Model Design / Appearance (Advantage: Panasonic FZ30)
Both the FZ30 and the S9000 count as “SLR-like” cameras, with wide, flat backs, viewfinder humps, long lens assemblies and thick grips for the user's right hand. There's a small world of variation, given those basics, however. The FZ30 looks fancier, with a thicker lens housing. The FZ30's lens zooms and focuses internally, so it feels more solid than the S9000's smaller lens, which telescopes out as it's zoomed and focused. The FZ30 is definitely the more attractive, solidly-constructed camera.
Handling (Advantage: Panasonic FZ30)
It's great that the S9000 and the FZ30 have conventional zoom and focus rings on the lens barrels. They're much better than the rocker switches on many compact cameras. The zoom rings are really mechanical, so they don't have the speed or backlash problems that rocker switches have. The focus rings are less useful, because the manual focus provisions on the cameras depend on electronic displays, which impose a time lag and don't snap into focus the way optical systems do.
The FZ30 has an advantage with two control dials, which speeds up manual settings. It's an SLR-like configuration. In general, the cameras handle best when they are most like SLRs. The S9000's exposure compensation control works just like many entry-level DSLRs’ – the camera has a button near the shutter release to hold down while turning the control dial. The FZ30 is slower, relying on the 4-way controller, which inclines the user to take their hand off the grip and their finger away from the shutter release. On the other hand, the FZ30's compensation scale is marked in 1/3 EV increments, while the S9000's is completely unmarked – it's simply a straight line.
Both cameras are slow. They have significantly worse shutter lag than we see in DSLRs and even in some other compact cameras. Perhaps worse, the viewfinder displays have slight delays, making it a little disorienting to pivot the cameras from horizontal to vertical. One has to pause for the cameras to catch up when panning. We also noticed a lag in the exposure controls on the FZ30 – it took a moment for an exposure compensation adjustment to register. The first few times it happened, we wondered if we hadn't hit the button firmly, and gave it another tap only to find that we had overshot our mark.
The FZ30's larger controls, including the pair of control dials, give it an advantage in handling. The large control rings on the lens feel more solid than the S9000's. In part, that's because of the internal focus design of the FZ30's lens – with a fixed length, it can be built more solidly.
Front (Advantage: Panasonic FZ30)
Both the FZ30 and the S9000 seem to be all lens when viewed from the front. The FZ30 features a front control dial in the hand grip for exposure control. The S9000 has a PC terminal for synchronizing manual flashes. The S9000's viewfinder/flash hump sits higher over the lens than the FZ30's, and the S9000's focus assist light is a large, bulbous assembly, giving the camera a more cluttered look than the FZ30.
Both cameras' lenses have conventional zoom rings, which makes it easy to set the focal length quickly and accurately. The arrangement is much better than the motorized zooms on many compact cameras.
The FZ30's focus and zoom rings are more solid and more comfortable – they are the most significant of several build-quality advantages that the Panasonic has over the Fujifilm S9000.
Back (Advantage: Fujifilm S9000)
The FZ30's larger LCD (2 inches vs. the S9000's 1.8 inches) dominates the camera's back, while the S9000's LCD looks undersized. The S9000's viewfinder eyepiece has a large eyecup, making it look bigger than the FZ30's though they are the same size. The FZ30's eyepiece is elongated to accommodate the camera's 16:9 shooting mode, a feature the S9000 lacks.
The S9000 buttons follow the Fujifilm standards, with an “F” button bringing up a menu for image size, ISO and color mode, as well as a “Back” button for menu navigation. The S9000 has a dedicated, external switch for setting the metering pattern: a ring surrounding the AE lock button. The FZ30 allows access to those features, but only through its menus.
The FZ30's 4-way controller lacks a central “OK” button, but each of its 4 quadrants brings up a separate, secondary function when the controller isn't handling navigation. The controls are exposure compensation, flash, image review, and the self timer. The S9000's 4-way controller buttons can magnify the display image, but it does not offer other functions beyond navigation.
We find the S9000's controls more comfortable and more logical. Though the FZ30's LCD is better, that's rated in the LCD section, not here.
Sides (Advantage: Fujifilm S9000)
The S9000 and the FZ30 have media card doors on their right sides and interface ports on their left sides. The FZ30's media card door is just large enough to accommodate SD cards, which are relatively small. Unfortunately, it's also flimsy and lacks a dust and moisture seal. Annoyingly, the strap lug is so close to the door that the strap often blocks the door when switching cards. We found the closure mechanism inconvenient and less sure than a latch would be. The user must press the door and slide it back; a move that is harder than it should be because the shallow texture on the door doesn't offer much traction for a thumb.
The S9000's media card door is large, because the camera accepts both CF and xD media cards. Unfortunately, it's not much heavier than the FZ30's door and has an inferior closure – it simply snaps shut. It also lacks environmental seals.
The S9000 has a flexible rubber cap covering its ports, which is more durable and a better environmental seal than the small door on the FZ30, which is the flimsiest, most vulnerable component on either camera.
Designed for prosumer-level users, both cameras should have better, more durable doors, but the S9000 has the advantage. The port door actually seals, and it won't break.
Top (Advantage: Fujifilm S9000)
Both the FZ30 and the S9000 have speaker grills to the right of their viewfinder humps. They feature standard, non-dedicated hot shoes on top of their humps and large mode dials to the right. The S9000's rear control dial sits on top of the camera, overhanging the back in a convenient spot for the user's right thumb, while the FZ30's dial sticks out of the camera’s back.
Buttons on top of the FZ30, near the shutter release, set burst mode and image stabilization mode. Though the Optical Image Stabilization system is a great feature, it doesn't make sense to control it from the top of the camera, because users don't need to change the setting much. Shutting it off when the camera is mounted on a tripod is really the only time we'd fuss with it.
The S9000's top buttons are more sensible. Burst mode, exposure compensation, and flash mode are controls that users change while shooting, and it makes sense to allow the user to access them without moving much from the shooting position. The S9000 gets the nod in this category because of its superior usability.
Bottom (Advantage: Panasonic FZ30)
The FZ30's battery compartment door is controlled with a large pivoting latch. It's the only door on either camera that seems designed to last as long as the optics. The S9000's battery door must be pressed and slid to open, and we expect that the friction fit that makes it tight will gradually loosen up, making the door less secure.
Both cameras feature metal tripod sockets centered under the lenses. They are surrounded by the same hard plastic that makes up the cameras' shells. Users should take care not to scratch the plastic as they mount the cameras on tripods. Fujifilm and Panasonic could have avoided the problem by putting a patch of rubber around the sockets, and we hope they do so on updated cameras.
The FZ30's latching battery door gives it the advantage here.
