FUJIFILM FinePix J10 review

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FUJIFILM FinePix J10
S$229
FUJIFILM FINEPIX J10Fujifilm has recently released a brand new "J" Series of compact digital cameras, FinePix J10 and J50. The design criterias for this series are: Affordable, Light-weight, Portability & Performance.
The FinePix J10 incorporates an 8.2 MegaPixel CCD sensor (not Super CCD) into a 19mm thick aluminium alloy body with a bright and clear 2.5” LCD display panel and armed with a 3x Fujinon optical zoom lens (38-113mm 35mm equiv.). It features Fujifilm's Picture Stabilization with ISO 1600 that captures blur-free photos, even in low light or moving subjects even without flash. With 14 different scene modes and movie recording features, it is makes photography fun for everyone. FinePix J10 accepts xD/SD/SD-HC memory cards and uses a Li-ion rechargeable battery. FinePix J10 is available in brushed steel and brushed black steel finish.

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I have been hunting for a budget (less than s$250) compact digital camera for a friend and spent weeks on research, visiting weekly clearance sales and second-hand resale forums. I had these criterias for selection: ease of use, friendly operations, image stabilization, good noise control, uses Li-ion battery, cheap. It seemed impossible to find one brand new camera with these specs and fit within my budget. But I found the Fujifilm FinePix J10 fitting the bill perfectly! However, this recently launched (April 08 in SG) "J" series of compact digital cameras are less popular and lacked proper online reviews with tests. I believe that this model lacking the renowned Fujfilm's "Super CCD" sensor, failed to interest camera reviewers. Nevertheless, I decided to check out this model itself and was IMMEDIATELY SOLD by its FANTASTIC noise control! I pondered no more and was certain the FinePix J10 to be the one!
Here is a mini-review for anyone who may be interested in the cheap and good FinePix J10 and yet found an online review.

FinePix J10 Gallery












Specifications

Sensor
8.2 million pixels 1/2.5-inch CCD sensor
Storage media
Internal memory (Approx. 8MB)
xD-Picture Card™ (16MB - 2GB) SD/SDHC memory card
Number of recorded pixels
Still image: 3,264x2,448 (8M) / 3,264x2,176 (3:2) / 2,304x1,728 / 1,600x1,200 / 640x480
Lens
Fujinon 3x Optical zoom lens, F2.8 - F5.6
Lens focal length
f=6.2mm - 18.6mm, Equivalent to 35 - 113mm on a 35mm camera
Digital zoom
Approx. 5.1x
Aperture
F2.8 - F5.6 (Wide) / F5.2 - F10.4 (Telephoto)
Focus distance
Normal: Approx. 40cm / 1.3ft. to infinity
Macro: Wide angle : Approx. 15cm / 6in. to 40cm / 1.3ft.
Telephoto angle : Approx. 40cm / 1.3ft. to 80cm / 2.6ft.
Sensitivity
AUTO / Equivalent to ISO64 / 100 / 200 / 400 / 800 / 1600 (Standard Output Sensitivity)
Exposure control
TTL 256-zones metering
Exposure mode
Programmed AE
Shooting modes
Mode dial: Auto, Manual, Picture Stabilization (Anti-blur), Movie
SP: Natural Light, Baby, Portrait, Landscape, Sport, Night, Beach, Snow, Fireworks, Sunset, Flower, Party, Museum, Text
Shutter speed
8 sec. to 1/2000 sec. (depends on exposure)
Continuous shooting
Top-3
Focus
AUTO focus (Center)
White balance
Automatic scene recognition, Preset (Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light (Daylight), Fluorescent light (Warm White), Fluorescent light (Cool White), Incandescent light)
Self-timer
Approx. 10sec. / 2sec. delay
Flash
Auto flash
Flash mode
Auto, Red-eye Reduction, Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Slow Synchro
LCD monitor
2.5 inch, 153,000 dots , Amorphous silicon TFT color LCD monitor, Approx. 96% coverage
Movie recording
640 x 480,320 x 240 pixels, 30 frames/sec. With monaural sound
* Zoom function cannot be used during movie recording
Photography functions
Best framing, Frame No. memory
Playback functions
Slide show, Trimming, Single frame, Multi-frame playback, Sorting by date, Image rotate
Video output
NTSC / PAL selectable
Digital input / output
USB 2.0(High-speed)
Power source
NP-45 Li-ion battery (included)
Dimensions
91.0(W)x55.0(H)x22.0(D)*4 mm / 3.8(W)x2.2(H)x0.9(D)*4 in. (excluding accessories and attachments)
Weight
Approx. 110g / 3.9oz. (excluding accessories, batteries and memory card)

Tests
Some basic tests done with the FinePix J10.
Click on images to enlarge full-resolution images.

