NEW -fuji F200EXR is out

[telco]

Hello... Need your advice..

I was thinking which camera to camera to get. New Fuji F200EXR or used Nikon D40. Actually I just sold my F100 yesterday to get F200 but when I saw a used Nikon D40 is around the same price, I was so tempted. Now I'm stuck between the 2.

One is the lowest end of all DSLR, one is the king of premium PnS.

I sold my F100 cos I outgrew it. So I thought of F200 as it has more functions to let me play for a longer time. Then again, experts always say even the lowest end of DSLR can beat a highest end PnS.

How?.... Can give me some advice?

-- April

I used to have Lumix FX01 which was infamous during it's time and use to take photos of my newborn.

Thereafter, when he gets older and starts to move more, I will get blur images at about 80% of the time and do not use flash as dun want to irritate his eyes and high ISO was rubbish.

So I changed to Fuji F50fd which was also another hotcakes at that time when it was launched.

Definitely I enjoyed the high iso, up till 800 only max, however I still do get blur images of about 70% of the time esp when my boy moves a lot. So I then tried out the flash (slow synchro) which is very good, it nicely lit up the subject while retain the background. Not like other PNS which will normally blown the subject overly exposed and background is totally black! Video quality is normal and can be jerky and noisy in low-lit situations.

Was using the F50 for quite sometime, about 1yr plus before I switched to Canon 870IS which was another product success at that time. Although it is very clean and sharp up (better than FX01 and F50fd IMO) till ISO400, anything above that is useless except with flash and slow synchro flash was also useless as the shutter speed is set too low and always get blur image. However, the video quality of Canon is nothing but SUPERB!!! It even outshine my JVC videocam man!!!

So no choice as my boy gets older and starts walking and running, I needed something fast and with good quality. So jumped into the DSLR bandwagon and got myself a Sony A300. (Yes, a Sony DSLR which was to my surprise as well as I was initially aiming for Canon 450D or Nikon D90). It's Liveview AF and tilting LCD was the main reason why I chose it.

From there on, I have never regretted my decision and the only regret is having buying DSLR too late which caused me to lose all the good quality pictures which time cannot be reversed now!!! Hit rate is about 80-90% sharp images!!!

I always make it a point to bring my DSLR whenever I have any outings with my family so that all memorable moments are captured in good quality. Of course, as some brothers has mentioned, DSLR route will make you spend more, which I have now 5 lens in dry cabinet...and I dun think it will stop here....:sweat:

In summary, I think Fuji is quite good for a PNS camera, you will certainly enjoy the high ISO capability (of course outbeat by any DSLR), and especially the slow syncro flash (or they call it the intelligent flash) which works well.

I certainly hope they can improve on their video quality (though a bit sad its not HD), as this is the only feature I look for in buying a pns now.

I may sell off my Canon 870IS to get F200 instead....:devil:

I have seen some brothers mentioned before, it's better to get noisy images which can be removed or reduced using PP than to have blur images that are totally useless and opportunity lost!!!

(Apologies for my long winded post, just want to share my true experience)...:angel:

 

[almondaddict]

The DSLR offers picture quality that even the best premium camera (LX3 and F200 included) cannot match. But none of them will fit into your pocket or small bag.
And don't con yourself into thinking a DSLR is "cheaper". That's how I started when I went for th Pentax DSLR which is amongst the best bang-for-buck DSLRs around. After a while, you will be tempted to buy new lenses. Typically a DSLR owner will end up with 3-4 lenses, starting with zoom and moving to primes. Luckily Pentax stuff are premium but cheaper compared with the others but I now have a complete set of primes!
The F200 on the other hand is a PnS which you can bring around anytime and best of all, it can capture videos which is good for the kids or some athletic event.
BTW, why did you "outgrew" you F100? The F200 would just be a slightly better F100.
If the F100 does not satisfy you anymore, chances are you are ready to move to a DSLR...you have to decide which is which.
Cheers

Looking at DSLR pictures even with a D40 was so nice! I think learning aperture and shutters would take me a long time so I was thinking of starting from a very low price used DSLR before switching to higher ones such as D90. I have tried holding D40, it was ok. Not as heavy as I would have thought so.

But my girlfriends were telling me having a DSLR cannot "zi pai" (self-take) unlike PnS. I don't really mind that. DSLR gives much more control.

