Fujifilm Finepix E900 9MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Zoom (Black)
By: Fuji Average Rating: 4.0 Total Reviews: 71
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 On: 2008-10-06
This is a great little camera for everyday use, I love it; goes everywhere with me. The picture quality (9MP) is fantastic, and I like the macro and zoom performance. As close to SLR you can get, IMO. If you are looking into serious photography, this will not do. However, fabulous camera for the price!
 On: 2008-05-23
Im a huge fan of Fujis sharpness and color reproduction (at least to my eyes)but as many of the reviews have stated it has its problems too. It has a pretty big CCD compared to many of the other cameras in its class which a huge plus. My biggest complaint with this camera is with the Flash, and its kid of silly. A pop up flash is Okay but there is no Flash on/off feature so if I want to disable the flash during a shot I have to push the whole flash back down. The write time and flash recycle is one of the slowest Ive seen but there arent too many occasions where I cant wait. Im not sure if it is just my camera but it seems to have some "quirks" such as the LCD going from Bright to Dark, I dont know if its a power saving feature or what. I was also disappointed in the fact that it didnt have an scene modes other than Portrait, Sports and Night. I dont use them too often but they can be useful to other people who just want to take a picture (e.g. My wife). At least it has a Manual Feature.
If it werent for the lack of the Flash on/off feature and its quirky behavior, I would have given it another star.
 On: 2008-04-24
This compact camera was announced on July 28, 2005 for Fujis 2006 catalog, and was dropped from their 2008 catalog. I believe this is a long run for a compact model camera. At the time of this writing, remaindered stock is still available on the Internet for around $200, less than half the original retail price.
The "Super CCD" featured on this model caused a minor sensation at nine mega pixels. Super CCD sensors are also unique in that their pixels are arranged diagonally, rather than horizontally. This reduces aliasing along diagonal lines (at the cost of aliasing along vertical and horizontal lines, I would guess).
I considered purchasing this camera when it first came out, but opted instead for a dSLR model. As it turned out, this decision better supported my two-year long (and counting) study of digital photography. But, now I wanted a compact walk-around camera for a project where a dSLR kit would be too much baggage. The E900 again came under consideration. I was attracted by these features:
RAW capture capability (I shoot everything in RAW)
2xAA battery power (cheap, lightweight and long-lasting)
The high ratings for the E900 I read on internet camera review sites.
At just over nine ounces, batteries included, this camera fit my requirement for portability. It is too big to fit in a shirt pocket, but I avoid putting precision instruments in shirt pockets, anyway.
The camera market is driven by technology in the service of consumer tastes. Compact cameras are trending toward ever-smaller (including hi-res cameras in cell phones), while dSLR cameras are incorporating more consumer features, like "live view," image stabilization and face recognition. I guess I am a digital Luddite, because Minox-sized cameras do not appeal, nor do SLR cameras laden with techno-froufrou. Offer me a camera with extended dynamic range, higher sensitivity and greater resolution, and I am listening. If the camera will pay expressway tolls, it has some other consumer than me in mind.
The RAW capability of the Fujifilm E900 is seriously under-supported by the manufacturer, to the point of being counterproductive. Selecting RAW capture requires drilling deep into the setup menu on the camera. The RAW developing software included with the camera provides no image adjustments and outputs at 8-bit tonal range, obviating all(!) the value of RAW capture.
I shoot RAW because I process all of my images in Photoshop, where RAW capture with its 12-bit tone depth accommodates much greater manipulation (16x!) before images start to degrade. Also, using Adobe Camera Raw (ACR), I can impose the optimal white balance setting and usually coax another stop of dynamic range out of a RAW capture.
I can understand how most camera users would not find RAW capture to be of value. Most amateur photographers probably use $100 software to adjust their images. All of this software functions at 8-bit tonal depth, meaning the extra data captured in RAW is stripped away at the get-go. Recalling how cameras are a consumer-driven marketplace, it makes sense that Fuji has dropped RAW support from most of their current models (their Pro dSLR and three "bridge" models do offer RAW capture).
Photographers serious about their work will much prefer to use dSLR cameras, for the better optics and greater user control they provide. The effort required to produce a "serious" image is about the same, regardless of the camera used. But, I wanted a walk-around camera that would at least approach dSLR image quality.
Here are the compromises/limitations I have discovered so far comparing images from the E900 to ones from my dSLR:
Noise in the shadows. Pixels cant decide what color they are.
Color noise. Again, pixels cant decide what color they are.
Chromatic aberrations (colored fringes along high contrast edges). I can compensate for some of this when I make my adjustments in ACR.
Range of f-stops is limited (f-8 is the highest setting).
Macro works only at the widest focal length, producing "big nose" distortion.
Some people might complain about camera response time, but I take deliberate photos, so this is rarely an issue for me.
The tiny pop-up strobe is only good for fill flash, and even then only at close range.
The camera has a big hunk of chrome bling on the grip, giving it the look of a 58 Roadmaster. I covered it up with a piece of gaffer tape--problem solved.
I am surprised and delighted by the resolution of this 9-MP point-n-shoot compared to my 8-MP dSLR, considering the glass used in each. I appreciate that I can get immediate exposure feed-back on the image I just shot (without switching to playback mode) in the form of a histogram and saturated pixels flashing on-and-off. I have added a picture illustrating this display to the gallery for this camera.
Some day I might take a video shot with the E900, a feature alien to the dSLR world. While I use the M-A-S exposure modes and RAW capture exclusively, some day I might go slumming and shoot something in Auto and JPEG. I am happy with this camera for the purposes I intend.
 On: 2008-04-04
At first I thought this was a great camera, the only downfall was the batteries would drain too quickly. It was also annoying that the batteries and picture card were under the same cover. I bought this camera in July 2006. Then in January 2007 it completely died on me. I couldnt even get the lens to close. I finally brought it to a repair shop and they said the motherboard went on it. The total cost for labor and parts would be $128. I checked and for the price this camera is selling for Im not sure if its worth it to repair.
On: 2008-01-28
This camera is larger than a compact, smaller than an SLR and has more pixels than most. It fits the hand well and is easy to hold and carry. It is very flexible, from fully auto to manual and everything in between. I have one gig of memory in it and it will take over 250 pictures at the highest pixel setting. The batteries seem to last forever and Ive taken several hundred pictures, including flash without recharging. It works well in available light conditions and I seldom use flash unless its actually dark. This camera will last me until I eventually replace it with an SLR.
On: 2008-01-14
I have had mine for about nine months. Its an interesting thing, a cheap compact digital camera with a very high resolution for its price bracket, a full range of manual photography controls, and a RAW mode that lets you apply all the image processing yourself. It has some quirks and overall I was both impressed and a little disappointed with it. It feels like a budget digital camera body/lens with the heart of a mid-range fixed-lens quasi-SLR. Youve probably read lots of reviews on the internet, and I wont reiterate them. In general the camera doesnt seem to have much of a following, its rarely mentioned on websites, and I assume it has been discontinued. It is just barely mentioned on Fujis website. I believe it was the last of Fujis E-series cameras.
On the positive sise, it has a non-interpolated nine megapixel resolution, which is still competitive nowadays. Nine megapixels is overkill for most applications, but its very useful if you like to crop the images, because they remain high-resolution even after youve chopped half of the picture away. You can go down to five, three, or two megapixels, and VGA. The nine megapixel resolution has normal and fine JPG options, the others do not. In RAW mode a 1gb XD card stores 54 images. 9mp fine gets you 228 pictures, the rest hover around 1,000 pictures, give or take a few hundred.
The camera is small and light, and fits into a pocket easily. There is a full range of manual photography options. You can set the shutter speed, aperture, ISO level, there are various autofocus modes, and you can bracket the exposure, although you can only bracket by a maximum of one f-stop. You can shoot RAW. You can have a live histogram display on the LCD screen, although you have to hold down a button. Startup time is very quick, the zoom and autofocus are fairly quiet although not silent. You dont hear them in a crowd. The camera runs on 2xAA batteries, which are available in every shop in the world. The camera comes with a pair of batteries and a charger, which is handy. It uses tiny XD cards which can be had cheaply online. Windows XP sees the camera as a standard external storage device, rather like a USB memory stick, so you can just drag and drop the pictures onto your PC rather than having to use proprietary software. In fact you can use the camera as a USB stick, if you want, you can use it to carry MP3 files around, such as Paul McCartneys 1986 album Press to Play, which is fully as bad as the critics say, its awful. I imagine he wrote "However Absurd" as a copy of "I am the Walrus", but he got it all wrong.
You set the custom white balance by photographing e.g. a grey card, and using that as a template. You cannot however take several pictures and use them as white balance templates, as in some professional cameras, but at least you have a custom option. Alternatively you can shoot RAW and set the white balance later on.
The image quality has been covered extensively on the internet. In low ISO modes using the cameras image processing, the image quality is very good in daylight, not bad indoors, but the camera has an odd shutter speed limitation that bothers me. I will write about this later. At 200 ISO and up the noise reduction gives everything an unpleasant plastic quality that resembles the work of George Seurat. The noise reduction algorithm tends to make the images look grainy in an unpleasant way. If you shoot flat surfaces such as walls and skies etc its not so bad, but detailed objects suffer. If however you shoot with a lower ISO mode, but with a longer shutter speed, its not so bad, indeed the low-light image quality is impressive if you use a tripod. Part of the reason I am so harsh on the cameras image quality is that the image flaws are very apparent when viewed at 1:1 on the screen, because the pictures are so large. If you crop the picture and then squash it down for the internet, say 1024x768, the grain isnt nearly as noticeable. If you shoot RAW you can bypass the noise reduction entirely. With RAW at ISO 80 theres a certain amount of grain, but its not unpleasant grain, it has a film-like quality. The camera takes a few seconds to save each RAW file. I believe it interpolates them to 18mp and then de-interpolates them back down to 9mp again, which must take time.
Battery life seems to be good. I have taken it with me around and about, and shot a couple of hundred pictures a time, at nine megapixels, with enough juice left over to look at them, download them, and fiddle with the camera afterwards, using 2500 Ni-MH batteries. Its not a problem to carry around a spare set of AAs, or buy them, or borrow them.
The camera has some problems. The lens has a slightly wider field of view than other compact cameras, which is theoretically great, except that it distorts around the edges. If you take a shot of a painting, for example, the edges of the painting bulge out a little bit. You can fix this with software but its a bind. The lens doesnt cope well with flare, so if you shoot a night scene with streetlights the lights will have stars coming out of them, and they will probably have a purple cast. Theres a lot of purple fringing around the edges of things. I wish that Fuji had used a better lens. You can fix most of these problems with software, but as I say, its boring to do so.
