Fuji FinePix F60fd Digital Camera Review

Fuji FinePix F60fd

Digital Camera Review

Oct 28, 2008 - By Steve Morgenstern
1.9 For a $299 camera, the Fujifilm FinePix F60fd has some intriguing features, including a 12-megapixel sensor, 3-inch LCD, a nicely constructed metal body and aperture- and shutter-priority shooting modes for enhanced exposure control. Lab testing turned up some significant problems, though, including higher-than-expected image noise and positively pokey performance on most speed tests. To see how advanced camera capabilities and real-world performance balance out, read the complete review.  
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Fuji FinePix F60fd

Connectivity
Software (3.00)
The camera comes with version of the FinePixViewer 5.5 program for both Windows and Mac. While there's nothing glaringly wrong with the program, we don't see a good reason to use it instead of the software that came with your computer.  FinePix Viewer offers a few standard views of your photo files, by folder and by calendar, and the editing capabilities are barebones at best, with red-eye correction, manual or automatic adjustment of brightness, saturation, hue and contrast, sepia and black-and-white filters, and some sharpness control, none of which offer much precision.

Jacks, ports, plugs (2.00)
The good news here is that, unlike many small point-and-shoots that place the AV out / USB connector in the same compartment as the battery, Fujfilm provides a convenient jack on the side of the camera, protected by a tight-fitting cover. The bad news is that the jack under that door requires proprietary cables, requiring you to remember them when traveling and making replacement difficult if (no, when) they get lost.
 

Direct Print Options (3.00)
Basic PictBridge functionality, which allows output directly to a USB-connected printer without using a computer, is provided, with the option to choose which picture to print, how many of each and whether or not to imprint the date, but no option for thumbnail photo printing or other advanced functions. DPOF (Digital Print Order Form), which allows you to create a print order file, save it to your memory card and hand it to a print service bureau for output, is supported using the same limited functionaliity.

Battery (5.00)
Fujifilm claims the small NP-50 rechargeable battery will shoot approximately 230 frames with the flash fired every other shot. In our informal testing, we found the actual performance came up short of this standard, but we frequently leave the camera display on while setting up shots, which may account for the discrepancy. A more intriguing electrical peculiarity involves the Power Management choice in the F-Mode menu, which asks you to choose between settings for Power Save, Quick Auto Focus (self-explanatory) and Clear Display, which improves LCD performance. Granted, the battery is not particularly robust, but forcing the user to select either decent auto focus performance or a good-looking display seems mighty peculiar.
 
Memory (6.50)
Olympus and Fujifilm are co-developers and supporters of the xD memory card, which is not our favorite format at this stage of the game: it suffers from smaller capacities and higher prices than the ubiquitous SD and CompactFlash cards. Fortunately, the F60fd will accept both xD and SD cards, in the same slot, no less, which is a praiseworthy decision on Fujfilm's part.


The dual-format memory card slot was an excellent decision.

Other features (5.00)
Image Stabilization – The F60fd offers true sensor-shift image stabilization, a very useful feature on a relatively inexpensive camera. It will also boost ISO settings to allow for increased shutter speeds when required during automated shooting.
 

Natural and Flash - Available directly through the mode dial, this is one of our favorite Fujifilm innovations. Often it's not clear whether there's enough light to capture a sharp photo, so you hem and haw about whether to use flash or not. Setting the Natural Light and Flash mode automatically takes two shots in rapid succession, one with flash, one without. This "shoot first and ask questions later" approach provides no-effort flexibility that proves particularly useful when shooting candids indoors.

Image Parameters Page 11 of 15 Overall Impressions
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