Fujifilm Finepix F810 6.3MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Zoom
By: Fuji
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 On: 2006-03-31
This camera without a doubt takes the best photographs of any film or digital camera I have ever owned. The camera battery has not been a problem as it has never worn down during my use with one or two 1 GB XD cards at a time. If great photos are the bottom line, then this camera beats them all. However,....I have some concerns about the honesty of Fuji corporation. You will see other reviews about the flash not popping up. I had this problem within 6 months and sent the camera to Fuji repair in New Jersey. I was told it would cost over $150.00 to repair since this camera model did not come with a US warranty. I was given no choice about this and was told I would be lucky if they could even fix it here in the US with parts from other model cameras since it was never marketed in the US by Fuji. Although I had registered the camera at Fujis web site when new and was told nothing of the sort, I was forced into paying the $150.00. I contacted the online retailer about this and was ignored. I found the original US Warranty card that was packaged with the camera shortly after the repairs were made. I contacted Fuji online and was sent an email to call them only. I have been trying to reach someone for the last month at the customer service number sent to me and have spent more hours on hold than I care to think about. Why is Fuji denying their US Warranty responsibilty? Why would the retailer deal in grey market products as the price was not great. How did the camera come with a US Warranty Card packaged in the sealed box from Fuji if I am being told the truth by Fuji repair? Even if there was no warranty at all, when you read about users experience with a variety of Fuji cameras, there seems to be an across the board problem with the pop up flash not working. This in itself should have prompted a legitamate company to make the necessary repairs for a recently purchased and registered camrera. There is something fishy going on here and I am unable to get anyone to fess up to what is the real problem. If you get a Fuji camera that does not break, then you may have the best camera of your life. If not, prepare when you buy the camera that Fuji does not honor its warranty obligations and add another $100-200 for repairs.
 On: 2006-03-30
This camera takes great photos and is very easy to use. I would have given it 4 stars, except the flash stopped popping up when it was just about 1 year old - thats too soon for a camera this expensive to break. This camera was never dropped or abused, it was always treated with kid gloves. I suggest checking online for other peoples experiences with the reliability and repair costs for this camera before purchasing.
 On: 2005-10-29
This camera is very solid, very fast, loaded, and useable. I got it for my wife who had complained that our old digital point & shoot was too slow to start up, focus and flash. We had a lot of flashed backs of our kids heads with the old camera. With the F810, you turn it on, pop up the flash, push the button, and youve got the shot you thought you were taking. Excellent (and easy to achieve) picture quality for a P&S. We bring this camera everywhere and use it a lot. Its just the right size, sturdy, and so easy to use. I consider it a bargain.
Additional Pros:
1. The movie mode is fantastic. We catch a lot of funny moments that we wouldve missed with our camcorder -- just because its there and easy.
2. Auto mode works well enough for almost anything, but the manual controls can really achieve nice results. In particular, manual settings can overcome blown out highlights.
3. Shadow detail is excellent. This is where the the fancy sensor really pays off.
4. Beautiful big screen.
Cons:
1. While its nice to have an optical viewfinder for daylight, it would be nicer if it represented the field being photographed.
2. No one supports the RAW mode, and the Fuji software just converts the RAW to a jpeg based on the camera settings.
3. No macro mode?
4. The image mode dial gets moved around too easily, so it pays to check it whenever you turn the camera on.
5. Images suffer from digital glare. Youll need a DSLR if you want better tone.
On: 2005-06-15
If youre thinking of buying this one, Id recommend the newer F10 model, which is smaller, looks as elegant, and has higher ISO (my father has one and Ive used it sparingly).
Nevertheless, this camera is great. Generally fast as a camera, with good picture quality. The only thing somewhat slow is the flash recharge (about 2-3 seconds). I use it as travel companion to my DSLR and the pictures have held their own. At the beach it even got some sand, and after minor cleaning it works fine (although I wouldnt do this again, too scary).
Some things I despise:
- XD card format. Stick with SD or CF please.
- USB 2.0 cord *looks like* the standard, but its not. My DSLR, MP3 player, phone, and countless other electronics use standard USB cords, how come this isnt??? I went ahead and bought a multi-card reader so I wouldnt need to mess with this cord anymore.
Also, a point that I think important: the charger is universal voltage, excellent for traveling overseas.
