Fujifilm's six megapixel F20 thrives at night

Besides the S6000fd that we just brought you, Fujifilm has another six megapixel shooter slated to hit stores in September, though this model is more at home in a pocket than a camera bag. Being touted as the little brother to the company's already-compact F30, the new F20 sports many of the same features as its big bro -- besides the 6.3 megapixel CCD, they both share a 3x optical zoom and 2.5-inch LCD -- with the major differences being size, display resolution, and battery capacity. Also like the F30, this model is designed to perform in low-light conditions that would prove difficult for other compact cameras which don't share its relatively high maximum sensitivity of ISO 2000. The other nice touches here center around the flash: it automatically adjusts its intensity based on ambient lighting, and is part of the innovative "Natural Light & Flash" feature that snaps two consecutive shots -- one with flash and one without -- to provide users with a so-called "photographic safety net." No word yet on pricing, but since you can pick up the F30 for under $400, we imagine that this model will be available for around the same cost.

[Tim @ Jul 13th 2006 1:12PM]

With a sensor that small in a little point and shoot ISO 2000 is useless for anything but wallet size prints!

[Jeff L. @ Jul 13th 2006 1:53PM]

Any point and shoot camera that boasts ISO 2000 and has a pathetic f/5 at the telephoto end will never "thrive at night."

[MoTu @ Jul 13th 2006 3:30PM]

BTW Fujifilm Unveils New Corporate Brand Logo:

http://www.fujifilm.com/news/n060712.html

[sturmnacht @ Jul 13th 2006 7:12PM]

Quote: With a sensor that small in a little point and shoot ISO 2000 is useless for anything but wallet size prints!

1/1.7" is obviously larger than the 1/2.5" sensor. For a 6MP shooter, that's large.

[bliss @ Jul 13th 2006 7:14PM]

Tim and Jeff are totally right... even a dslr like the Nikon D70 starts having digital noise after ISO 640.

[Vik @ Jul 13th 2006 11:09PM]

If you compare the F20 to other cameras in its class (hint: not a Nikon d70), you will realize that, relatively speaking, it does "thrive at night." And judging from the F30, acceptable prints beyond wallet-size can be acheived with a 1/1.7" sensor.

[Will @ Jul 17th 2006 12:05PM]

Come on people, you seem to think that the big DSLRs are always cutting edge tech. The Nikon d70 is out for at least a year now. Its development started at least two years ago. This Fujifilm thing is *new*. Surely you don't think there's been no advancement in digital imaging in the meantime.

BTW, the F30 won the TIPA award. (http://www.tipa.com/awa_detail_2006.lasso?-Search=Action&-Table=web&-Database=awards_2006&-KeyValue=80)
The F20 uses the same technology. Nuff said.

[kadajawi @ Oct 21st 2006 12:58PM]

There were some Fujis which had impressive, and I mean REALLY impressive low light capabilities. One was on par with DSLRs, at times maybe even better, and it was a compact camera. I don't know what magic Fuji does, but I expect the camera to have very little noise.

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/fuji/finepix_f30-review/ There you can find pics of the F30 at high ISO levels. Not perfect, of course, but much better than its competition.