Fujifilm FinePix F40fd

Review summary: The FinePix F40fd ($299) is a compact, stylish camera that replaces the FinePix F20, which served as the "little brother" to the highly-rated FinePix F30. The beauty of these cameras isn't really their design, lens, or feature set. Rather, it's their ...

Pros: Very good photo quality, with less noise than competition at high ISOs (though see issues below) ; Small, stylish, and well built ; Gorgeous 2.5" LCD display has high resolution and fluid frame rate ; good indoor/outdoor visibility ; AF-assist lamp, ...

Cons: Fair amount of noise reduction artifacting, even at ISO 100 ; Some operations are slower than average (shot-to-shot times, image playback) ; Disappointing continuous shooting modes ; Custom white balance not previewed on LCD ; More manual controls ...

Verdict: Even with its much less powerful battery (than the F31fd), the F40fd still turns in above average numbers. Battery life in unchanged since the F20

Review summary: If you are all about achieving the highest possible image quality (even at the expense of other features), Fuji's F40fd is the camera in this roundup for you. Click Read More for more.

Pros: Solid construction ; 2.5-inch LCD ; takes SD and xD memory cards

Cons: Sluggish shot-to-shot performance ; no image stabilization

Verdict: Of the three cameras tested here, the F40 has the most solid-feeling construction. And the 2.5-inch LCD was the nicest, too. And, the F40 also lets you use both SD and xD memory cards

Award: Recommended!

Review summary: Exactly one year ago we reviewed the Fujifilm Finepix F40fd's predeccessor, the Finepix F20 model, which we called "one of the most successful marriages of price to performance seen in recent months". ...

Verdict: The Fujifilm Finepix F40fd undoubtedly offers a number of significant improvements to what was a great camera, the F20, which we gave a Highly Recommended award one year ago. There's an increase ...

Review summary: We first reviewed the F40fd in What's New, Shopper July 2007, where it picked up a Best Buy award for its fantastic image quality and well-conceived controls. We decided to see how it fares against the current crop of premium compact cameras.

Verdict: Image quality is excellent, with exquisite colours and crisp detail, but the F40fd didn't excel compared to the other cameras in this group. Low noise has long been the trump card of Fujifilm cameras, but the competition has caught up, and the Optio ...