The maximum shutter time is fifteen seconds, at least in manual mode. In practice, if you set the camera to P or AUTO the maximum shutter time is 1/4 second, which isnt long enough at f2.8 if you want to take shots indoors without a flash (perhaps you have a tripod, or a very steady hand, or a steady beer glass, and you dont want to blind people). You could use shutter priority mode, in which case the maximum shutter speed is three seconds, which is not such a problem but why the limitation? Its a shame there isnt a simple automatic setting that lets you just point and shoot without limiting the maximum shutter speed. Thats one point in favour of my old Olympus XA, or Yashica Electro. With those cameras you press the button and PAF, the shutter stays open as long as it needs to stay open.
There are some minor niggles. The flash isnt motorised, and so you have to manually open and close it. After you take a flash picture, the camera shows you the picture and then the screen goes blank for a second or so, presumably waiting for the flash to recharge. The body feels lightweight and hollow. Its very plastic, with some silvery plastic bits that look silly. Theres a gap around the USB port which looks as though it will let dust into the cameras innards. The master program dial feels flimsier than the equivalent Canon Powershot dial, and doesnt click as positively. I often find myself pulling the Finepix out of a pocket, to find that it has flipped to one of the other shooting modes.
If you set the camera to take a time delay exposure, subsequent exposures do not use time delay, and so you have to set time delay over and over again. This sounds picky, but its a real problem if youre taking a lot of product photographs, perhaps using the macro mode. You want as little camera shake as possible, and the self-timer is ideal for this, but with the E900 you have to press MENU RIGHT UP MENU after every single shot. Not fun if you have to take several dozen pictures.
A final niggle is that the option to shoot RAW is buried in one of the setup menus, rather than being right at the top level. Youve probably read this complaint in all the other reviews. My guess is that most people who buy this camera do so in order to shoot RAW, and so they notice how fiddly it is to select. If you want to shoot at five megapixels or change to 3:2 aspect ratio there is a dedicated image quality menu button. But for RAW you have to press MENU DOWN DOWN DOWN DOWN DOWN SET DOWN DOWN DOWN DOWN DOWN DOWN DOWN DOWN RIGHT UP SET, and the same again to turn it off.
Oddly, and this isnt really a criticism, the wider 3:2 aspect ratio setting produces images that have a greater horizontal resolution than the standard 4:3 aspect ratio. Its as if the camera is expanding the pictures outwards rather than just cropping off the top of bottom. Im not complaining, Im just curious.
In summary the E900 is, or was, very impressive for the price. It feels flimsy and youll never have people cooing at it, asking you to let them have a go, but it does the job for snapshots especially if you shoot RAW. The two big problems for me are the lens, and the odd 1/4 second exposure limitation. Given that digital cameras have come down in price over the last year it might be better to get an equivalent Powershot, even if it has a lower resolution. I find that nine megapixels seems like overkill, and I end up cropping most of my pictures and then sizing them down anyway. In theory I could make big prints, but I wouldnt with this camera because of the purple fringing and unpleasant noise reduction.
As a footnote, theres an extension mount and a pair of accessory lenses. The mount feels flimsy and wobbles. The telephoto lens is limited by the shutter speed limitation as above - and its not very telephoto. The wideangle lens is silly but fun. Its totally impractical, large and heavy, and unbalances the camera, and the images are even more distorted than usual, but it attracts attention. Its not a fisheye though. You can theoretically attach filters and so forth to the extension mount, if you have a 43mm filter or adapter. Avoid Paul McCartneys Press to Play at all costs.
On: 2008-01-08
Have been very pleased with this camera in the month Ive used it. Bought it for my wife who uses it as a point-and-shoot. Everything about it is easy - 2 AA bateries - simple controls - 9 MP - put a 2GB memory card in and taken many pictures and videos without any problem. Some problems - image stabilization - mode wheel moves too easily - power adapter not included.
 On: 2007-12-24
The camera is fine as long as nothing goes wrong. Fuji has the worst customer service I have ever delt with. They pass you from one person to another and do everything they can not to help you. Be prepared to deal with the worst customer service in the business. I really hope this helps you.
On: 2007-12-23
The camera is fine as long as nothing goes wrong. Fuji has the worst customer service I have ever delt with. They pass you from one person to another and do everything they can not to help you. Be prepared to deal with the worst customer service in the business. I really hope this helps you.
On: 2007-12-21
I had a film-based SLR camera that I had invested a lot of money, and just hadnt committed to buying a digital camera yet. When I was burglarized and my camera equiptment was stolen, I figured it was time to make the switch to digital. I did much research online, and finally decided on the Fujimilm E900. When I first got the camera I was impressed with the image quality. To date, thats the only thing Ive been impressed with. Pictures are often blurry, the flash is too bright, battery life is quickly eaten up, and worst of all, Ive gone through three XD memory cards in this camera. Which, are quite expensive. For some reason unbeknownst to me, this camera seems to render the cards un-usable after just a couple months. For the cost, I am EXTREMELY disappointed with this camera. Save your money and purchase a $100 Kodak, Canon, or HP. I use all three at my work very often and have had minimal issues with any of them.
On: 2007-12-20
I had a film-based SLR camera that I had invested a lot of money, and just hadnt committed to buying a digital camera yet. When I was burglarized and my camera equiptment was stolen, I figured it was time to make the switch to digital. I did much research online, and finally decided on the Fujimilm E900. When I first got the camera I was impressed with the image quality. To date, thats the only thing Ive been impressed with. Pictures are often blurry, the flash is too bright, battery life is quickly eaten up, and worst of all, Ive gone through three XD memory cards in this camera. Which, are quite expensive. For some reason unbeknownst to me, this camera seems to render the cards un-usable after just a couple months. For the cost, I am EXTREMELY disappointed with this camera. Save your money and purchase a $100 Kodak, Canon, or HP. I use all three at my work very often and have had minimal issues with any of them.
On: 2007-12-12
This camera is well worth the average $200 online in various stores, because it has features that make it a great camera for the family or the budding photographer! Even if you dont know much about photography, buying this camera for the price makes sense, because later on, when you wish you had a feature now that you know more, it will be there!
If you are not "into" photography, simply use the AUTO mode, if you want a little more control it offers it, if you want full control, it offers it, even manual focus! With 9 mega-pixels, you can get huge photos that can be cropped and still print out very nice at 8X10 or 5X7! :)
I love that the camera uses AA batterys and has memory card usage, so you can fill up a memory card, and pop in a new one. I am also VERY pleased with the video mode of this camera, it takes very good videos, that are better quality than my Nikon L3 or L4!
The only small complaint about videos I have is that you cant zoom in or our while shooting, but thats ok, for the good quality, Ill deal with it! :)
Overall, I love this camera and am having fun with it, and for the price, it totally satisfies me! I doubt Ill need another camera for a long, long time! :)
On: 2007-12-11
This camera is well worth the average $200 online in various stores, because it has features that make it a great camera for the family or the budding photographer! Even if you dont know much about photography, buying this camera for the price makes sense, because later on, when you wish you had a feature now that you know more, it will be there!
If you are not "into" photography, simply use the AUTO mode, if you want a little more control it offers it, if you want full control, it offers it, even manual focus! With 9 mega-pixels, you can get huge photos that can be cropped and still print out very nice at 8X10 or 5X7! :)
I love that the camera uses AA batterys and has memory card usage, so you can fill up a memory card, and pop in a new one. I am also VERY pleased with the video mode of this camera, it takes very good videos, that are better quality than my Nikon L3 or L4!
The only small complaint about videos I have is that you cant zoom in or our while shooting, but thats ok, for the good quality, Ill deal with it! :)
Overall, I love this camera and am having fun with it, and for the price, it totally satisfies me! I doubt Ill need another camera for a long, long time! :)
On: 2007-10-30
I bought mine from RockettMart. Not only is the camera perfect for me the seller was great and I would recommend him to anyone, anytime. He was very customer oriented! As for the camera, it is perfect for someone who wants to carry a camera with them and be able to pull it out and take pictures anywhere, anytime. I am absolutely in LOVE with this camera! I had a Nikon professional grade digital camera, but you could not prie my Fuji E900 from my hands. Wonderful Picture, Perfect Camera! I just wish it came with extra batteries and a case. Also, the only cards it accepts are the xD cards and they are expensive, but overall WELL WORTH THE MONEY! I dont know why it is not still priced at 600.00! ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE WITH THIS CAMERA AND WILL NEVER GO BACK! I WILL ONLY BUY NEWER MODELS AS THEY COME AVAILABLE! HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
On: 2007-10-29
I bought mine from RockettMart. Not only is the camera perfect for me the seller was great and I would recommend him to anyone, anytime. He was very customer oriented! As for the camera, it is perfect for someone who wants to carry a camera with them and be able to pull it out and take pictures anywhere, anytime. I am absolutely in LOVE with this camera! I had a Nikon professional grade digital camera, but you could not prie my Fuji E900 from my hands. Wonderful Picture, Perfect Camera! I just wish it came with extra batteries and a case. Also, the only cards it accepts are the xD cards and they are expensive, but overall WELL WORTH THE MONEY! I dont know why it is not still priced at 600.00! ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE WITH THIS CAMERA AND WILL NEVER GO BACK! I WILL ONLY BUY NEWER MODELS AS THEY COME AVAILABLE! HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
On: 2007-09-19
I purchased this camera 2/07
for $300 through the home shopping network (an impulse buy), and for the first 4-5 weeks it worked tremendously well. The picture quality and various features were very impressive. However, on the 6th week the zoom became stuck in the out position. The camera showed a "Zoom Error" message. This occured while at my childs T-Ball game, after taking a picture. The camera was in my hands, never dropped or bumped against anything and it broke.
I contacted the Fuji company and explained the problem, assuming they could instruct me on what to do to fix it. However, I was told that if a Zoom error had occured it would need to be mailed into the repair company and they would then give me an estimate on the repair. In questioning the 1 year warranty, I was told they would have to evaluate the camera before they could say if it would be covered under warranty.
Due to my own fault it has not been mailed in because I have been so disgusted with the wasted $300. Since this has occured, I have saw two cameras on Ebay with Zoom error, and had a friend tell me that she had a Fuji camera that did the same thing.
Beware, apparantly Fuji has a zoom problem. I would recommend staying as far away from Fuji products as possible.
On: 2007-09-18
I purchased this camera 2/07
for $300 through the home shopping network (an impulse buy), and for the first 4-5 weeks it worked tremendously well. The picture quality and various features were very impressive. However, on the 6th week the zoom became stuck in the out position. The camera showed a "Zoom Error" message. This occured while at my childs T-Ball game, after taking a picture. The camera was in my hands, never dropped or bumped against anything and it broke.
I contacted the Fuji company and explained the problem, assuming they could instruct me on what to do to fix it. However, I was told that if a Zoom error had occured it would need to be mailed into the repair company and they would then give me an estimate on the repair. In questioning the 1 year warranty, I was told they would have to evaluate the camera before they could say if it would be covered under warranty.
Due to my own fault it has not been mailed in because I have been so disgusted with the wasted $300. Since this has occured, I have saw two cameras on Ebay with Zoom error, and had a friend tell me that she had a Fuji camera that did the same thing.
