Fujifilm FinePix F10 Digital Camera Review

Front (7.5)
The front of the F10 has a brushed silver panel that is slightly raised from the polished metal frame. The brushed silver panel is a sturdy plastic while the polished material and the lens are made of metal. This rectangular digital camera is flat except for a finger grip on the left side. At the apex of the slight lump and acting as the grip is the FinePix logo in polished silver letters. Slightly right of center is the Fujinon zoom lens, which is labeled on the top rim. On the bottom rim, the lens boasts its capabilities: "3x f='8-24mm' 1:2.8-5.0." Below the lens and to the left are the Fujifilm brand logo and two holes, which act as the built-in microphone. To the bottom right of the lens are the words "Digital Camera F10" and a square panel with the Super CCD logo. In the top right corner is the rectangular flash with the self-timer lamp and larger AF assist beam directly beneath it. Beneath the assist beam, the F10 flaunts its pixel count: "6.3 Megapixels," printed in black lettering.

Back(7.5)
The large 2.5-inch LCD screen occupies most of the real estate on the back of the F10. The screen has a glossy black frame with the FinePix logo printed in white at the bottom. The LCD screen is situated more towards the left side, with the controls squished on the far right third of the camera body. In the top right corner is the zoom toggle, which looks like a single oval-shaped bar with a "W" on one end and a "T" on the other. Between the letters is a divot where the thumb can slide and differentiate between the two sides by feel. Below this feature is a circular divot, which looks like a shallow bowl. The top of the bowl overlaps with the toggle, so the thumb can grip or slide upward to easily zoom in or out.

Beneath the divot are two buttons; the left button has a playback icon on it and the right button has the letter "F" on it. This is Fujifilm’s Photo Mode button, which contains most of the exposure controls in a pop-up menu. Above the playback button is an indicator lamp that flashes when the camera is busy reading or writing to the memory card. Below the two buttons is the navigational dial, which consists of a Menu/OK button surrounded by a single ring. The ring has arrows pointing in each direction and an icon to the side to indicate which functions can be activated by pressing in that direction. The top of the dial has graphics of a sun and a trashcan above it to indicate the LCD brightness function and delete function in playback. The right side of the dial has a flash icon next to it; the left side has a flower next to it for the macro mode. The bottom has a self-timer icon. Below the navigational dial and slightly to the left is a small circular button labeled "DISP/BACK" which is used to switch info settings on the LCD screen.

Left Side (7.5)
The left side of the FinePix F10 is flat and void of major features. There is a small rubber cover with small letters on it indicating that it is indeed the cover to the A/V out and DC in jack. The cover protrudes slightly at the top, just enough for it to be pried open with a fingernail.

 
Right Side (7.5)
The right side is flat except for the wrist strap eyelet in the center, which is formed from a rotating polished silver-colored plastic.

Top (8.0)
In line with the camera’s décor, the top of this model is both visually and functionally very simple. A brushed metal panel has the words "Digital Camera FinePix F10" printed on the left side and the power button and shutter release button — surrounded by the mode switch — located on the right side. The self-labeled power button is circular and will not turn on if just tapped. The button must be continuously pressed for a bit less than a half second for the camera to wake up. To the right of the power button is the polished shutter release button, which sits atop the surrounding mode switch. The switch can be turned with a small grip on the right, although it is a little stiff. The mode icons and letters can be seen on the left. From top to bottom, they are "SP" (scene position), "Auto," "M" (manual), and a video camera icon to represent the movie mode.