218 of 225 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Stylish little digicam that screams "take me outdoors!", June 1, 2010
This review is from: Fujifilm FinePix XP10 12 MP Waterproof Digital Camera with 5x Optical Zoom and 2.7-Inch LCD (Green) (Electronics)
Length:: 0:33 Mins
The Fujifilm Finepix XP10, newly available in April 2010, is a stylish little ultra-compact camera that invites you to have fun outdoors while taking pictures. It:
- is waterproof to 10 ft. under water, perfect for swimming pools, beach, snorkeling (note: do not use in hot water!)
- is shockproof up to 3 ft., great for jogging, cycling, or even letting your baby learn to take pictures
- is freezeproof down to 14 degrees Fahrenheit (-10 Celsius)
- is dustproof
- has 12.2 effective megapixels
- has 5x optical zoom and features a Fujinon lens for great clarity; lens focal length is 36-180mm in 35mm film camera terms
- takes 720p widescreen, VGA or QVGA video
- can zoom optically in video mode (but see note on audio recording below)
- is really small and weighs just a little over 5 oz. with battery and SDHC card
- uses SDHC memory card, no more xD that was championed by Fuji and Olympus
I bought a green XP10 because I love spending time in the water. I find that, outdoors during the day, the XP10 takes pictures with excellent clarity and excellent color saturation and contrast. Using fill-in flash in daylight truly enhances the picture. Indoors, because the XP10 lacks Fuji's legendary SuperCCD technology, picture quality is average for a compact or super-compact camera. It does have two natural-scene modes where it boosts the ISO (light sensitivity of the image sensor) at the expense of increased noise. I bought my XP10 to be used outdoors, in the pool and at the beach, so I haven't taken many indoor pics.
Video shooting at 720p yields smooth, clear HD video clips. BTW, video size is limited only by the 2GB FAT32 file size limit -- this means even if you pop in a 16GB SDHC card, the longest video clip can only go up to 2GB in file size, due to the limit imposed by the FAT32 file system. Video is recorded as motion JPEG in an AVI container, so it can be played on many, many devices, at the expense of slightly larger file sizes than a more compact format like MPEG-2 or MPEG-4.
While you can zoom optically -- a feature that every digital camera should have -- audio recording's volume level is lowered during zooming. Instead, the camera picks up some noise from the lens mechanism and that noise overwhelms the ambient sounds you want to record, which can be annoying when played back on a large TV. My advise is to use zooming sparingly during video mode. If you want great video recording on a compact digital camera, you should get a Sony or Canon or Panasonic camera (be prepared to pay a lot more for the waterproof feature, though).
Anyway, my sample video clip shows how the camera works under water. The video resolution was set to QVGA (320x240) for easy upload to Amazon, but you should be able to see the amazing clarity both in and out of water.
In summary, the XP10 is a great waterproof, shockproof camera that every water enthusiast should bring along to record fun memories.
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131 of 136 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Touted As Waterproof; Warranty Says Otherwise...., September 11, 2010
This review is from: Fujifilm FinePix XP10 12 MP Waterproof Digital Camera with 5x Optical Zoom and 2.7-Inch LCD (Green) (Electronics)
Took the Fuji XP10 out twice; once camping at Lake Tahoe and again at Kern River. The Fuji functioned well on the first outting, but started developing problems on the latter camping trip: moisture started developing in the lens area, causing photos to appear foggy. The display became disrupted, as the moisture that permeated the camera began to make it's way through the housing.
I sent the Fuji XP10 back to Fuji in hopes of getting it replaced, but received an invoice stating, "Water damage in camera not covered under warranty."
Um, no kidding.
The invoice also requested a payment of approximately $118 for an exchange of the same camera, with $100 of the cost going towards "labor"... Labor for what?!?! That's like buying a new XP10 with a little over a $20 discount over what I paid originally!
What's the point of marketing a "waterproof" camera, when it's not really waterproof and Fuji won't even honor the warranty to make things right? It would serve Fuji well to learn from other companies that unconditionally back the products that they sell, like Pelican Products and Strider Knives. Don't claim your product is waterproof, freezeproof, dustproof, and shockproof, unless you can back your product under warranty. I'm going to pass on Fuji's offer to exchange my camera for the $118 fee, which I can use towards an Olympus Tough camera! ;-)
As clean and compact as the Fuji XP10 appears, I will suggest to potential buyers of this camera to spend the extra money for the Olympus Tough series, which I am now considering. The Olympus Tough series may not be aesthetically pleasing as the Fuji XP10, but, like the AK-47 and Glock, the Olympus will probably work.
Buy the Fuji XP10 at your own risk.
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114 of 120 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Waterproof:Yes;Good Pics: NO, June 23, 2010
This review is from: Fujifilm FinePix XP10 12 MP Waterproof Digital Camera with 5x Optical Zoom and 2.7-Inch LCD (Green) (Electronics)
Just took the new camera on a white water rafting trip down the Grand Canyon. Clearly the camera met the specs for water tightness and shock ability as this type of trip had both. Pictures were of low quality, with little ability to handle a mix of shadows and light. Shutter is slow and unresponsive to the moment. In bright sunshine, or very low evening light, the lack of a view finder rendered most pictures a pure guess. Controls at the top of the camera for on/off and snapping the picture were too low a profile to allow for handling in tough situations. Worst of all was dismal battery life--only able to get about 100-125 pictures, while carefully turning the camera off in between, before battery was exhausted. Overall--very disappointing.
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