Beware, apparantly Fuji has a zoom problem. I would recommend staying as far away from Fuji products as possible.
On: 2007-09-11
I am totally impressed with this camera! For a 9MP "Point&Shoot" camera with optical and 4x digital zoom with these options, its a steal! I took a picture of an ordinary U.S. quarter using the Macro option, in a poorly lighted room without using the built in flash. The quarter filled the frame. I viewed the picture on my 17" PC monitor and the quarter was 12 inches in diameter. There was no blurring anywhere, it was well lit and I could see every scratch and dent on it.
In order for you to get the same results with your camera I suggest you buy an adjustable height tripod. It doesnt have to be an expensive one, but you will need the stability! You will find that all of your photos will benefit with the use of a tripod.
On: 2007-08-23
Had this for nearly half a year, pleased in every way. My thorough research (in March of 2007) did not yield a better lower priced camera with so many great features.
What I like: 9MP, fairly high ISO (800), manual white balance, good shutter speed range (15 to 1/2000). These features allow to shoot in wide range of conditions yielding quality prints.
I also like the use of regular AAs. They do run out rather quickly, though this is normal. In fact, the manual requests to use alkaline AAs or supplied rechargeable ones.
Overall, great for no hassle advanced and quick everyday pictures.
On: 2007-07-24
After my Finepix E550 (and E900 predecessor) was "liberated" from me, I decided to make use of all those xD memory cards and rechargeable AA batteries and purchase the E900.
Ill start off by saying, at this point, this model was released 21 months ago. That is a fairly long time for any electronic item. That being said, like the E550 it still takes beautiful true color photos without much lag between them. It starts and extends its lens less than 2 seconds. On the auto setting its picture quality is as good as most current point and shoot cameras . Where this camera differentiates it self is using the many manual controls at your disposal. Its definitely aimed at the enthusiast set and if you have a firm grasp of apertures, shutter speeds, exposures and the like, you can see its potential. And potentially it can take some very impressive pictures. After 300 shots I still think the E550 has better color representation but the E900 photos still look more natural than say my Canon 800IS. At ISO 80, 100 and 200 its pretty noise free, even in low light situations. The noise starts to creep in at ISO 400 buts its still very usable. At ISO 800 be prepared to run your photos through some kind of software noise reduction as they very grainy. This noise makes the "Natural Light" mode hit or miss in my opinion. While it makes it easier to take low light pictures without a flash you cant control the ISO speed independently. This means in low light without a flash, the camera almost always goes to ISO 800 and that brings the noise. Of course this is easily remedied with manual mode. The menus are not very user friendly so if you plan to go manual be prepared to do a lot of 2 handed button pressing. It would be nice if from shot to shot you didnt have to go into the menus at all.
For beginners, the E900 is a very capable point & shoot in auto mode. But, if youre more advanced and are a little creative this is your camera. With the full manual controls, RAW image capture, 9 megapixels and a very very friendly price, its the perfect companion to a Digital Photography For Dummies book.
On: 2007-07-23
After my Finepix E550 (and E900 predecessor) was "liberated" from me, I decided to make use of all those xD memory cards and rechargeable AA batteries and purchase the E900.
Ill start off by saying, at this point, this model was released 21 months ago. That is a fairly long time for any electronic item. That being said, like the E550 it still takes beautiful true color photos without much lag between them. It starts and extends its lens less than 2 seconds. On the auto setting its picture quality is as good as most current point and shoot cameras . Where this camera differentiates itself is using the many manual controls at your disposal. Its definitely aimed at the enthusiast set and if you have a firm grasp of apertures, shutter speeds, exposures and the like, you can see its potential. And potentially it can take some very impressive pictures. After 300 shots I still think the E550 has better color representation but the E900 photos still look more natural than say my Canon 800IS. At ISO 80, 100 and 200 its pretty noise free, even in low light situations. The noise starts to creep in at ISO 400 buts its still very usable. At ISO 800 be prepared to run your photos through some kind of software noise reduction as they very grainy. This noise makes the "Natural Light" mode hit or miss in my opinion. While it makes it easier to take low light pictures without a flash you cant control the ISO speed independently. This means in low light without a flash, the camera almost always goes to ISO 800 and that brings the noise. Of course this is easily remedied with manual mode. The menus are not very user friendly so if you plan to go manual be prepared to do a lot of 2 handed button pressing. It would be nice if from shot to shot you didnt have to go into the menus at all.
For beginners, the E900 is a very capable point & shoot in auto mode. But, if youre more advanced and are a little creative this is your camera. With the full manual controls, RAW image capture, 9 megapixels and a very very friendly price, its the perfect companion to a Digital Photography For Dummies book.
On: 2007-07-20
This camera is really nice, takes great pictures.
The only problem I have is that the dial for changing auto to sport etc seems to move at will. I an an equestrian and take the camera in the woods in a small pouch attached to my saddle. The camera gets banged around a lot and it sometimes is not be on Auto (where I usually have it while riding).I love the camera!
On: 2007-07-14
I was looking for a new one because my daughter dropped and broke mine, and I was very pleased to find one on Amazon. Unfortunetely it costs just as much to fix one as it does to buy a new one. I originally bought this camera when it first came out. It takes beautiful SLR quality photos and is so simple to use. And for a 9 MP camera, you cannot beat the price or quality.
This will be my 4th Fuji camera. The only complaint I have is with Fuji cameras in general. While the quality of the photos their cameras produce are superb and the prices are great, they seem to all have some sort of glitch. As another customer reviewed, his camera produced white lines in the photos. This has happened with 3 out of the 4 cameras I have purchased. I dont know anything about the insides of the camera so I do not know what causes this. Something inside just seems to go bad after awhile. But I keep buying them because of ease of use, picture quality, and price.
On: 2007-07-09
Ive purchased this camera based on literature
and word of mouth opinions. I found it comparable to
many others similar cameras performing equally well.
However, Ive learned, that for some reasons it is
out of production and already not available in Europe. Bargain
prices are probably due the fact, that currently the rest of
them on stock is being sold out.
On: 2007-06-28
An excellent camera which can be fully automatic to fully manual with all the steps in between. And Amazon, along with their supplier, was a joy to work with. I had the experience of rude and pushy salespeople and had several orders canceled because I would not buy a bunch of overpriced accessories with my camera. None of that nonsense with Amazon!
On: 2007-06-25
In December 2006 we purchased the Olympus Stylus 1000 10MP. Picture quality was definitely sub par. It was stolen a couple of months later and I replaced it with this camera. Weve been thrilled with its performance.
My background with photography is limited. We bought this mainly for point and shoot purposes for our family of six. However, I love that this camera has advanced functionality that can grow with our interest in photography.
In the mean time, the cameras ability to take clear and sharp pictures under many different conditions with little to no manual adjustments has made it a pleasure to use.
We recently took the camera on a Disney World trip. We were amazed at how clear the pictures were whether we were in a dark ride like Pirates of the Caribbean or outside in the bright sun light.
Im holding back that 5th star for two reasons:
1. I wish it had the ability to charge the batteries without having to remove them from the camera. With that said, battery life has not been an issue.
2. Two of our kids have very fair skin. On some pictures they were a little washed out. Again, this may be due to my lack of photography experience. But I cant complain too much about this since we have more high quality pictures from the Disney vacation than weve had from any other trip.
Highly recommended!
On: 2007-06-20
product was sent w/o xd card, which is necessary for the camera to work.
On: 2007-06-08
Fujifilm cameras are always famous for their beautiful colors, and this one is no exception. Switch to ISO 80 or 100, use RAW recording, under good light condition, then you get wonderful pictures that may rival those shot by DSLRs! However, it has its shortcomings, especially for flash photos. Its flash power is very weak, nothing beyond 10 feet. You can compensate the underexposure with Photoshop, but that increases the image noise. In addition, it does not have focus-assist lamp, so AF is very difficult under low light.
In short, it is brilliant under daylight. However, only one trip to the indoor party, and you will immediately find its severe limitations!
On: 2007-06-07
Fujifilm cameras are always famous for their beautiful colors, and this one is no exception. Switch to ISO 80 or 100, use RAW recording, under good light condition, then you get wonderful pictures that may rival those shot by DSLRs! However, it has its shortcomings, especially for flash photos. Its flash power is very weak, nothing beyond 10 feet. You can compensate the underexposure with Photoshop, but that increases the image noise. In addition, it does not have focus-assist lamp, so AF is very difficult under low light.
In short, it is brilliant under daylight. However, only one trip to the indoor party, and you will immediately find its severe limitations!
On: 2007-05-17
Brand new, out of the box and all the pictures it takes look like I took them from behind venetian blinds. Just try and get to technical support...no one wants to talk to you. I spent over an hour trying to reach someone. They wanted me to drive 90 miles to have it repaired....I opted to send it to them in New Jersey where they will "try" to fix it, even though I asked for a brand new one since this one never worked. Huge disappointment and I hate it already. Oh and the card they send with it only holds 7 poor quality pictues. I already hate the stupid thing. You would think for what it costs that it would just work or that they would at least be interested in fixing it.
On: 2007-05-17
As you can tell by the title of my review, this is the first digital camera i have owned. On the recommendation of a close friend who bought the same camera for his wife, i gave it try. Ive always been pleased with Fugi products (film, paper, etc.) so i didnt feel like i was taking a gamble on a company i was not familiar with.
The camera has an amazing macro ability and the zoom is very good also. On the first few days i had it i took it to the zoo and was able to block out all the mayhem (children, screaming adults...) and get rather close to the animals. My fear of the ease of getting the pictures out of the camera was also ridiculous because the camera comes with all the necessary software.
The rechargable batteries are also a real plus!
On: 2007-05-16
Brand new, out of the box and all the pictures it takes look like I took them from behind venetian blinds. Just try and get to technical support...no one wants to talk to you. I spent over an hour trying to reach someone. They wanted me to drive 90 miles to have it repaired....I opted to send it to them in New Jersey where they will "try" to fix it, even though I asked for a brand new one since this one never worked. Huge disappointment and I hate it already. Oh and the card they send with it only holds 7 poor quality pictues. I already hate the stupid thing. You would think for what it costs that it would just work or that they would at least be interested in fixing it.
On: 2007-05-14
This is our first digital camera, and we are happy with it so far. We have been able to figure out how to use the basic features and to load the pictures on our computer. We would recommend this camera for people who have some savvy with computers and such but are not true techies.
On: 2007-04-15
I bought this camera Jan. 2007 to replace 1st gen 3 MPixel Fuji. This camera is compact, easy to use, loaded with features, and takes great pictures. On the minus side, the xD picture card shares the compartment with the batteries.
On: 2007-04-14
I bought this camera Jan. 2007 to replace 1st gen 3 MPixel Fuji. This camera is compact, easy to use, loaded with features, and takes great pictures. On the minus side, the xD picture card shares the compartment with the batteries.
