Fujifilm announces spring 2010 FinePix digital camera lineup

Getting out ahead of the PMA 2010 digital camera announcements that will explode later in the month, Fujifilm introduced a whopping 13 FinePix cameras in its spring 2010 lineup.  The offerings ranged from a $99.95 budget snapshooter to several megazoom models priced at up to $499.95. I'll cover four higher-end megazooms in a subsequent post, but here's a rundown of the first nine models, starting with the low end:

Fujifilm FinePix A Series: The first of Fujifilm's budget, ease-of-use-oriented,  A Series cameras is the FinePix AV100. It's a 12-megapixel model with a 32-96mm equivalent, 3x optical zoom lens; a high-resolution, 2.7-inch LCD; sensitivity range up to ISO 3200; digital image stabilization; face detection (up to 10 faces); and intelligent scene recognition. The camera offers 720p (1280x720) HD movie capture, as do all of the other announced cameras (except one of the cameras I'll cover in a subsequent post that captures 1080p HD video). The AV100 accepts AA batteries and will ship in mid-February for $99.95.

The step-up FinePix AX200 is essentially the same camera as the AV100, but includes a wide-angle (28-140mm equivalent) 5x optical zoom lens and will sell for $109.95.

J Series: The J Series are basic, easy-to-use cameras that are slimmer and more stylish, and utilize Lithium Ion batteries.  First is the Fujifilm FinePix JV100, a 12-megapixel compact camera with a 3x optical zoom lens; 2.7-inch, high-resolution LCD; sensitivity range up to ISO 3200; face detection; digital image stabilization; automatic scene recognition; tracking autofocus (which lets you lock focus on your subject and will adjust focus and exposure as the subject moves); smile shutter; blink detection; and 720p HD movie capture. Just 18.8mm thick, the JV100 will ship in blue and black versions in mid-February for $129.95.

The FinePix JX250 steps the resolution up to 14 megapixels and adds a wide-angle (28-140mm equivalent) 5x optical zoom lens. It will be available in black only and ships at the end of March for $159.95

The FinePix JZ300 is a 12-megapixel compact megazoom, that sports a wide-angle (28–280mm equivalent) 10x optical zoom lens, a 2.7-inch LCD, dual image stabilization (mechanical sensor stabilization with digital image stabilization), 720p HD movie recording, face detection, tracking autofocus, and auto scene recognition, all in a package that's just 22mm thick. The JZ300 will come in both silver and black and ships early February for $199.95.

Like the JZ300, the FinePix JZ500 is a 10x wide-angle compact megazoom (28-140280mm equivalent) with a 2.7-inch LCD. The JZ500 bumps resolution up to 14 megapixels and adds more advanced features like face recognition, which allows you to load up to eight faces along with some personal info and lets you search images by face, date, or other EXIF data. New pet detection technology even allows the camera to detect cats and dogs. Fujifilm claims the technology will recognize 57 percent of the Fédération Cyno Logique Internationale (FCI) registered dogs, 80 percent of the Top 20 Dogs in the American Kennel Club (AKC) Ranking, and 60 percent of The Cat Fancier’s Association (CFA) breeds. The camera will identify and register your pet's face, and adjust settings to optimize for the detected breed, and can automatically activate the shutter when the pet is looking at the camera. The JZ500 will come in black and ships late March for $249.95.

Fujifilm FinePix XP10:

This is a follow-up on the popular Z33WP waterproof point-and-shoot. The XP10 is waterproof to 10 feet, shockproof up to 3 feet, freeze proof to 14 degrees F, and dust proof. It uses a 5x “periscopic” optical zoom lens (essentially an internal refractive optical zoom). The 12-megapixel camera's 2.7-inch LCD sports anti-reflective coating to make it easier to view in bright sunlight, and the camera has a 21.7mm-thick metal chassis (one piece, with a stainless end cap), and includes a reinforced acrylic lens barrier to protect the lens from scratching. There's a dedicated movie shutter button (for 720p HD movie capture), and the camera offers a sensitivity range of up to ISO 1600, digital image stabilization, face detection, and auto scene detection. It comes in a chrome-like silver model, as well as blackand green models and will ship at the end of February for $199.95.

Z Series:

The Z Series comprises Fujifilm's more stylish ultracompact cameras that the company targets at Generation Y buyers.  The FinePix Z70 is a 12-megapixel model with a 5x (36-180mm equivalent) periscopic zoom lens, a 2.7-inch LCD, digital image stabilization, sensitivity rang

e up to ISO 1600, and a dedicated movie shutter button. A new Facebook/YouTube Automatic Upload feature allows one-touch tagging to designate photos for upload. With FinePix software loaded on your PC (and after logging into your Facebook or YouTube accounts once), every time you connect your camera to your PC and you have an Internet connection, the camera will automatically upload the tagged photos. There's also a Successive movie mode that lets you start, stop, and restart recording within a single movie clip as well as in-camera editing for still images and movies. A Blog Mode enables in-camera image copying and resizing to make Web-friendly copies. Couple and group timer modes (powered by face detection) scan for the appropriate number of faces in a scene and then automatically activate the shutter via self timer when the right number of faces are detected. Just 17.9mm thick, the camera also sports LED lights on menu-control buttons on back of camera and will be available in silver, black, blue, and berry when it ships at the end of February for $149.95.

The FinePix Z700EXR is a 12-megapixel shooter that utilizes Fujifilm's Super CCD EXR technology, which is designed to deliver fine detail in bright, even lighting as well as better-quality low-light images with less noise. (For a more detailed description of the technology, see Fujifilm’s Super CCD EXR site.) The camera includes a 36-180mm equivalent 5x periscopic zoom lens, but the pièce de résistance is its 3.5-inch, 460,000-dot, wide-screen (16:9) touch screen. It offers an interactive graphical user interface with a dual-image display: It can display a split screen with your image on the left side and the menu on right, or your current shot with three previous shots. Auto rotation will rotate both images and menus to the correct orientation depending on the position of the camera, and touch-screen shooting allows you to tap your focal point on the LCD and will automatically set focus and exposure based on where you touch (and activate the shutter). In playback mode, a new file-management system lets you sort, search, edit, and drag-and-drop images, move them into folders, or even create composite images by dragging multiple images out of a tray to create a postcard/collage effect right on screen. Other advanced features include dual image stabilization, face detection and face recognition, auto scene recognition, and pet detection. Just 16.9mm thick, the Z700EXR will come in  black, red, and silver, and will ship in mid March for $279.95

For more information and full specs, go to Fujifilm Digital Cameras.