Fujifilm FinePix S3000 Zoom

Review Date: 26th April 2004

Features

The Fujifilm FinePix S3000 Zoom has a 3.34 megapixel CCD that delivers 3.24 million recorded pixels. There are 4 image sizes available (2,048 x 1,536, 1,600 x 1,200, 1,280 x 960, 640 x 480), which can be recorded as JPEGs in a range of different quality settings. The camera features a 6X optical zoom lens that is equivalent to a 38–228mm lens on a 35mm format camera. The xD-Picture Card memory card format is supported.

This camera offers two selectable exposure modes - Auto or Manual. The Fujifilm FinePix S3000 Zoom has 2 exposure metering modes, TTL 64-zone metering and Program AE, with exposure compensation available in the Manual exposure mode. There is one type of focusing available and the aperture range is f2.8 to f8.2. Shutter speeds range from 3 seconds to 1/1500 second. The camera has a Macro setting which allows you focus as close as 10cm from your subject.

There is a single ISO speed available (equivalent to IS0 100), except when you use the built-in flash, in which case the ISO range is 100-200 (selected by the camera). There are 7 different White Balance settings to choose from (Automatic, Manual (Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light (Daylight), Fluorescent light (Warm White), Fluorescent light (Cool White), Incandescent light), plus a Custom setting.

The built-in flash offers a range of different modes; Auto, Red-eye Reduction, Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash and Slow Synchro. The effective range is 0.3m to 3.5m.

To compose your images, you can use the LCD monitor or the electronic viewfinder. The Fujifilm FinePix S3000 Zoom has a 1.8 inch colour TFT LCD monitor which has 62,000 pixels. The camera is powered by 4 x AA size alkaline batteries or 4 x Ni-MH rechargeable batteries.

The Fujifilm FinePix S3000 Zoom can record movies at 2 different settings; 320x240 pixels at 10 frames per second and 160x120 pixels at 10 frames per second. Both settings are recorded in the Motion JPEG format and can be played back by QuickTime 3 or later.

The camera's dimensions are 99.7mm (W) x 77.3mm (H) x 69.3mm (D), and it weighs 295g without batteries and storage card fitted.

Finally, the standard box kit contains a 16Mb xD-Picture Card, USB cable, 4 x AA type alkaline batteries, shoulder strap, adapter ring and a CD-ROM containing various software. You will need to invest in a few more xD-Picture Cards to store your images on, as the supplied 16Mb can only store approximately 19 images at the default 3M file quality setting. You will also have to budget for some rechargeable batteries and a recharger, as the supplied alkaline batteries don't last very long.