On: 2007-03-13
I bought this camera to replace my Cannon Powershot. I wanted a reliable model with some improvements over my old camera, like decreased time between pictures, more zoom, etc. The Finepix E900 worked fine for three weeks or about 100 pictures. Then the pictures became distorted. It had a one-year warranty so I sent it back to Fujifilm to be repaired, and was sent a price quote of over $100. Customer service explained that because the camera was damaged the warranty did not apply. I did get some good use out of the camera for the short time I had it and carried it with me nearly every day. I imagine that the damage must have occurred when I carried it in my backpack. It is lightweight and the body is made of plastic but I wasnt prepared for it to be that fragile. My old Cannon camera survived more than a year of almost-daily use and transportation in suitcases, purses and backpacks and suffered only scratches on the body. If I had known the Finepix E900 would be so delicate I would certainly have opted for a more durable model with a better warranty. Now the dilemma is whether to pay for the repairs knowing that it couldnt stand up to what, for me, was normal use, or cut my losses and save up for a different brand.
(Incidentally, Fujifilms customer service both via the website and the phone is average to poor.)
The Finepix E900 seemed like a great camera and I might recommend it for more infrequent use, but if you intend to travel a lot, use it ofen, or expose it to friends, kids, and varied climates, I would look into other brands.
On: 2007-03-10
Like most, Ive owned many cameras over the years - Canons, Fujis and even Polaroid. My favorite was a Fuji.
For digitals, my current stable includes these cameras:
- Canon A520 (4 megapixel) workhorse
- Sony DSC-W7 (7.2MP) - 2.5" viewfinder
The new addition:
- FujiFilm E900 (9MP) - 2" viewfinder
For the work I do, I needed the raw format and 9-10MP and this Fuji E900 camera fits the bill. Originally, I wasnt looking for a point-and-shoot. Was hoping to get a 10MP and RAW which prices you out of the compact camera range into more expensive SLRs. This Fuji fits nicely in between - not quite bleeding edge 10MP but very good and near point-and-shoot size.
NOTE: As others have mentioned, this camera was rated high by Consumer Reports.
Here are my ratings:
Pros
====
- Good ergonomics
- Fast On/off/store
- supports RAW (it really wasnt that hard to find in the menus)
- AA batteries (my Canon, Sony and Fuji all use AA NiMH rechargables)
- Photoshop pulls the raw image right in (its a supported camera)
[...]
Cons
====
- The Fuji E900s 2" view finder a little small (same as my 4MP Canon A520) but this camera *is* a few years old.
- Flimsy camera in terms of plastic quality. Fujis cameras are built to a price though this ones a good value at todays prices. The Sony W7 feels more substantial. The Sony survived a drop of 4 feet onto pavement (same day I bought the E900 - go figure)
- 16MB XD card included cant even fit *ONE* raw image and throws a "card full" immediately after setting the format to "RAW" *before* I even took a picture. I was waiting on a 1GB XD accessory card but geez, not even ONE raw photo out-of-the-box???
- About 1/3 larger than my Sony W7. The Fuji is no longer a "fit in shirt pocket" compact camera but the quality and the higher MP is worth it.
Other cameras looked at:
-Panasonic DMC-FZ50 10.1MP - the one I wanted but too much $$$
-Fujifilm Finepix S9000 9MP - not a compact. Cheaper than Panasonic
-Fujifilm Finepix S9100 9MP - not a compact. " "
-Canon PowerShot A640 10MP - Great specs. Great value. My #2 choice. But no raw mode.
Get the 1GB XD-Picture "H" (high speed) type card - youll need it if you use the maximum 9MP mode and especially if you use RAW - for storing speed. Its worth the extra money if youre shooting RAW. If you dont use RAW, get the slower "M" card and save money.
On: 2007-02-24
This is tough because this camera takes beautiful pictures. And it takes wonderful video. The downloading is easy and in general its a "fine" camera. However....
the flash on it is nothing short of a nightmare. Its constantly over exposing every subject. I find it practically un-usable. The only way I can get the image Im looking for in a lower light setting is to set the ISO to 800. If it had a 1600 ISO I wouldnt need the flash at all practically but it doesnt offer that.
The other thing I dont like that I didnt realize I wouldnt like is that it doesnt have its own cradle in which to charge the batteries. The batteries have to be removed and charged seperately. Doesnt sound like a big deal but it is a pain when you think about it. The batteries lose their charge even when the camera isnt on which results in picking up the camera after 2 days and realizing it has no juice. Intensely dissatisfying.
This camera also has a REALLY LONG DELAY from pushing the button to taking the picture. This results in lots of closed eyes and stupid faces. I know that most digitals have a delay but this one is EPIC.
I am getting ready to sell this camera and buy a Canon. I am a wedding photographer and shoot mostly with my Canon 5D. But since this was rated Camera of the Year by American Photo (a publication I trust implicitly), I decided to stray from my Canon. bad idea. Im going right to a PowerShot. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. I reccommend you do the same.
On: 2007-02-23
This is tough because this camera takes beautiful pictures. And it takes wonderful video. The downloading is easy and in general its a "fine" camera. However....
the flash on it is nothing short of a nightmare. Its constantly over exposing every subject. I find it practically un-usable. The only way I can get the image Im looking for in a lower light setting is to set the ISO to 800. If it had a 1600 ISO I wouldnt need the flash at all practically but it doesnt offer that.
The other thing I dont like that I didnt realize I wouldnt like is that it doesnt have its own cradle in which to charge the batteries. The batteries have to be removed and charged seperately. Doesnt sound like a big deal but it is a pain when you think about it. The batteries lose their charge even when the camera isnt on which results in picking up the camera after 2 days and realizing it has no juice. Intensely dissatisfying.
This camera also has a REALLY LONG DELAY from pushing the button to taking the picture. This results in lots of closed eyes and stupid faces. I know that most digitals have a delay but this one is EPIC.
I am getting ready to sell this camera and buy a Canon. I am a wedding photographer and shoot mostly with my Canon 5D. But since this was rated Camera of the Year by American Photo (a publication I trust implicitly), I decided to stray from my Canon. bad idea. Im going right to a PowerShot. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. I reccommend you do the same.
On: 2007-02-07
In the late 1960s and early 70s, I purchased a nice 35mm SLR and a lot of accessories while in the Navy. Once I got back to the States and re-entered college, I could not afford to take and develop all the pictures anymore, so I sold all my equipment. Recently I have wanted to get back into photography and was intrigued by the point and shoot digital market. The cost of developing prints limited me in my desire to take lots of pictures of a given subject. Plus, I want to do more than just snap photos a family get-togethers. Digital cameras solve these problems and have finally grown up from their toy-like beginnings. Consumer Reports rated this camera as a "Best Buy" for an Advanced Compact. All I can say about this camera is "Wow!"
In addition to the "Auto" point and shoot, the Fujifilm Finepix E900 has modes for natural light, portraits, sports, after dark, plus a Photo mode that lets you change focusing method, photometric method, white balance, flash intensity. It also has functions to allow up to 40 shots in burst mode and auto-bracketing of shots by changing the exposure value (EV) of your shots. You can also work with the shutter speed, apperture setting or just do everything manually. It also does movies up to 30 minutes long on a 1 GByte xD photo card. That is what makes this advanced point and shoot great. I can experiment with a subject and take a hundred shots just to see how the camera responds and then keep all, some, or none of pictures and I have not spent a cent for photo-finishing.
In about 3 weeks, I have taken over 1,100 shots while trying to learn the basics of operation. It is a very easy camera to use. It is forgiving in the Auto mode and most of the other modes also. If you want a camera that does more than point and shoot, then the E900 is a good camera to consider. Sucking the pictures off the camera and into the My Pictures folder your PC is as simple as plugging the camera into a USB port and clicking OK. The software included with the camera does basic editing.
A word of warning, however, buy a large xD memory card when you buy the camera. The camera shipps with a 16 Mb xD-Picture Card that holds about three 9-megapixal pictures! A 1.0 GB xD holds about 200 shots, while a 2.0 GByte xD will hold about 400 shots. You can, of course, crank the quality down to as little as 2-megapixals. Also buy rechargable AA batteries. The E900 will accept regular AA batteries, but the life of two standard alkaline batteries was about 20 shots compared to about 160 with the rechargable ones.
I am still learning the bells and whistles, but thus far, I like what the camera does and how it does it.
On: 2007-02-02
While Ive used other peoples digital cameras before, I never had one of my own until now. Im very happy that I read most of the reviews for the E900 and purchased it. Ive owned and used it since the first of the year and I havent tested all the features yet but I have been very happy with it so far.
On: 2007-02-01
While Ive used other peoples digital cameras before, I never had one of my own until now. Im very happy that I read most of the reviews for the E900 and purchased it. Ive owned and used it since the first of the year and I havent tested all the features yet but I have been very happy with it so far.
On: 2007-01-23
We replaced our 2.1 pixel camera with the E900. Were not experts but, it is easy to use, takes wonderful pictures. It seems to be especially good in low-light conditions without using the flash. If it was more compact, I would give it a five.
On: 2007-01-21
This camera is truely incredible! The pictures really do come out beautiful and it is really easy to use. The only function that I find to be not as superior as the rest is the Macro function. Close up photos do not have the clarity that even cheaper Fujifilm cameras have. Other then that I highly recommend this digital.
On: 2007-01-19
We have a new little four month old baby and so really wanted to get a good camera to take the normal hundreds of pictures parents take of their first baby doing nothing! The picture quality is amazing and we love that we can take short videos-its perfect for the sweet little moments you want to be able to catch in an instant. We did our research before we purchased and this camera was a Consumer Reports Best Buy and a great value for the money. We would recommend it to anyone.
On: 2007-01-18
We have a new little four month old baby and so really wanted to get a good camera to take the normal hundreds of pictures parents take of their first baby doing nothing! The picture quality is amazing and we love that we can take short videos-its perfect for the sweet little moments you want to be able to catch in an instant. We did our research before we purchased and this camera was a Consumer Reports Best Buy and a great value for the money. We would recommend it to anyone.
On: 2007-01-10
Id assumed that the E900 would be a slight improvement over the E600, at the very least pulling even. I was surprised at how much improved the E900 is over the E600, a camera that Ive been very satisfied with. Performance: point & shoot capability much improved, especially in low light conditions; less sensitive to shake, remarkable improvement in movie mode sharpness and in low light. Convenience: tether on outlet cover; no longer have to go through menu for multiple shot and preview, display is "sticky". Nit-picks: the I/O ports are reordered, causing an initial confusion between A/V & power ports, A/V & Power ports use the same connector, and the case is marginally cheaper & maybe less robust than the E600.
On: 2007-01-10
This is a great general purpose camera with tons of features. Im still learning how to use the advanced features, which come in handy to customize shots. Only complaint is that the settings wheel seems too sensitive, always clicking it off AUTO inadvertantly.
