DSLR functions at a fraction of the price, high quality pictures
Disadvantages:
need to devote some time to learn how to use it's many features .
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
I purchased this camera just over a week ago now, I wanted something that would take "good" pictures and also give me the ease and immediacy of digital.
I have quite a good background in photographic techniques - starting out many years ago with 35mm SLR cameras, developing and printing my own black and white films etc. I then moved onto a basic 2.4 megapixel camera which was good for "snaps" but didn't have the overrides to let you be more creative, and I missed the control of "proper" cameras.
A couple of years later I upgraded to a Fujifilm E550 which was a great compact camera - it had a good quality 6.3 megapixel sensor and full manual but it wasn't really that user-friendly and used to eat batteries which was annoying when it turned itself off just as you lined up the perfect picture!
So a couple of years on and I once again found myself in a position where I wanted to upgrade - this time I decided on a "proper" camera, one which would take high-quality pictures, offer a full (and more importantly, usable) manual / semi-manual options for creative purposes, and also a fully automatic mode for ease of use. It should also have a good zoom, macro and look nice too :)
After some googling I decided a DSLR would be perfect, but unfortunately they are about £300 over my budget! This is where the S9600 steps in - it is somewhere in the middle between a compact digital camera and a DSLR.
It has a huge zoom lens, you can't change the lens, but it's 10.7 zoom (28 - 300 35mm equivalent) should cover 99.9% of situations.
It has a super-macro which focuses 1cm from the lens! This will allow you to get superb close-up pictures.
It's 9.1 megapixel sensor captures fine detail and is able to provide much better pictures than smaller and inferior compact camera sensors.
The buttons are laid out in a sensible spread - in a short time you'll know your way around and be able to let the camera decide the best settings to use or take over to exert your own creative control!
I don't want this review to drone on and on, the specifications are at the top of the page, and I can honestly say it's the best digital camera I've used. If you can afford a Canon DSLR then obviously that will probably be better but bang for buck you cannot knock the Fufi.
Having said that, the S9600 is essentially a one-stop photographic solution (camera body, massive zoom lens) which you would be hard pressed to beat for less than £500 if you were to buy a DSLR. You even get a rather nice flower hood to prevent sun glare spoiling your pics!
Only downside is the fact it eats batteries (get some decent 2700mah rechargables and they will last a lot longer)
I've taken some great pictures and I'm sure I will take lots more with this nice bit of kit.
More details
Durability
Excellent
Reliability
Excellent
Size
Big
Weight
Average
Instruction Manual
Good
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