I'm already using manual mode for F100 and it felt so limited...

Anyway, received many good opinions and learning experience here! Thanks!

 

[iJeff]

But my girlfriends were telling me having a DSLR cannot "zi pai" (self-take) unlike PnS.

Seeing the words "zi pai" reminds me of Edison Chen. May be he should consider getting the F200EXR too. Just set to to "EXR Auto" and shoot to avoid any blurry shots with the high ISO+shutter speed, less noise too. :bsmilie:

 

[armchairsurf]

Looking at DSLR pictures even with a D40 was so nice! I think learning aperture and shutters would take me a long time so I was thinking of starting from a very low price used DSLR before switching to higher ones such as D90. I have tried holding D40, it was ok. Not as heavy as I would have thought so.

But my girlfriends were telling me having a DSLR cannot "zi pai" (self-take) unlike PnS. I don't really mind that. DSLR gives much more control.

I'm already using manual mode for F100 and it felt so limited...

Anyway, received many good opinions and learning experience here! Thanks!

who say cannot zi pai? U just need a strong pair of arms and a wide angle lens...:lovegrin:

 

[almondaddict]

Seeing the words "zi pai" reminds me of Edison Chen. May be he should consider getting the F200EXR too. Just set to to "EXR Auto" and shoot to avoid any blurry shots with the high ISO+shutter speed, less noise too. :bsmilie:

Hahahahahahahhaha!

 

[Lexar]

Seeing the words "zi pai" reminds me of Edison Chen. May be he should consider getting the F200EXR too. Just set to to "EXR Auto" and shoot to avoid any blurry shots with the high ISO+shutter speed, less noise too. :bsmilie:

He should get the E3/E30/E620 for tilting LCD for zipai, high bursting speed somemore to capture all the "flowing" actions....

 

[almondaddict]

He should get the E3/E30/E620 for tilting LCD for zipai, high bursting speed somemore to capture all the "flowing" actions....

Gosh... BTW, can bargain how much at the IT show? Or is it better to get the camera at those recommended places?

 

[armchairsurf]

He should get the E3/E30/E620 for tilting LCD for zipai, high bursting speed somemore to capture all the "flowing" actions....

U people are GOOD...and creative..... should do sales role...:thumbsup:

okok to get back on track... F200 has Manual mode but I dun see much control over it AS aperture only has 3.3 and 9.0... so u will mainly adjust SHUTTER SPEED and ISO niah...

If a person wants full manual... don't think this suits them ley...good for random shooting la. I personally find the AF speed not bad ley...

 

[Lexar]

Gosh... BTW, can bargain how much at the IT show? Or is it better to get the camera at those recommended places?

Hi Gal,

Normally IT Show is not the place to buy cameras with good price. They only give you more freebies which u dun normally use but price is pegged strictly at RRP.

I have gotten my alpha from MScolor during last COMEX after "bargaining" with them as to get a good price without all the unnecessary freebies...

Things like extra memory cards (which is dirt cheap at IT Show of course)....are easily found...

 

[almondaddict]

Hi Gal,

Normally IT Show is not the place to buy cameras with good price. They only give you more freebies which u dun normally use but price is pegged strictly at RRP.

I have gotten my alpha from MScolor during last COMEX after "bargaining" with them as to get a good price without all the unnecessary freebies...

Things like extra memory cards (which is dirt cheap at IT Show of course)....are easily found...

Hi, I'm April. Ok, most probably will go IT show to see and then back to John 3:16. Heard their service is gd. Dun mind paying slightly little for good customer service.

 

[madmacs]

I manage to get a quick look at the comparison pictures between f200 and Panny LX3.

My personal opinion is that the LX 3 still resolves much more details than the f200 at Sn mode @1600.

I am not sure if it is just the settings that this guy used.

F200
http://www.rentmydslr.com/Pics/f200/DSCF0022.JPG

LX3
http://www.rentmydslr.com/Pics/f200/DSCF0022.JPG

you posted the same photo url.... ;p

 

[wheresmycheese]

the price for teh F200EXR is $549 with freebies like 2x 8gb sd cards, screen protector, lousy tripod, etc.

if no freebies $499.

btw, if I buy from mscolor, does it come with sd card?

dude $50 for SD card worth it or nt

 

[lightsabre]

I manage to get a quick look at the comparison pictures between f200 and Panny LX3.