On: 2007-01-09
Id assumed that the E900 would be a slight improvement over the E600, at the very least pulling even. I was surprised at how much improved the E900 is over the E600, a camera that Ive been very satisfied with. Performance: point & shoot capability much improved, especially in low light conditions; less sensitive to shake, remarkable improvement in movie mode sharpness and in low light. Convenience: tether on outlet cover; no longer have to go through menu for multiple shot and preview, display is "sticky". Nit-picks: the I/O ports are reordered, causing an initial confusion between A/V & power ports, A/V & Power ports use the same connector, and the case is marginally cheaper & maybe less robust than the E600.
On: 2007-01-09
This is a great general purpose camera with tons of features. Im still learning how to use the advanced features, which come in handy to customize shots. Only complaint is that the settings wheel seems too sensitive, always clicking it off AUTO inadvertantly.
On: 2007-01-05
This is my 3rd digital camera. I love the size of this camera - easy to put in my purse for travel. I bought a 1 GB memory card right away...the one it comes with has almost no memory. It is easy to use and the price was nice.
On: 2007-01-04
I had a fujifilm camera I bought several years ago and the ccd chip went bad so I had to get another camera (would have been over $200 to fix). I wanted another fujifilm so I could continue to use the xd cards I already paid a lot of $ for. I love the ease of use of this camera and that it doesnt eat batteries like my old one did and also the new one retains the date/time info when removing and replacing batteries. My old one didnt do that and it was a pain! A good looking, comfortable to hold, great quality buy.
On: 2007-01-03
A great deal for the pro-am photographer, this camera does it in full auto mode, but lets you take pics with numerous manual settings, and best of all, it supports RAW images. Get the biggest card you can, the RAW images are roughly 19 MB, but you can downsize them without loss with Adobes free DNG converter. With the latest plug-ins, Adobes Photoshop CS2 and Photoshop Elements will open Fujis RAW format natively. In all, Im glad I found this model, its just what I needed: size, manipulation, and RAW ability.
On: 2006-12-27
Prior owner of 4 Kodak, Olympus, and Fugi Finepix digital cameras. Its been said that there is not perfect digital camera. Im close to saying this is a perfect camera. I love the digital movie feature as it will pick up sound well and will run as long as you have room on your digital card. A 1 gig card will yield 14 minutes. Filmed my daughters graduation from the second level of a gym and had very acceptible results. I shot indoor Christmas photos with the Natural" setting (no flash by default) and the results were beautiful. Fits in your pocket. Not the ultra slim type of camera , but it slides in my front pock with ease. I have been using this camera for 8 months now and feel qualified to leave buyers a review they can be sure of.
On: 2006-12-27
First off... I have had the Fuji Finepix F150, 5 meg pixel camera, it took very dark pictures! Even with flash, I tired to correct using different exposure settings with no avail! You can see by the example pictures taken by this Finepix E900 they are not colorful, lack of detail, all sightly out of focus and dark outside too. The only difference between the two cameras is the 9 mega pixel...it might as well be 100 mega pixel for a camera that is under standard to Nikon or Canon at about 6 mega pixels. Beware of this camera if you want good quality in focus, great color pictures! I do suggest the Canon line, SD 630 or 600 for about $200 to $250. you will not be disappointed... judge by the pictures ordinary people take! Dont be fooled by other reviews.. seeing is believing!
On: 2006-12-26
First off... I have had the Fuji Finepix F150, 5 meg pixel camera, it took very dark pictures! Even with flash, I tired to correct using different exposure settings with no avail! You can see by the example pictures taken by this Finepix E900 they are not colorful, lack of detail, all sightly out of focus and dark outside too. The only difference between the two cameras is the 9 mega pixel...it might as well be 100 mega pixel for a camera that is under standard to Nikon or Canon at about 6 mega pixels. Beware of this camera if you want good quality in focus, great color pictures! I do suggest the Canon line, SD 630 or 600 for about $200 to $250. you will not be disappointed... judge by the pictures ordinary people take! Dont be fooled by other reviews.. seeing is believing!
On: 2006-12-09
Its not hard to see why Consumer Reports just made the e900 its "Best Buy" among all types of point and shoot digital cameras! This is the camera that makes it possible for users of film SLRs to make the jump to digital and not look back. Less noise than the competing Panasonic Lumix. Resolution that rivals film, but images that have the clarity of digital. Features and functions that wont come up short when used by a serious amateur. Light sensitivity and a dynamic range that impress. Far more portable than a DSLR. Batteries that just wont quit. And a low price (due to an aging product that nonetheless gets the job done). If image quality, ease of use, robust capabilities, value and fun are important to you, buy this camera.
On: 2006-11-16
My fifth Fuji camera. Small compact, great lens and all the controls are in the right place for ease of use. Fuji
has great colors and Ive never had a problem with one. I own a D80 Nikon but I wear this one on my belt all day just in case I need a camera quickly. See my posted shot of a sunrise over frost covered ground with steam rising off of a small pond in the back ground. The 9mp photo of this is unbelievable. I shoot just for fun and this is a fun little camera jam packed with easy to use features.
Thanks, Dwight Elliott in Birmingham Alabama
On: 2006-11-05
Its a great digital camera, 9 pixel internally, and takes up to a 2 Gb card. Simple to use and also lots of settings for even a creative pro like myself, uses 2 AA batteries, lightweight small, and the images are excellent. Im tired of the silver look, and I really like the black color of the body. Very happy with the performance.
On: 2006-11-04
We bought this camera based on reviews found on Amazon, and for the most part, have not been disappointed. Youve probably read the other long reviews, so Ill just summarize what we found to be positives and negatives with this camera:
POSITIVES:
* the ease of point and shoot is amazing.
* the ability to drop out of "point and shoot" mode to other more detailed methods is extensive. Most likely, youll find a mode that works for you.
* the 9MP granularity makes zooming in w/ photo software a snap. Unless you go crazy with post-processing software zooming, youll be fine.
NEGATIVES:
* a little bit too much delay between taking photos when using the flash (sometimes slow between photos without flash, too). Dropping the resultion down from 9MP helps, but then you lose some picture quality.
* no AC adapter is provided - you have to buy one separately. This may cause you headaches if you intend to download photos via USB, which drains power from the transmitting device. (Note that many of the larger cpacity memory cards cannot be read by most existing card reading hardware, so you may need to use the USB cable.)
* Eats AA alkaline batteries like crazy. Yes, you can use disposable batteries, but dont expect more than 6-8 pictures per pair of AAs that you use. The supplied rechargables, on the other hand, are amazing - we got at least 100 photos off of their first charge!
All in all, a camera that has proven to be well worth the money.
On: 2006-11-03
We bought this camera based on reviews found on Amazon, and for the most part, have not been disappointed. Youve probably read the other long reviews, so Ill just summarize what we found to be positives and negatives with this camera:
POSITIVES:
* the ease of point and shoot is amazing.
* the ability to drop out of "point and shoot" mode to other more detailed methods is extensive. Most likely, youll find a mode that works for you.
* the 9MP granularity makes zooming in w/ photo software a snap. Unless you go crazy with post-processing software zooming, youll be fine.
NEGATIVES:
* a little bit too much delay between taking photos when using the flash (sometimes slow between photos without flash, too). Dropping the resultion down from 9MP helps, but then you lose some picture quality.
* no AC adapter is provided - you have to buy one separately. This may cause you headaches if you intend to download photos via USB, which drains power from the transmitting device. (Note that many of the larger cpacity memory cards cannot be read by most existing card reading hardware, so you may need to use the USB cable.)
* Eats AA alkaline batteries like crazy. Yes, you can use disposable batteries, but dont expect more than 6-8 pictures per pair of AAs that you use. The supplied rechargables, on the other hand, are amazing - we got at least 100 photos off of their first charge!
All in all, a camera that has proven to be well worth the money.
On: 2006-10-30
I was considering spending up to $1,000 on a digital SLR, but opted for this 9 megapixel Fuji instead. I made the right choice. Its packed with advanced features that you would expect from an SLR (auto bracketing, choice of auto, aperture priority, shutter priority, or full manual exposure) but its also a great point-and-shoot if you just want to keep it on auto. You have to press a button to make the flash pop up, which I like because it gives me control over when and how I use the flash, but if you want the camera to be completely automatic and idiot-proof then that might be a problem for you. I got the Olympus 1GB memory card because someone told me it is faster than the Fuji 1 MB card, and boy is it ever fast. 1 second or less between frames without the flash, 2-3 seconds or less with the flash and fresh batteries. Great battery life. Only downside of this camera is that, due to a software difference, you cant take the memory card out and insert it into a PictBridge card reader such as the one on my Dell photo printer. But thats no big deal, just use the cord that comes with the camera to plug it into your computer and it works fine.
On: 2006-10-17
I bought this camera bacause at the time I didt want to spend the extra $400 for the Cannon digital 8MP SLR. I wish I had.
With the Fuji900 Ive found that I have to shoot in bursts to help ensure a picture will be in focus. Or, I can use the flash which does a great job of over brightening the subject in the shot. The flash takes way to long to recharge. and most indoor lighting shots, come out out of focus. Ive taken some great shots lwith this amera, dont get me wrong, but its only been with a stroke of luck with the auto focus.
Im quite the amature when it comes to photos, but Ive done a great job in the past with my brother-in laws Cannon 8MP SLR.
On: 2006-09-13
Strengths:
FAST.
OUTSTANDING in low light.
Good semi-wide angle/semi-fast lens.
Great battery type! (especially now that 2700Mah versions are available).
Great ccd and resolution.
Great ergonomics (tall enough to hold yet small enough for your pocket).
Weaknesses:
Menu needs to be straightened out (RAW should be grouped with the jpegs within the F button) and a manual focus button combo would have been great...I hope Fuji is listening! How about a USEFUL RAW utility (or at LEAST the ability to download one from the site!!)??
SLOW flash recycle time
No Autofocus assist light
No Image stabilization
No Programmable settings button.
Lens is only Semi Wide (32mm@f2.8 equivalent to a 35mm camera lens).
Wide angle macro & movie modes only (no telephoto in macro or movie mode)
Max XD Memory card is only just moving to 2GB.
(Should use the Olympus high-speed H-series XD for best movie perf).
No performance/quality probs.
Summary: This is a strong candidate for the serious amateur in need of a point and shoot for backups or vacation...It is also VERY easy to use, for the significant other of that serious amateur.
I studied medium to high-end point&shoots and prosumers for 6 months prior to buying the Fuji E900 in April of 06. While the E900 didnt have everything I wanted, in the end, it was the clear choice. the CCD (and sample image output), a real viewfinder, and the ergonomics were keys to my choice.
High resolution, moderately high level of amateur photographer type functions (read: manual settings, auto bracketing, and RAW), fast focusing, decent flash, macro mode, good low light ability, a mem-card (only) restricted movie mode, compact size, ergonomic shape, quality build, easy to use modes and ultimately, a real viewfinder.
