electronics Finepix E510 Zoom opinions and reviews

Finepix E510 Zoom

A 5.2 megapixel camera, Finepix E510 Zoom comes with a 3.2x optical zoom and a few advanced features but delivers disappointing image quality.

The camera build is rather strong with a nicely styled silver framework. It weighs 170 g and has dimensions of 101 x 60.5 x 32.6 mm. There are a decent number of manual modes which will cater to the amateur snapshooters who crave for the slightly advanced features.

Gripping the camera is made comfortable thanks to the curved edge on the right side but since the edge bulges out, its portability is reduced.

E510 Zoom holds a 2-inch LCD screen with four-way button and the exposure control accompanying it on either side. A surprisingly pleasing feature is the optical viewfinder which allows you to frame shots nicely.

You will find plenty of shooting options like Auto, Programmed AE, Aperture Priority AE, Shutter Priority AE and Manual modes. Portrait, Landscape, Sports and Night are the four scene settings. Moreover there are white balance settings too like Auto, Fine, Shade, Fluorescent and Incandescent.

B&W, Chrome and Standard are the colour options which could be used and there are enough flash options too.

There is a movie mode wherein you can shoot 320 x 240 pixel resolution clips at the 10 fps rate.

Storing images can be done on the supplied 16MB xD–Picture Card. You can upgrade it up to 512MB.

E510 is powered by AA type batteries. You can purchase rechargeable batteries which is likely to give you close to 700 shots.

Feature wise, E510 is slightly better than a point and shoot camera. However, the performance isn’t up to the mark. Recycling in E510 is horrendous; 3.7 seconds (7.6 with flash). A conspicuous deletion is the continuous-shooting mode.

But it’s not all downhill. Starting up the camera did not take terribly long at 3.7 seconds. Shutter lag too isn’t bad taking 0.6 seconds in both bright and dim light. With the 28mm-to-91mm focal-length range, (35mm equivalent) wide angle shots look comprehensive.

However the shortcomings undo even the few positives. Blown out highlights are evident in most of the shots. Noise irritation won’t please you either. Purple fringing is also visible in many of the captured images while focusing too is improper. But to end on the positive note, the overexposure comes in handy while shooting in low light conditions. Otherwise, the camera performance will leave you disappointed.