 On: 2005-04-16
I purchased this camera but decided to return it. It is very easy to use, USB 2.0 makes downloads fast. The cradle works well and the ability to view the cameras filesystem as an external disk is handy as well. The camera looks good and it feels solid. Good piece of engineering. Theres only one fundamental issue with the camera - it cant focus. Roughly 25% of pictures I took were blurry for no apparent reason. I emailed Fuji to get updated firmware, but was asked to call them and did not have the time to hang on the phone with customer support. I used an old Canon S20 before and never had similar issues. Its really too bad since except the image quality, everything else in this camera is close to perfect. But then again, why does one purchase a camera if not for good photos ?
On: 2005-03-15
Being an FNG when it comes to cameras, and desiring a digital product to replace the bazillion disposable ones Ive used, I decided to go to one of the best (in asmuch as I could tell) cameras.
I wasnt dissapointed. The camera is easy for a beginner, and takes outstanding quality photos and films.
My only gripe? The barely-useable memory card supplied with the camera.
The LCD screen didnt survive me hitting the ground during a rocket attack, and FujiFilm is being annoyingly vague about getting me the help I need to fix it.
Product is outstanding; customer support, not so much.
On: 2005-03-01
Having owned an older digital camera, I was eager to upgrade to a newer model. I looked at several cameras and went with the Fuji F810. It was one of the best decisions Ive made.
The camera exudes quality. While not a small camera, its small enough to fit in a shirt or jacket pocket.
Start up is quick. The camera is ready within a second or two after power up. While the zoom function is fast, I would have preferred something more "beefy" than a 4X optical zoom. Nevertheless, the zoom is very responsive.
Another feature I appreciate, are the controls for various functions (like sports mode, portrait mode, shutter speed, ASA, etc). They are NOT all menu driven. Many of the adjustments are executed by buttons, switches and a thumbwheel. A very nice feature (I cant stand trying to find a function embedded in a hidden menu).
The pix are great. Many of my friends, who own digital cameras, are impressed with the quality of the image. Keep in mind that when shooting in full resolution, the picture files are pretty big. Many of my photos are in the 4 to 5 mb range. I wont bore you with technical "stuff", but the write times (to the XD card) are fairly quick as well.
If youre in the market, check out the F810. Its one sweet camera.
On: 2005-02-18
When I purchased the Finepix F810 three months ago, I was looking for a digital camera that was compact, responsive & easy to use, and that took sharp & color-accurate photos without costing a fortune. This would be my fourth digital camera, and I wanted something that would satisfy me for a few years.
After reading the reviews for a multitude of digital cameras (focusing on 6- 7- and 8-megapixel models for the most part), and going down to the local camera outlets to get a hands-on feel for the top contenders, I settled on the F810.
For the money, this is one of the finest cameras currently available. The zoom range of @ 32-130 (35mm equivalent) is good for panoramic outdoor shots, portraits and zooming in on more distant objects. For a camera in this price range, the optics are very sharp and fast (F2.8 at the wide end). It starts up quickly and is ready to take a picture in about a second after turn-on. The auto-focus is very quick & accurate, color fidelity is excellent and the LCD display on the camera back is bright, colorful and large. It displays panoramic (16:9) pictures without cropping the image -- standard (4:3) images are displayed in the center of the LCD. Though the F810 will take pictures in the RAW format, equally good results come from the 12M/Fine setting (Fujifilm uses a Super CCD HR sensor to double the 6MP output of the cameras CCD)
Build and control ergonomics are excellent: this camera exudes quality and is large enough to fit ones hands comfortably without feeling small and cramped. The docking station that is included with the F810 both charges the cameras battery and is used to download pictures and movies to your computer. I also purchased two spare batteries and a separate battery charger at steep discounts.
Purple fringing has not shown up in any of my pictures and can be avoided entirely by using the aperture priority mode to increase the F-stop to @ F8 for brightly lit subjects where this problem might show up. Battery life has been good, but not great. My only complaint would be with the limited range of the built-in flash and its slow recharge time, which makes you wait 4-5 seconds between flash pictures.
Fuji definitely got it right with this camera: great quality at an affordable price!
Bob
On: 2005-01-03
Note: Please be sure to check out the pics I submitted. They are not very artistic, but they do show you the quality this camera can give you. Thanks.
Things I dont like:
The only serious contenders were the Fuji E550, Olympus C-8080 Wide Zoom, and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ20 (hope I have the model numbers correct). So, I will relate my comments to those cameras.
1. the cheaper-version of this camera (ie, the E550) has superior ergonomics, in my opinion, because the AA battery compartment gives it a nice hand-hold.
2. the E550 uses cheaper rechargeable AAs. For the price of one 810 battery, I could get 4 *pairs* of rechargeable AAs. And its not like the 810 battery has great life either; it is only rated to take about 110 shots before it needs charging.
