Fuji’s entry level compact digital camera, the Finepix J10, features 3x optical zoom, Lithium Ion battery, 8 megapixel, image stabilisation, face detection and movie mode. Its slim, brushed-metal finish and a large selection of pre-programmed modes make this a true contender in the entry-level-compact market.

Price: 5 out of 5
Ease of use: 4 out of 5
Build Quality: 3 out of 5
Usefulness: 4 out of 5
Overall: 4 out of 5
Total: 20

Pros

• Attractive price
• No AA batteries
• Easy to use
• Good quality for this price point
• Videos are good
• Performs well in high ISO for a camera at this price

Cons

• Plastic rear housing
• No optical image stabilisation

Summary

This little camera is great, no AA batteries to juggle around and the battery life of the Lithium-Ion battery is very reasonable. It is a basic camera: point, press the button, memory captured. People who are on a budget or buying for technology-phobic people should not look elsewhere as this camera does the job decently.

Sample photos:

Review by Edward Hor.

Price: 3 out of 5
Ease of use: 4 out of 5
Build Quality: 4 out of 5
Usefulness: 3 out of 5
Overall: 4 out of 5
Total: 18

The much anticipated and talked about compact digital camera of 2008 amongst photography enthusiasts would have to be the Sigma DP-1, their debut compact digital camera. The DP-1’s Foveon sensor is taken straight from Sigma’s SD14 digital SLR camera and is matched with a fixed 28mm (35mm equiv) f4 lens.

Pros

• The APS-C Foveon sensor, there are only a handful of compact digital cameras on the market that come close to the DP-1’s image quality in all conditions.
• Digital SLR quality in a pocket sized camera.
• Has a hot shoe for an external flash.
• Manual focus dial comes in handy.
• Nice simple design that does not scream “look at me”.
• Lens is sharp (but that doesn’t suprise as Sigma is a lens maker afterall).

Cons

• Not well suited for average-joe low-light happy snaps.
• Aperture controlled via buttons. A dedicated aperture dial would have been better.
• Slow shot-to-shot times.
• Maximum of 800ISO combined with the f4 lens means slow shutter speeds in low light conditions.

Other thoughts
A faster lens like an f2.8 would have helped in low-light conditions. Shot-to-shot times and write speeds could be faster.

Conclusion
This definitely is not a camera for the masses. The enthusiasts who are after quality photos and are willing to sacrifice slow shot-to-shot times will be happy with this camera. It will make for an excellent travelling camera for enthusiasts or professionals who need high-quality photos from a compact camera.

Reviewed by Dean Woodfield.

Price: 4 out of 5
Ease of use: 4 out of 5
Build Quality: 5 out of 5
Usefulness: 4 out of 5
Overall: 4 out of 5
Total: 21

Pros:
Small enough to easily fit into pockets.
Decent enough battery life to easily last a day time of happy snaps.
Reasonable shutter response times make sure the moment is not lost.

Cons:
Will take the user a while to get used to navigating through the menu settings and quickly locating scene settings but over time it shouldn’t be a problem finding your way around the menus.

Other thoughts:
My favourite feature was “Colour Accent Mode”. It allowed me to nominate a colour to retain whilst converting the rest of the colours to black & white. The screen performed reasonable in sunny conditions, still allowing me to use the menus easily.

Conclusion:
As a simple point & shoot, I definitely recommend it!

Full Res. Sample Photos (straight off camera with minimal compression):

“Colour Accent Mode” enabled.