Fujifilm FinePix Z2

Opinion: I got this micro sized camera during a promotion recently where they are clearing the very old stock ( in year 2005). I paid minimum price to get this once top compact performer.
Nothing much to complain about the image quality, as compare with other ultra compact in the market it is above average. And believe me, fuji is the market leader in low light shooting segment before 2007, any camera with super CCD before 2007 is will blow you away with the low light capability. If you are a serious shooter like me , most likely you will have another bulky device like S6500fd/S6000, but it is always troublesome to carrying it everywhere. If you can get this camera in 2007, just get it without regret, it's much worthy than the latest sony T series which is really too expensive to compare with.

Opinion: I'm very pleased with the image quality at daylight, and up to ISO ~200. Colours are strong & vivid but well balanced, AE works very well. Took some macro shots of flowers which became excellent. Lower light performance is OK and potentially better than with other ultra compacts, but serious noise can be seen from ISO 400 upwards. I was expecting a little bit more after the great F11 performance. However, printing images at postcard size is very much OK.
Not a lot of features but sufficient for me.
Ease of use is OK once you made yourself familiar with the Fuji system.
Although I bought it mainly as a low-light party camera and although being a little disappointed about its low light performance I think I'm going to keep it; there are not a lot of ultra-compacts out there that allow for pictures to be taken at ISO 400++ (and if they do, the image quality gets even worse)

Opinion: After having spent two weeks vacationing in Iceland with my new Fuji FinePix
Z2, taking over 200 photos...

This is pretty much the super-handy little digicam I had hoped for.

IMAGE QUALITY: The big concern for this cam is image quality, specifically
detail and sharpness. I found detail great at ISO 64 or 100, and acceptable at
200. At high ISO's, the noise reduction artifacts are severe enough that you won't
like them close-up... you'd have to consider it only as good as a 2 or 3
megapixel image, instead of 5 megapixels. Over time, I learned to specify my
ISO settings and flash settings manually to get the best detail, and I was happy.

I was glad to have the ISO 1600 setting, as a noisy capture of the Aurora
Borealis was better than no capture at all. And had the cam not been so
pocketable, I probably wouldn't have taken half as many shots, so I don't think I'll
be trading up for an F30 after all.

CONSTRUCTION: Solid! Back & sides are curved metal (matte black, possibly
anodized). Front, top & bottom are painted a gloss black over what feels to be
metal (except batt/film door, which feels plastic). Buttons are matte shiny silver
metal, and have a good click when pressed. Reinforced glass LCD is excellent.
Lens is so close to the edge, your finger does slip into view easily, but you'll
notice before you shoot. Glass and gloss paint do show finger smudges... can
be buffed clean, but don't expect to, as you'll be touching them often, particularly
the front sliding door. On a seriously windy day, some grit got under the sliding
front, but I blew on it upside down, and the gritty sliding sensation went away.
But overall, it feels and functions like a refined, top quality gadget in the hand.
The tripod mount is on the dock... usable, but just barely. Cam will rest squarely
on a perfectly flat surface.

FEATURES: Ready to shoot pretty quick... timing was NEVER a problem for me.
No direct shutter or aperature control, but sufficient mode options to coax
various results. LCD res is higher than on the Z1, and I love it. I ended up
appreciating the playback mode button... I now prefer this to having movie,
photo and playback all on the same dial or switch... power it on and the cam
WILL be ready to shoot, not dependent on a mode dial setting. Last used modes
or settings always seem to stick properly. Menus are arranged in a logical and
easy-to-grasp interface. Vacation Time-Zone setting is a bit awkward, but well
appreciated once I figured it out. Flash is not strong, but that didn't turn out to be
the big problem I expected. The dock for charging & connecting is not for me, but
I bought a Fuji-branded external charger, and an Olympus xD to USB adapter
pen, so I don't have to use it.

I am from the US, bought my Z2 off eBay (time2envy), which arrived complete
with US wall plug. The only aspect not ready for use in the US was the default
setting for A/V output (PAL), and that was an easy menu change (to NTSC). So if
you're worried because it wasn't a US release, don't be... just be sure your
vendor is sending you a version with menus and controls in English, and is
including a US wall plug. It's worth getting a Z2 over the Z1 for the extra LCD
resolution, the ISO 1600, and continuous drive (haven't tried that yet).

According to dpreview, this cam's aperature range is F3.5-F4.2, but I have shots
that say they used F8.0. Also min. shutter speed went over 4 seconds using
Night mode (don't shake!).

Opinion: I wanted a really pocketable camera (I normally use DSLRs). So when I saw this in Jessops it seemed just what I was looking for.

It's definitely a very sexy little number. The black finish and excellent construction coupled with the small size could make it a 'must have' item for some.

It's fast to start up and take pictures. The 2.5" screen is a joy. The auto white balance is very good (better than my Canon DSLR), and it focuses quite close.

BUT

The picture quality is abysmal. Grass is reduced to a green mush. Noise, even at ISO 100, is horrendous. I suppose for full screen without enlargement it would just get by, but this is a 5Mp camera!

I've just bought a second user Minolta Xi and the difference is chalk and cheese. Even at standard jpeg the 3Mp images are very good and print to 10X8 well. It's slightly bigger than the Fuji and slightly slower, but if you half press the button it becomes acceptably quick in capturing action.

The Fuji goes back to Jessops.

Opinion: Only had this a few days. I have an S5600 as my main camera so this was purchased for my wife as a carry-everywhere camera. We wanted something small, ruggard and easy to use as it will spend most of its life in her handbag.

Construction.
Small it is, and it apperars to be of solid construction including metal case and strengthened LCD screen. We also purchased a Fuji leather case designed specifically for this camera which fits like a glove, looks great and will help to protect it.

Features
It is designed to be used as a straight "point and shoot" camera so don't expect manual control and you will not be dissapointed. It has a great video mode a simple flick of a switch away, and has class leading high iso abilities. In adition to the Z1, the Z2 has three burst modes, 256 zone metering and a high definition LCD.

Image Quality
The Z2 has a small, folding type, lens that zooms vertically inside the camera and uses a prism to refract the light through 90 deg which allways results in poorer image quality than conventional lens, but of course allows for a smaller camera body. I knew this when I bought the camera and I must say so far I have been very impressed. When using the flash it defaults to a reletively high iso640 which can result in some noise but is no problem unless you want to blow up your prints to a large size.

Ease of use
The Z2 is very easy to use. The addition of a cradle makes downloading of pictures and charging the battery very easy.

Overall
The Z2, as do all cameras of this type, makes some compromises for its stlye and portability so I have maked it on how I believe it performs in its catergory. So far it seems to be a fantastic little camera for its intended purpose. It produces punchy/vibrant photos straight from the camera, and being able to carry it everywhere means those little photo ops shouldn't escape being captured. It starts up very fast, focus speed is good and pre-focused shutter lag is nonexistant.
If you want full manual control and the best quality photos available then look elsewhere and buy something heavier and less portable, or do like we have and buy two cameras. If you want a small, tough, fast ,easy to use camera then you won't go far wrong with a Z2