Fujifilm FinePix F650

...this wonderful if somewhat dated Fujifilm F650.
When buying a camera, I always look for a good optical zoom,easy navigation menus and a decent sized screen for reviewing and taking pictures.
At the time, the Fujifilm F650 delivered this but 18 months on its fagility and robustness have be called into question.
Design is pretty basic but finished in brushed aluminium and chrome fittings. I say chrome but they are chrome coloured ...
...applies tot he shutter button, the zooming function and even the lens itself.
You will notice that this camera lacks a viewfinder. You need to rely on the huge 3 inch colour screen that dominates the entire camera at the rear for framing your shots prior to taking them. If an optical viewfinder is important, this is not the camera for you.
The Zoom lense is smooth and at 5 x optical zoom, capable of handling almost any shot you can ... more

Prior to purchasing my new Photosmart camera, I used to own this wonderful if somewhat dated Fujifilm F650.
When buying a camera, I always look for a good optical zoom,easy navigation menus and a decent sized screen for reviewing and taking pictures.
At the time, the Fujifilm F650 delivered this but 18 months on its fagility and robustness have be called into question.
Design is pretty basic but finished in brushed aluminium and chrome fittings. I say chrome but they are chrome coloured plastic that does feel a bit lightweight and flimsy. This applies tot he shutter button, the zooming function and even the lens itself.
You will notice that this camera lacks a viewfinder. You need to rely on the huge 3 inch colour screen that dominates the entire camera at the rear for framing your shots prior to taking them. If an optical viewfinder is important, this is not the camera for you.
The Zoom lense is smooth and at 5 x optical zoom, capable of handling almost any shot you can tihnk of within reason.
The rear screen is very large and also very bright. This means it takes a lot of power away fromthe batteries and it is quite hungry on power. Dont worry too much about this though as it comes with a Lithium rechargable battery that can be easily charged en situ.
You have the ability to take pictures up for 6 megapixels in size. However if storage is a concern, these can be scaled down as far as 1 Megapixel if needed. Most people wont do this but the option is there.
Storage is limited to 32Mb of internal space on the camera so more that 5 decent pictures and you are in trouble. However this can be expanded by the XD Card slot up to 1Gb in size. It is a good capacity but not as flexible or extensive as my newer SD card camera.
Picture quality is very good. The images are sharp and clear and take in almost any lighting condition thanks to the bright flash. The colours are also very true in representation.
The drawbacks of this camera is directly related to one of its selling points. The Screen.
Its very hungry on power and as it dominates the rear of the camera, it is easily scratched and damaged. In fact, this is what lead me to buy a new camera. The screen is quite fragile and despite the scratches, it has now cracked. It was cheaper to actually buy a new camera than replace the screen. Another symptom of our throwaway society.

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