The three finalists in my decision group were the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX1, the Canon S80, and the Fuji E900.
I have to say, the Lumix, with that beautiful Leica lens took some fantastic shots..but my God! does it have a noisy, and I mean NOISY ccd!!!! if you are only shooting indoors with the flash, and you can look the iso to 80, then it will reward you with incredible images! but this is not my reality. I originally had settled on the Lumix but that noisy ccd and a LACK OF A REAL VIEWFINDER (Panasonic are you listening??) were deal killers in the end. The Lumix is just about useless when you are outside in bright light, and with the sun at your back...a viewfinder is really key hear.
Moving to the Canon S80, it has a great lens as well, and does MUCH better with slightly higher iso numbers, but man, that soap bar is bulky! Its dimensions are not at all conducive to actually holding the camera stolidly. I did like the 1024x768 movie mode, but at 15fps the output looks inferior to the regular old 640x480@30fps of the Fuji. The S80 does 640x480 as to, but the ergonomics and weight/mass of the S80 sunk it..but at least it has a REAL VIEWFINDER (Panasonic, are you listening??). The S80 just felt dated. I think its time for Canon to step up with something new in the Point&Shoot department.
The Fuji E900, with the Fujinon lens had the poorest lens quality (IMHO) relative to the extremely high quality of the Canon L series lens on the S80 and that magical Leica lens on the Pani. That said, it is a fine lens that can hold its head high, especially in combination with that great ccd, excellent ergonomics, and a very complete set of features...the Fuji was a better choice for me. It is important to note that I chose this camera over those with image stabilization, and a focus assist ...I found the E900 to be superior to them even though it is not so equipped.
I really like the "Natural" program mode. With the 5th generation SuperHADD the colors are good and the low light capability is REALLY impressive. That mode (Natural) lets you get a lot of battery life out of the camera as it lets you preclude the flash A LOT. Note: the Natural Mode is really noisy so if you want to print anything bigger than 4x6 you should take a look at some sample output first (but keep in mind that getting the shot is better than missing it, even if it means a little more noise).
The 800 iso actually WORKS..sure it is a little noisy at that level...but we ARE talking about a $300 dollar point&shoot! Just amazing...It really is an amazing little camera. Kudos to Fuji for having the stones to stick the SuperHADD from the S9000 into a compact point & shoot! I really hope they evolve this little model more.
I was worried about the majority-plastic construction, but it is solid yet light weight, and so far, no complaints...in fact if it had been made completely of metal it would have probably made it substantially heavier.
The use of double-A (AA) batteries are great for the traveler.
It is important to point out that the gripes really are minor and amazingly fixable...if Fuji wanted to support this "fringe" camera a little more ( it IS so much more than the herd of 38mm-160mm equiv. cams out there). I think they could do a software and firmware update and fix 90% of my gripes. And I should also point out that my gripes are only there because the capabilities and performance of this camera just taunt you to want the whole amateur-shooting match. I mean to say, this cam has all the right parts and it does a damned good job of providing a DSLR user with most of the goodies he or she is accustomed to...while allowing your wife or husband to use it as the point and shoot that most people will use it for.
GRIPES:
I agree with some other reviewers, digging thru the menu to get to the RAW mode is just plain stupid...It belongs above the 9M JPEG setting on the F button!!!
Why couldnt they make the RAW format a lIItle bIt friendlier?? I suspect they hid the RAW mode from ready use because at 18M per pic, you cannot take even a SINGLE shot with only the onboard memory (16M)...which also seems silly.
Also, while the screen power-up button on the back is really handy for reviewing images (the lens stays parked to conserve the batteries), and other housekeeping, but when you try to power the camera back down (in this mode) via the same button...it actually causes a full power up and lens deployment to occur...what were they thinking?
This camera really NEEDS a 4G memory card...1G was fine when you were shooting with 2M to 4M sensor sizes, but this baby has a fantastic 9M sensor! It is impressive that Fuji was able to create a very small format sensor with such great performance: low noise; high dynamic range; excellent color; etc...it just begs to be shot in RAW..if if if... :-)
On: 2006-08-23
It is everything and more that I hoped it would be. The pictures are outstanding.
On: 2006-08-17
I was hesitant to purchase a camera without actually seeing it in a store or trying it out. I was very pleased with how easy it was to use immediately out of the box. I havent tried all the bells and whistles on it - just basic pictures and video (I havent had time to read the manual) but Im very happy with the basic camera. The clarity is excellent and the sound is very good. I am disappointed that it is difficult to find a power cord (so far, Ive only found it though Fujifilm on-line) for the camera, so that it saves the batteries when downloading pictures or video.
On: 2006-08-17
When i was finally able to use the images came out with large lines. Then a few pictures later started comming out almost completely white. 400$ camera that doesnt work. Thanks.
On: 2006-08-16
When i was finally able to use the images came out with large lines. Then a few pictures later started comming out almost completely white. 400$ camera that doesnt work. Thanks.
On: 2006-08-04
I bought this camera after reading all the glowing reviews out there. Ive owned Fuis much older technology S2 Pro camera and found it produced wonderful files. I expected less from a point and shoot, but hoped that it would be capable of at least producing "very good" files. In my experience this was not the case. Its very possible that I somehow received a defective unit, but I found the quality of the images to be extemely disappointing. I had the camera back in the box and in the return process within an hour of receiving it. Your mileage may vary...
On: 2006-08-02
I adore this little camera. It has very high resolution (great for large prints, I get sharp A3 prints out of it), very realistic colors (if you want very saturated colors look elsewhere) and low noise (A4 prints at ISO800 look just great). Its wide lens (32mm) and raw format are also nice to have. Highly recommended!
On: 2006-08-01
Ive had a few problems with this camera. First, I have experienced the interlacing problem (when every other line of image data is lost and its overexposed) and had to send the camera back. Obviously this is a design problem. The tech support was great, and once the camera was repaired, its worked great. I have also noticed that the focusing can be slow and takes some time getting the timing right on the shot.
Also, something no one else has mentioned is the fact that you have to manually pop up the flash to get it to auto fire. When Im trying to just point and shoot, and if you arent looking at the lcd (because no data is in the viewfinder), it can be easily overlooked.
At higher ISOs (>200), it gets really noisy so even though you can go to ISO800, its really giving up image quality.
Overall, Im impressed with the image quality but there are some convenience features that are lacking.
On: 2006-08-01
I can highly recommend the Finepix 900e Digital camera. Having taken about 100 images in a variety of settings since buying this camera, Ive yet to test its limits! The only minor complaint I have is the maximum aperture of 8 when shooting landscapes. Sometimes I could use slightly more depth of field.
Aside from that, this is a "pocket 9 megapixel rocket!"
On: 2006-07-31
I can highly recommend the Finepix 900e Digital camera. Having taken about 100 images in a variety of settings since buying this camera, Ive yet to test its limits! The only minor complaint I have is the maximum aperture of 8 when shooting landscapes. Sometimes I could use slightly more depth of field.
Aside from that, this is a "pocket 9 megapixel rocket!"
On: 2006-07-22
I chose this camera as I wanted one with which I could document my artwork in a pixel size that would do it justice. I was amazed that I could actually take photos of fireworks at night!
On: 2006-07-17
I recently purchased this camera based on reviews I read on amazon and elsewhere on the net.
First off, the bads. This model has terrible purple fringing. However, it can be minimized, but not eliminated, by not shooting "wide open" (aka with a large aperture=low aperture number). If I am shooting pics outdoors with clouds or a bright sun peeking through the leaves, a smaller aperture significantly minimizes the problem. Youll have to be smart about framing the picture if you dont want to do clean-up in Photoshop.
Next, if youre a fan of RAW shooting mode (and this camera has that capability), the RAW option is buried deep in the menu (some 10 clicks away). The bundled software to manipulate the RAW files is also weak (it only allows you to save into TIFF). Fuji should definitely move the RAW option to the "F" buttons menu and bundle its pro RAW software with the successor to the E900.
The E900s auto shooting mode is also quite noisy. The pictures always come out better using the "P" mode. The "N" or natural mode is surprisingly usable, but use it sparingly because the camera cranks up the ISO and pictures can get noisy as well.
The battery door looks and feels flimsy. I get the feeling that if I press too hard on the batteries the battery door could come loose or, worse, break. The springs pushing against the batteries are too snug.
Now for the goods. The flash is very powerful, especially given its size. I also have a Canon Elan IIe and the flash on the E900 looks and feels more powerful. Impressive!
The E900 takes regular AA batteries, and Fuji bundled very good rechargeables with the E900, along with a travel charger. They did not skimp on that, thankfully.
There is also a tiny (but usable) viewfinder for the old school types (or for those times that the LCD is washed out in bright sunlight).
The menu is intuitive once you get the hang of it. Much more intuitive than the one my now-ancient Sony DSC-P31.
Also, given its 9MP resolution, even aggressively cropped pictures look fantastic. The colors are vibrant and very well saturated.
Theres plenty to like about the E900. Just make sure you know how to avoid purple fringing and you wont be disappointed!
On: 2006-07-15
I just received the latest issue of PC Magazine (Oct 06). The E900 is given one of the highest ratings in this issue. Considering that this is several months after my initial review, I think this shows the camera has stood up under the test of time, at least for digital anythings. Im upgrading to 5 stars, although I dont see how to do that with Amazons interface. The rest here is from my original review:
This is my first digital camera, so call me a newbie (just not to my face - I hate that term), and dont expect a high-level review here. I have no connection to the photography/image industry other than eyeballs and a credit card. I bought this camera based on published recommendations, including Consumer Reports (a best buy), some other professional sources, and a consensus of opinions on Amazon. The CR probably had the most impact, since vested interests can write an Amazon review, and most magazines/web sites dedicated to photography and computers change their recommendations in the time it takes to snap a shutter or revise ad rates. I notice that most of the criticisms of the camera are from people who had hardware problems with it. A review is one good outlet for frustrations, so its useful to read them, but dont let the stars influence everything. I have also found that reviews can be a good source for technical support. They may walk you through a problem you otherwise would have to research (gasp!) or experiment (oh no!) to solve. I installed one of those HP all-in-one printers totally with the aid of Amazons reviewers.
I like the large pixel capacity, the non-proprietary batteries (rechargeable AAs! with charger included), and the magnification choices, among other things. It connected perfectly to my computer - it registered as an additional drive, and I treat it like a flash drive (which it is), copying and deleting the images straight off of it. I installed the software, but I really havent used it much, and I dont think you need it at all. In my book, the fewer the software hoops, the better. Im sure there are some things that are easier to do with the software than without it, but the point is you can use it without a lot of installation. I bought the 1 Gb memory card, a size which is fairly recent, and its like having a gluttons dream come true.