3. The Olympus has better optics. Of course, it costs alot more as well (300 dollars more!).
4. The Panasonic has a large lens (2.8 constant aperture), a huge zoom (12X optical) and image stabilization. The Fuji 810 doesnt have any of this.
What I do like:
1. The 810 has an auto-focus assist. This is greatly helpful. The E550 doesnt have this.
2. It has a wider-screen and, when the wide-view is chosen, it will take mildly panoramic pics (by cropping, basically, but its still nice). The E550 doesnt have this.
3. It comes complete with a nice docking station for recharging and USB connection. It is a very nice package. The E550 doesnt have this.
4. Even at the usual price, it is significantly cheaper than the Oly or the Panasonic. Its images are not quite as good as the Oly, but they are certainly as good-or-better than the Panasonic. Also, it is smaller and easier to carry around. It fits into the carrying case I am accustomed to using with my old digital camera. The Oly and the Panasonic are more like carrying around small SLRs.
5. It has a wider-than-usual ISO range (80-800). The ISOs are all useful and useable. The Panasonic goes to pieces over ISO 100, thus negating much of the big lens advantage. I can set the Fuji at ISO 200, making the Fuji at, say, f4 equivalent to the Panasonic at ISO 100/f2.8.
6. The build quality is excellent. The quality of the E550 was quite good as well, and the Oly is simply world class in every respect (but the price!). The Panasonic was not quite there yet.
7. I was able to get it on sale, making it (just barely) a better deal than the E550. The autofocus assist and generally higher build quality were decisive here. Especially the AF assist (trying living without it once having lived with it).
8. The wide end of the zoom is 32.5mm, which is better than the Panasonic (38mm?), though not nearly as good as the Oly (28mm, but the price!).
The 4.5 stars relate to current possibilities, not what I imagine my ultimate point-and-shoot-with-manual-capabilities camera to be. If the Oly had image stablization and was a hundred bucks cheaper, I would have gone for it (though with some financial pain). As it is, pound-for-pound, dollar-for-dollar, with autofocus assist available, this was the best camera I could find with the classiest build and the best images. Drop half a point for the ergonomics/battery issue and there we are.
On the other hand, if you are willing to carry around a somewhat bigger camera and want to have alot of fun with a super-zoom, go for the Panasonic. If you want world-beating optics, go for Oly (assuming, in both cases, that the extra money is not an issue). If you really dont think you will use auto-focus assist, the E550 is probably the best deal out there.
It was a very, very close race. No losers in this group.
Cheers.
On: 2004-11-14
I bought this camera a few weeks ago and have had some time to play around with it. I have been very please so far.
This is my third digital camera and my favorite so far. I will list what I find attractive about this camera.
-The 4x optical zoom is nice.
-The picture quality is execellent.
-Another thing I am very impressed with is the focusing. It has been extremely reliable and true- I really have not had a problem with out of focus shots at all. I had a canon A80 before this and the focus with that camera, besides being deathly slow, was hit or miss at best.
-very fast startup
-it is easy to change almost any of the setting quickly and easily- no scrolling through imbedded menus.
-continuous autofocusing
The only cons are the
-battery life- is OK, but defintely less than 200 shots.
-the cradle should have a spot to charge the extra battery that you need to buy. As it stands now, you have to switch batteries in the camera to charge it. Therefore, you can only charge one battery at a time and the hassle factor goes up.
All that said, this camera oozes quality, and I would probably buy another one if I lost this one. Great focus, pictures, and startup time.
Fuji did a good job with this camera.
Paul
On: 2004-11-13
I bought this camera a few weeks ago and have had some time to play around with it. I have been very please so far.
This is my third digital camera and my favorite so far. I will list what I find attractive about this camera.
-The 4x optical zoom is nice.
-The picture quality is execellent.
-Another thing I am very impressed with is the focusing. It has been extremely reliable and true- I really have not had a problem with out of focus shots at all. I had a canon A80 before this and the focus with that camera, besides being deathly slow, was hit or miss at best.
-very fast startup
-it is easy to change almost any of the setting quickly and easily- no scrolling through imbedded menus.
-continuous autofocusing
The only cons are the
-battery life- is OK, but defintely less than 200 shots.
-the cradle should have a spot to charge the extra battery that you need to buy. As it stands now, you have to switch batteries in the camera to charge it. Therefore, you can only charge one battery at a time and the hassle factor goes up.
All that said, this camera oozes quality, and I would probably buy another one if I lost this one. Great focus, pictures, and startup time.
Fuji did a good job with this camera.
Paul
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