TEST #1
ISO 64 - ISO1600 (Wide 38mm)

TEST #2
ISO 64 - ISO 1600 (Telephoto 113mm)

TEST #3
Flash
Left: Auto Flash, Right: Syncronized Flash

TEST #4
Macro mode
Left: 100% crops at ISO 64 (on tripod) & ISO 1600 (handheld)
Right: 100% crop at ISO 64

TEST #5
Picture Stabilization using handheld
Left: Manual mode at ISO 400
Right: Picture Stabilization mode, auto set to ISO 1600
Bottom: 100% crops compare with FinePix F50fd at ISO 1600

TEST #6
Night mode


TEST #7
5-secs Saving Buffer

In the Hands


Verdict
After trying our different clearance models from other popular brands, I found the noise levels at ISO 1600 were horrifying and rather unsuable, even when resized smaller and view on the LCD display. However, the Fujifilm FinePix J10 surprised me when it faired incredibly well at ISO 1600 with very usable images, despite the lack of a FujiFilm Super CCD sensor! I was immediately sold and paid its promotional price at S$229. I managed to get a third party spare battery rated at a higher capacity of 1350mAh compared to the original 740mAh, giving more juice for trigger-happy shooters. The spare battery is labelled as Nikon EN-EL10, but is compatible with FujiFilm FinePix J10. I got a really ugly proprietary FujiFilm PVC case with strap and a 2GB SD card.The small camera body feels very light and plastic-like, but is a bonus for those who wants to pocket them anywhere they go. Being able to accept the cheaper and popular SD/SDHC cards is another bonus.

In terms of performance, I was stunned that it faired surprisingly close to my FujiFilm FinePix F50fd (with Super CCD) at controlling the noise levels (as shown in TEST #5). TEST #1 and TEST #2 shows how well the FinePix J10 controls the noise. The macro is not something to shout about, since it can only go up close to 15cm but quality is well preserved even at highest ISO (as shown in TEST #4). TEST #5 shows that ISO 1600 is very usable at reducing blur and looks very good when resized (in this case 800 x 600). The night shots are rather decent and limited to maximum of 8 seconds (as shown in TEST #6). TEST #7 demonstrates the slow saving buffer when using a 1x speed SD card, as it takes 5 seconds to save before it allows user to shoot again, despite setting a compulsary image review to a minimum of 1.5 second. The speed could possibly be improved with the use of higher speed cards.

All in all, I think this budget FujiFilm FinePix J10 is a very decent model for its price. It fits my selection criteria perfectly and is definitely adequate for my friend, Nicole's use to shoot her adorable baby. I am glad I found her a good camera that is not too heavy for her pockets. Nothing beats a smile at the end of the day from a satisfied friend!


DISCLAIMER
Please respect the copyrights of the photographs and content in this post. Please support my work by linking back to this post via this address: http://mybearbrick.blogspot.com/2008/05/fujifilm-finepix-j10-review.html
This is an individual and independent user review, for more information on the official product, please refer to: http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/j/finepix_j10/index.html

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Comments

neoconvoy said…
bro, what do you mean by "100% crop" ? I seen it on review sites, but not sure what it means.

do you have a recommendation for something similar, but a better macro feature (less than 5cm) ?
5:14 PM
WILLIAM TAN said…
hi ted,
"100% crop" means you zoom in to view the picture at 100% or 1:1 size or full size,
then you do a crop of that view at 100%.
The idea of "100% crops" is to show you the true quality of the picture at full size/resolution without having you to download the original image which is usually around 3-4MB. Some sites post sample images that are resized to smaller resolutions, and as such originally poor quality images can still look deceivingly good. Hence, only "100% crop" images show you the real quality.

The FujiFilm FinePix J10 is not fabulous at MACROs. Currently only SONY CYBERSHOTs are capable of MACRO less than 5cm. SONY call them "SUPER MACRO".
12:14 AM
Anonymous said…
Thanks for taking the time to do this review. You are correct that even now "June" very few reviews have been done.

I'm heading off on a vacation and don't want to carry my big Lumix or Sony Camcorder. The size, decent pix quality, and VGA @ 30fps is what interests me.

Your tip on the higher capacity battery is really great!

Thanks,
William(also)
9:49 PM
Anonymous said…
Hi, I found your blog while searching for reviews of Fujifilm J10. From your mini review, I know this is exactly what I want. Just bought it yesterday. Had made some testing, which is quite ok. Can't wait to bring it to share with my friends. Cheers~~ Tin
9:48 AM
WILLIAM TAN said…
Hi William and Tin,
I am glad you guys found this mini-review useful, especially due to the lack of a proper review for this new budget camera.

Anyway I need some comments from you guys.
How long is the time needed to save the picture after the shot, when using a high speed SD card?
I tested only using a slow 1X SD card.

Thanks.
10:50 AM
nahsiep said…
Hi,

Chanced upon your review while looking for a user friendly digicam. This looks like one that is of a pretty good quality, but I have a few queries which I hope you would kindly answer.

Did you take the night mode picture with a tripod or handheld? i am aware that certain cameras have very low night mode stability and my night mode pictures will mostly turn out with light "leakage" if you know what I mean. =)

How about the manual mode? can you actually adjust the exposure of the flash?

And one last thing, the battery life. Do you have any idea how many pictures it can take approx before it dies?

Thank you so much. =) greatly appreciated.
4:44 PM
WILLIAM TAN said…
Hi nahsiep,

the night shot is taken from a tripod.
The only way to shoot this scene without tripod is via ISO1600, which might still be quite a challenge for the shaky hands.

there is no way to control the flash level, apart from using Suppressed Flash instead of Flash.

I have not tried the battery life,
but definitely better than F50fd or F100fd's 230 (CIPA standards).
6:06 PM
r4i software said…
I just bought this camera. the picture quality is excellent. the video quality isnt as great and i have seen better, but on a $300 camera. but it does the job.
6:30 PM
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