras we have tried. The
controls are in easy to spot locations, and if you have ever used a digital
camera before then using them will feel like second nature, it's very intuitive
to use. Even if you haven't used a digital camera before, it's relatively easy
to use, featuring an automode in case you don't have time to switch into one
of the preset photo modes.
The batteries are standard AA batteries, which means you don't have to spend
lots of money on fancy batteries that are hard to find. Even better, the camera
comes with rechargeable batteries and it's own recharger- which will greatly
lower the cost of ownership over the lifetime of the camera. There's nothing
so frustrating as running out of batteries and not being able to locate replacements.
With this camera you will never run out of batteries because AA batteries are
so easy to find, even in remote areas.
The other thing that we like, although there are pros and cons about it, is
that it uses an xD memory card. We like that it will fit into most computer
memory slots, unlike the larger and less expensive SD card. Yes, they're more
expensive, but not that much more. You can find some really great deals on
xD cards on Amazon.com. This camera is a great value and we highly recommend it to both novices and
the more advanced user looking for a light and compact digital camera to carry
around on vacation. A+
Helpful information:
Fuji
FinePix E550 Official Website of Fuji Film
Fuji FinePix E550 Specs
Fuji
FinePix E550 Manual (PDF File)
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