So far, the photos (my wife, her cat, my yard) in daylight and at night have been good. Nobody has offered me any money for them (the photos), but thats probably not the cameras fault. The disadvantage of the batteries is that they are large and significantly increase the volume, making this camera too big to be a pocket device (unless you want to impress Mae West). And, as others observe, there is a boatload of features - almost as many as on my wristwatch. A sizeable, well-written, manual comes with it, and you should get some CEUs for studying it.
On: 2006-06-22
I just received this camera from Amazon. Did a great amount of research, read reviews, etc. I am having the same problems that were posted on a review on 19 June 06. Unfortunately, that one was posted after I purchased the camera.
There are lines through EVERY picture I have taken except for the ones I took outside on this overcast, cloudy day. They are so overexposed all I see is white light. I cant even tell what the picture is by looking at it. AUUGH! After reading so many glowing reviews, I can only conclude that theres a defective batch out there, Amazon has em , and lucky me, I got one.
Now onward to the joy of returns, renewed research, and swallowing my disappointment.
On: 2006-06-19
I went searching for a new digital camera to replace my Canon S30 I had purchased several years ago. My Canon was having some underexposure and shutter lag problems so I was looking for a new camera that would hopefully help with these issues. I was particularly interested in being able to take pictures that were not underexposed and took well in low lighting. I did some extensive research and found myself looking in my MacWorld magazine at digital camera reviews to help me narrow down my selection.
In the June 2006 issue, MacWorld reviewer Richard Baguley, posted a glowing review of the Fujifilm Finepix E900 9MP Digital Camera - giving it a whopping four mice rating (out of five possible), which is very good considering they seem to give very few digital cameras that high of a rating. One if the biggest sellers for me was reading the following stated by Mr. Baguley in the article, "This camera produces very attractive images, with vivid yet accurate colors and exposures in a variety of lighting situations; the camera coped with daylight and studio setups equally well. Images were quite sharp, as well. There was also little evidence of noise at lower ISO settings, although some noise appeared when I bumped the ISO to the maximum of 800." Besides that, I was also sold on the cameras Natural Light setting, which the Fuji website states is "for scenes where flash is undesirable or prohibited". I found many reviews and pictures posted by people that had purchased & used the camera and found that this setting was just what I was looking for because of all my issues with underexposed images I was having with my Canon. I was also impressed by the 4X optical zoom and 9 megapixel setting. I liked as well that it used Ni-MH batteries and two regular double AA batteries could be used in place of the Ni-MH batteries if needed.
I couldnt find very many bad reviews on the camera. The MacWorld reviewer did state a few minimal cons about the camera including a low-resolution LCD, pop-up flash that could be easily damaged, and a few others but I could live with these. I didnt find many other negative reviews from users who purchased the camera and found most to be very positive.
On May 18th, 2006, I purchased the camera with the 4 year additional protection plan, as I have had problems with digital cameras in the past. I also purchased a 512MB memory card for the camera. I was very excited to receive the camera and couldnt wait to begin using it. It arrived about a week later.
I quickly took the camera from the box and was very pleased by the look. I liked the black slick case and the camera felt fairly sturdy to me, which hopefully meant it would last a long time. I liked how quickly it turned on when pressing the on button. I immediately took a few pictures with the camera. It seemed to work very well and I was pleased. I found that keeping the camera on a 9MP picture setting however filled the memory card fairly quickly so I lowered the megapixel down to 3, which was suitable for the pictures I wanted to take. I was very impressed by the zoom on the camera as well.
I found the shutter speed to be fairly fast. I would like it to be somewhat faster but it does the job.
One feature I wasnt so impressed with was the pop-up flash. I did read and know it came with a pop-up flash but I didnt realize how annoying it would be to actually use. I quickly realized how much I missed the automatic flash on my previous camera. The E900 does tell you when the flash is needed and you hit a button and it pops up, but you manually have to put it back down when you are finished and pop it back up when you need it again. It could be time-consuming having to do this especially if you wanted to take a quick shot of something. The flash also popped-up while in my case and could have easily gotten damaged from this happening.
I did notice right away that all the pictures, even those without using the flash, seemed to be overexposed. I first thought it was just my error and kept taking pictures but noticed almost every picture I took was slightly overexposed. When I did use the flash, I found it gave off A LOT of light - way more light than any other digital camera I had ever used. I actually kind of liked this at first because my last camera did have the underexposed picture problem however I quickly discovered that using the flash left most of the picture very bright, leaning toward white, and all were overexposed. This issue was disappointing but something I was going to try to work around.
I discovered that taking close up pictures using the "tulip button" (as I like to call it) or micro setting did work however my camera would not allow me to zoom in or out when set on the micro setting, which was very disappointing. I take many pictures on this setting and need to zoom in/out on them frequently.
I found the settings to be somewhat confusing to figure out. I mainly take pictures on Auto mode however so didnt worry much about it.
One issue I did notice right away was that if you want to turn off the LCD display to save battery life and take pictures through the viewfinder only, you need to keep turning off the LCD every time you turn the camera back on as it does not remember the setting. I found this rather upsetting as I like to take pictures quickly and turn the camera on & off rather frequently.
The LCD screen is fairly small especially considering how large they are on newer digital cameras. This really didnt bother me much however as I am used to a smaller LCD.
The batteries seem to last quite a long time even using the LCD. I was impressed that I didnt have to charge them frequently. It does take quite some time (several hours) to charge them so you do want to have a spare around if needed. The camera also has a feature to de-charge the batteries if you are having problems with them, which I found very nice. It does take a long time to do this however - I tried it once and it took several hours.
I found when I put the camera in my case that the knob to change settings would frequently flip to another setting. I usually have it set on auto and found when I took it out of the case it had been set on the natural light or another setting. Its good thing to check this before taking pictures.
I did have some issues with pictures coming out blurry. With my past Canon, I didnt have many issues with blurriness however I found that almost every time I used this camera I would get at least 2-3 blurry pictures a time. I found myself taking multiple pictures of each shot in hopes one would turn out without the blur.
After using the camera just a few times I noticed some of the pictures I had taken turned out very poorly. They had a lot of noise and lines running through them. I tried turning the camera back on and off, different locations, different settings, but no matter what I did I still had the same problem. Hoping it was battery failure, I uncharged the batteries and recharged them again which seemed to fix the problem.
The camera worked fine for a few days and then I took the camera to the park to take some pictures of my son. It was a bright & very sunny day and I thought it would a perfect day to use my new camera. I turned the camera on and noticed immediately something was wrong with the LCD display. The LCD was almost completely whited out from the sun. I could hardly see any images through the LCD. In fact it was so bright, it hurt my eyes to look at it. With the previous digital cameras Ive had in the past I have never had any problems like this before. I figured maybe it was just the sun and tried taking a picture. I snapped a few pictures and they turned our horrible. The pictures looked exactly like the LCD display - they were all whited out & severely overexposed. I tried holding my hand over the camera to block out some of the sunlight to see if that would help but it didnt. After taking a few more pictures the line problem I was having earlier also returned.
I then went back in the car, out of the sun, and took a few pictures which turned out fine, without the lines. After taking the camera home, I took another shot where the lines appeared in the image again.
Some feel that it must be my error that the camera took such bad pictures. People say they think I somehow switched the settings accidentally but I didnt. I talked with a camera expert and followed all of their instructions trying to get the camera to work correctly again but nothing worked. I made sure all the settings were set correctly and the camera still did not take pictures correctly. I finally just took it back to the store (Best Buy) where they attempted to fix the camera. They tried replacing the memory card and then took pictures but they all turned out "green" as the person who was helping me said "with lines through them." Luckily they gave me my money back and I have purchased a Canon S2 IS which I am very happy with instead.
On: 2006-06-11
I purchased this camera, a card, and a card reader. I initially had difficulty connecting the camera to my computer, and when I finally was able (using a usb cable and not the card reader)discovered a bunch of corrupted data. I thought it must be the card. I replaced the card, things seemed fine for a while, but it recently happened again. I have to assume its the camera, or the provided usb cable. Either way I have no means of transferring files without the fear that Im going to lose pictures of my kids.
On: 2006-05-05
For really serious photography, I use a Nikon D200 with the SB800 flash. But there are some times when I just want a small, lightweight camera in my pocket, and the Fuji E900 is perfect for that. Unlike most point and shoots, the camera comes on almost instantly, and the shutter lag is close to (but not quite equal) an SLR. My biggest complaint is the lack of a hotshoe for a hardwired external flash, so I wouldnt use the E900 indoors where a heavy flash is needed. I actually would only rate the E900 at a 4.5 because of this.
The optics are as crisp as any point and shoot that Ive seen. There is a bit of chromatic abberation, particularly at wide angle, but its not too noticeable in most situations.
A huge plus is that you have full manual control of your exposures if you want to or need to do that. In my opinion, a camera has to have that feature if its to be used for serious photography. But if you just want to point and shoot and have the camera do everything, you can do that too.
Another minor objection is that the camera uses an xD card, so I could use any of the CF or SD cards that I already have. When you buy an xD card, be sure to get an Olympus Type H card, not the slower Type M.
Overall, a really nice little camera, especially for a little over $300.
On: 2006-05-04
For really serious photography, I use a Nikon D200 with the SB800 flash. But there are some times when I just want a small, lightweight camera in my pocket, and the Fuji E900 is perfect for that. Unlike most point and shoots, the camera comes on almost instantly, and the shutter lag is close to (but not quite equal) an SLR. My biggest complaint is the lack of a hotshoe for a hardwired external flash, so I wouldnt use the E900 indoors where a heavy flash is needed. I actually would only rate the E900 at a 4.5 because of this.
The optics are as crisp as any point and shoot that Ive seen. There is a bit of chromatic abberation, particularly at wide angle, but its not too noticeable in most situations.
A huge plus is that you have full manual control of your exposures if you want to or need to do that. In my opinion, a camera has to have that feature if its to be used for serious photography. But if you just want to point and shoot and have the camera do everything, you can do that too.
Another minor objection is that the camera uses an xD card, so I could use any of the CF or SD cards that I already have. When you buy an xD card, be sure to get an Olympus Type H card, not the slower Type M.
Overall, a really nice little camera, especially for a little over $300.
On: 2006-04-09
I confess! I love this camera. And heres some good news from a review in the June 06 MacWorld: the E900 won the "Top Product" award in their review of point-and-shoot digital cameras. The image quality won raves. See page 28. Also there was a review in PC World for July including the E900 in their list of the top 100 products - see page 96. The October 17th PC Magazine on page 47 rates it highly, as well. Just saw that the November 06 Consumer Reports rated the E900 as a "Best Buy" in the advanced compact camera class. As well, the December 06 MacWorld placed it in their Top Products list on page 56. Phew! Im tired already - and there is still one more very favorable review to mention: PC Magazine for December 06 on page 84 placed it in their top five cameras (and the only point and shoot) list. This was in their 2006 best selection. So, you can see, this camera comes highly recommended!
Another thing I just learned after using the E900 is that it not only has an optical viewfinder, but when you look in it when zooming (up to 30X) you see the zoom in the viewfinder as well as on the screen on the back of the unit. I never expected that from an optical viewfinder in a point-and-shoot camera!