My personal opinion is that the LX 3 still resolves much more details than the f200 at Sn mode @1600.

I am not sure if it is just the settings that this guy used.

F200
http://www.rentmydslr.com/Pics/f200/DSCF0022.JPG

LX3
http://www.rentmydslr.com/Pics/lx3/P1000251.JPG

[EDITED:Sorry I posted the wrong URL previously]
Here are my observations:

1) If you look at the bricks above the lighted word "Colony Dry Cleaners.." you will see that the bricks have a lot of details for LX3 but for F200, the details are blurred

2) If you look at the Visa, Mastercard, etc stickers on the window, you will see that there is still plenty of details in the word VISA for the LX3. For the F200, again everything is blurrred.

But to give the f200 some credits, the grain pattern for the F200 is more film like. For the LX3, you see artifacts which looks digital (JPEG like) on full zoom. This is especially true in the semi-lighted portion of the tarmac.

Updated to the correct links.

 

[airconvent]

Just gotten the F200 EXR just now at MS Color.
Paid $10 more because using credit card. Same goodies as PC Show except the useless mini tripod replaced with a second battery (that is more useful. I have tons of mini-tripods from buying many cameras!). The original battery is only 1000mAH but the second third party battery included is 2500MAH! That must help to silence those complaining of poor battery life from the original battery.

The guy at the shop says the camera selling like hot cakes and today Fujifilm called them to demand to know why they sell at such a low price but I told him most of the their non-big company competitors are selling around that price also.

In anycase, I must say I am not very impressed so far. Image quality on par with my Pentax Optio A30 (which is a previous generation 10MP with 1/1/7" CCD and CCD stabilisation) except the F200 is one stop better in noise. Noise performance of the A30 at ISO 200 is on par with the ISO400 performance of the F200 at 12MP. Otherwise the improvements are minimal. Considering this camera is bigger and much more expensive, the only plus point so far after 1 hr of testing is wider angle lens (28mm vs 35mm), 5X optical zoom
(vs 3x) and slightly better noise performance. Will be doing more tests in the days to come.
As usual, the build quality is great. Hope it does not break down on me after a year. As an owner of 3 previous fuji pNs digital cameras, I know how expensive fuji servicing is. The last time I repaired my V10 due to a defective switch, it cost me $180! :bigeyes: but I went ahead because its still a good camera (Pentax on the other hand has excellent after sales service and reasonable repair cost).

 

[coolsigg]

Hi, I'm April. Ok, most probably will go IT show to see and then back to John 3:16. Heard their service is gd. Dun mind paying slightly little for good customer service.

the price for teh F200EXR is $549 with freebies like 2x 8gb sd cards, screen protector, lousy tripod, etc.

if no freebies $499.

btw, if I buy from mscolor, does it come with sd card?

J316 selling F200 with 1 SD Card (not sure 4GB or 8GB), and case for $470 when I was there just now.

 

[airconvent]

J316 selling F200 with 1 SD Card (not sure 4GB or 8GB), and case for $470 when I was there just now.

That with the spare battery? If not MS Color offer of $479 more worth it as theirs come with 8GB Class 4 SHDC card and 2500mAH spare battery. I suspect AP will match that offer if you ask for it.

 

[coolsigg]

That with the spare battery? If not MS Color offer of $479 more worth it as theirs come with 8GB Class 4 SHDC card and 2500mAH spare battery. I suspect AP will match that offer if you ask for it.

No spare batt bro...MS Color spare batt is 3rd party right?

 

[airconvent]

No spare batt bro...MS Color spare batt is 3rd party right?

yes. brand is DIVIPOWER. But considering how chinese OEM batteries tend to over spec their stuff, I am guessing the actual capacity in real life is closer to 1500mAH instead but that is still higher than the 1000mAH original battery.

 

[wrx_sti_22b]

That with the spare battery? If not MS Color offer of $479 more worth it as theirs come with 8GB Class 4 SHDC card and 2500mAH spare battery. I suspect AP will match that offer if you ask for it.

No need the spare battery lah... Spare battery you can buy from Ebay 3rd party one cheaply (like S$15-S$20 for 2 pcs with shipping) that is similiar to what they will give you.

 

[ptrave]

just as a point of comparison how much is the LX3 selling for now?