Of course, I loved my 1963 VW beetle, too. The connection: theyre both a little homely - but superbly functional. The Fuji Finepix E900 has an acclaimed lens (my shots at F2.8 were unexpectedly sharp), extreme pixel count for a point-and-shoot camera, ease of use on automatic (but the 130 page owners manual is worth reading on a rainy afternoon), 30X total zoom, VGA quality video for up to 15 minutes at 30 fps with sound (with 1GB xD card), total control with Manual, Shutter and Aperture priority, several Auto modes.
The menus are extensive but logical and after a bit become easy to navigate. Manual focus! Flash suppression, too. On a camera that fits in the palm of your hand, easy to carry at the ready with quick startup time. A good accessory: The AC power supply to use while uploading files (frames) to your computer. Bad news to lose power during the process. Just 2 seconds upload time for each 9 Megapixel image.
With the 1 Gigabyte xD card I use, there are over 200 such shots available. For 5 MP, there are over 800 shots! For serious amateurs and professionals this camera has a feature usually found in SLRs: it will produce images in RAW format! This means someone with a powerful image editing software can do more remarkable things with their photos than one can do with JPEG or other formats.
In Picassa, the photo editing software from Google, using the zoom bar allowed amazing magnification from the highest resolution shots whilst retaining sharpness and color. Remember that scene from the film "Blade Runner" with Harrison Ford where he takes a photo and directs his computer to do enormous magnification of the image to help him get a clue? You can nearly do that with this kind of resolution and pixel count.
Hint: for uploading images to blogs, etc., use no more than the 5MP resolution - the site may choke on the higher resolutions. Well, let them eat cake! Youve got a high res camera now, baby!
On: 2006-04-04
After my trusty Olympus D40 Zoom died at the end of a recent vacation, I spent about 30 hours researching a replacement that would offer (a) outstanding image quality, (b) speed, (c) compact size, (d) use standard AA batteries, (e) full manual controls, (f) optical viewfinder. From many (but not all) reviews, it looked like the E900 would satisfy my requirements.
Unfortunately, the E900 that I purchased fell seriously short in two "show stopper" areas - image quality and speed. I have reason to suspect (but was never able to verify) that the unit I purchased was defective, as every image I took had enormous amounts of noise and lack of detail in low-contrast areas of the picture. I tried full-auto, as well as manually adjusting ISO and compression settings to no avail. What leads me to believe my unit was defective is:
(1) I cant imagine any manufacturer releasing a camera that takes pictures as bad as my E900 did
(2) when I took a picture of a subject illuminated by sunlight, the cameras EXIF comments indicated that the flash was required but not used. And yes, this daylight picture had fuzzy details and lots of noise.
Interestingly, of the 6 or so professional reviews of this camera in other sites, one reviewer did indicate problems with "muddied details" that could not be corrected by adjusting ISO or image compression. In that reviewers example picture, blades of grass appeared "watercolored". The unit I purchased was far worse than this, but had similar problems with detail.
The second deal breaker that ultimately had me return this and look for a different model was the speed of the user interface. Granted, this is a 9MP camera, but the speed of image playback, as well as zooming in and out on a picture is just GLACIALLY slow. My 4-year-old 4MP Olympus ran circles around the playback performance, not to mention offering a better user interface.
It is for this reason that I offer my 3-star rating, giving image quality the benefit of the doubt. (If I had rated this camera on image quality I saw, it would have received 1 star!)
Its a shame, because there are lots of things to like about this camera:
- 9MP offers plenty of opportunity to crop and maintain outstanding resolution
- "Natural Light" mode offers ability to take pictures without the harshness of flash
- camera body is extremely well made from mostly metal parts and rubberized grip
- extremely fast startup time and shot-to-shot time
- uses 2 AA batteries
- includes 2500 mAh batteries AND a worldwide travel charger with the camera bundle
- offers full manual controls
- RAW image support (you better have VERY large xD cards for this)
What I didnt care for:
- very poor image quality, muddied details (may have been a problem with my unit)
- no ability to adjust JPEG compression beyond two settings (and the "better" setting was in my opinion too compressed)
- glacially slow playback response and zoom in/out of playback image
- user interface is quirky, and doesnt seem nearly as well thought out and streamlined as competitors (try an Olympus or a Canon and compare)
- uses xD cards, which are only used by Fuji and Olympus so theyre more expensive
- very slow when writing very large files (which would be required for RAW mode); some say this is a problem with xD cards in general
In the end, I took a step back and ended up buying a Canon A540. Unfortunately "only" 6MP, but at least with my Fuji E900, the difference in picture quality was phenomenal (and I have sample images taken at the same time to prove it). And, the Canon has a much more polished user interface, uses standard and high-speed SD media, and is a noticeably smaller camera while still using AA batteries. Its a shame, because I had high hopes for a 9MP compact camera.
On: 2006-03-13
After buying and trying several cameras over the last year, I can finally say that Ive found the right camera for me. Beautiful pictures, fast action -- super-fast start up and minimal shutter lag, solid feel, and excellent zoom picture quality.
Additionally, it uses AA batteries (recommend rechargables), gets plenty of pix out of them and of course, theres 9 megapixels of info to play with.
Ive only been playing for a week or so, but Ive used in low-light restaurant situations, on the streets of New York at night, in the car and sitting on the couch at home all with no flash and the pictures look great. Its not a miracle-worker, but these are the best low-light pix Ive seen.
Daylight and flash pix look amazing. Bright broad daylight pix in the park on Auto mode turned out perfectly balanced. (love the Histogram feature in manual mode for balancing more complex shots - basically a small waveform monitor on the lcd screen. Awesome!)
Manual controls are a bit tough to memorize - focus requires touching two buttons - but what else to do with a point-and-shoot of this size?
But, it HAS all the manual controls - unlike most digital cameras of this size.
Ive tried Olympus, Canon, Nikon, Pentax and even another Fuji. To say I am pleased is an understatement.
Is it perfect? Nope. Eats power. But, better to have more rechargeable AAs than to have to carry around a charger for a dang proprietary battery.
And, Consumer Reports is right, this camera has amazing image quality.
On: 2006-03-04
Ive had my E900 for about a month now. For the price you pay for this camera you can do alot. For beginners like me it takes some playing around to figure out all the manual settings. The cool thing is you can always put it in auto mode or set it to one of the programmed settings as well. Once I figured out how to set the manual setting I realized how great of pictures you can get out of this camera. One thing I really wanted was a camera that you didnt have to wait on. It takes less than 2 seconds on startup and only a couple seconds for the flash between shots. The 4X zoom isnt exactly impressive but the 9MP image quality makes up for that so you can always crop your photos and still get nice close ups. Battery life is pretty good compared to most cameras Ive used. The video quality is even better then what I was expecting. With a 1GB card you can get 15 minutes of video on the highest setting. Like I said for the price you cant go wrong. This is a nice looking camera with alot of bang!
On: 2006-03-03
Ive had my E900 for about a month now. For the price you pay for this camera you can do alot. For beginners like me it takes some playing around to figure out all the manual settings. The cool thing is you can always put it in auto mode or set it to one of the programmed settings as well. Once I figured out how to set the manual setting I realized how great of pictures you can get out of this camera. One thing I really wanted was a camera that you didnt have to wait on. It takes less than 2 seconds on startup and only a couple seconds for the flash between shots. The 4X zoom isnt exactly impressive but the 9MP image quality makes up for that so you can always crop your photos and still get nice close ups. Battery life is pretty good compared to most cameras Ive used. The video quality is even better then what I was expecting. With a 1GB card you can get 15 minutes of video on the highest setting. Like I said for the price you cant go wrong. This is a nice looking camera with alot of bang!
On: 2006-02-25
So far best camera on the market for the price. Easy to use, great pictures, still will use my 35MM but not nearly as often as I have in the past. The change to the digital and use over time will more then pay for the cost of film and developing.
On: 2006-02-24
So far best camera on the market for the price. Easy to use, great pictures, still will use my 35MM but not nearly as often as I have in the past. The change to the digital and use over time will more then pay for the cost of film and developing.
On: 2006-02-23
We are very pleased with this camera. It is easy to handle, easy to learn to use, and takes beautiful pictures. We like the feature of being able to use different pixels.
On: 2006-01-23
I bought this camera to take with me when going skiing. Its small enough that it fits in my pocket. The 9MP resolution is awesome.
I like the fact that it uses AA batteries. I can buy batteries anywhere in a pinch. It comes with two 2500mh batteries. Thats the highest power right now. I ended up buying a couple of more batteries to have as sapres with me.
A lot of the reviews in other sites complain about the crappy RAW converter than comes included. Well, I have good news (no, I didnt save money on my car insurance) Adobe Photoshop CS2 now supports the E900. Just download the latest version of the plug in.
I was using a Sony DSC-150. The E900 is a big improvement. I love the manual controls. I thought the manual pop up flash would be a pain, but its ok. It doesnt bother me at all. Theres even an optical viewfinder if you want one. I also have not experienced any problems with the LCD in sunny conditions.
I do wish it had a bigger screen.
On: 2006-01-22
I bought this camera to take with me when going skiing. Its small enough that it fits in my pocket. The 9MP resolution is awesome.
I like the fact that it uses AA batteries. I can buy batteries anywhere in a pinch. It comes with two 2500mh batteries. Thats the highest power right now. I ended up buying a couple of more batteries to have as sapres with me.
A lot of the reviews in other sites complain about the crappy RAW converter than comes included. Well, I have good news (no, I didnt save money on my car insurance) Adobe Photoshop CS2 now supports the E900. Just download the latest version of the plug in.
I was using a Sony DSC-150. The E900 is a big improvement. I love the manual controls. I thought the manual pop up flash would be a pain, but its ok. It doesnt bother me at all. Theres even an optical viewfinder if you want one. I also have not experienced any problems with the LCD in sunny conditions.
I do wish it had a bigger screen.
On: 2005-12-19
After purchasing then returning the Fuji Z1 in one weeks time, we ended up with the E900. It was just a tad bit larger than the Z1, more pricey, however, it had more options if you want/need them, or easy enough for point-and-shoot.
I tested it with many options, and have found that you do need to keep it in the 9mp fine picture quality, vs. just the 9mp normal. You lose too much quality.
I previously owned the Finepix 2800 and absolutely loved the pics, but just couldnt blow them up too much, so I needed to upgrade. I almost cried at the thought of having sold my finepix 2800 when I first had purchased the Z1. Were pleased with the E900, and I would recommend it for many reasons.
On: 2005-12-04
Ive had problems with my e900. The zoom locked up and gave a zoom error. The camera stopped working and fuji refused repair under the warrantee.
On: 2005-12-03
Ive had problems with my e900. The zoom locked up and gave a zoom error. The camera stopped working and fuji refused repair under the warrantee.
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