The Fuji Finepix F460 is a five megapixel digital camera. It is very slim and falls into the ultra compact category. This type of camera is small enough to fit easily into a pocket. One of the attractions of the Finepix F460 is that it is cheaper than most of its direct competitors. It is also easy to use. Therefore it is likely to appeal to anyone who is looking for a small, stylish digital camera, but does not want to pay over the odds.
Image Quality
It would be a bit much to expect perfection from the Finepix F460 considering its price. Even so I would have liked to have seen a bit more quality in my test shots.
The outdoor scenic type shots are quite good, but they do suffer from a loss of sharpness as you move away from the centre of the pictures and become somewhat softer towards the edges. Colours are good though and the pictures also have a level of brightness that gives them a lively feel. Darker and lighter areas lose a degree of detail, but no more than you find with a typical digital camera.
My favourite shot is the outdoor portrait. The Finepix F460 handles the lighting levels pleasingly which helps to create accurate skin tones. Plenty of detail is shown in the picture too.
The dedicated test for colour also produced a good result. The colours are vivid and no one colour dominates. Colour balance is very important as this affects every picture you are likely to take.
Moving indoors I hit problems. One key feature that every digital camera should have by now is an auto focus illuminator. This emits a beam of light just before the photo is taken and helps the camera to focus accurately. As can be seen from my indoor portrait and beer bottles test shots without this feature a camera will struggle. I have become used to seeing sharp photos indoors, so when a camera is unable to do this it is a major disappointment. There is also a degree of red eye in the shot.
The final result of my macro test shot was good. I have noticed a problem with this line of cameras in macro mode though. Unless you are able to get lighting levels spot on the photos tend to have a blue caste to them. This suggests there is not enough warmth in the lighting being used.
My final test was how the camera would react to taking photos with a high ISO setting. High ISO settings can help if you are shooting in dark conditions or you are trying to freeze movement. This is an area where all digital cameras could do better once you push the setting up to ISO 400. In the case of the Finepix F460 there is an impact on the overall quality of the photo. Having said that inline with other Fuji digital cameras the loss of quality is a lot less then you will find with some other makes and models.
Shutter Lag and Recycling Times
I managed to take a single shot in 0.38 seconds. This is slightly slower than average time. It took 14.33 seconds to take five consecutive shots. This works out at a rate of one photo every 2.86 seconds. This is also slightly slower than average.
Whilst the shutter lag times are not that bad there are many faster cameras around. Therefore if you are planning to take photos where movement could be an issue then you are best advised looking elsewhere.
You can compare this camera to other models by taking a look at the Shutter Lag Comparison Table.
Features
The 3x optical zoom lens has a focal length equivalent to 35-105 mm in 35mm format. The maximum aperture of the lens is F2.8-F4.9. For close-up photography you can get in as close as 10 cm to your subject.
For composing photos that there is a 2.5 inch LCD screen. This is also used for accessing the menu. There is no room for a viewfinder on the back of the camera.
The maximum range of the built-in flash unit is 4.6 m. This falls to around 2.6 m when the zoom lens is in use. The flash modes available to you are automatic, redeye reduction, always on, always off and slow synchro.
For when you would like to appear in the photo yourself there is a self-timer. Its delay can be set to either two or 10 seconds.
To help you take the best possible pictures there are a selection of scene modes you can use. All you need to do is select the most appropriate scene for the picture you are about to take. The camera will then use its optimum settings for the shot. The scene modes available are portrait, landscape, sport, night, beach and snow, sunset, museum, party, flower and text.
There are a number of options available to you after a picture has been taken. These include being able to crop the image and also being able to add a voice memo. Being able to add a voice memo helps to preserve the memory of when and where the photo was taken.
You can shoot movies at a maximum resolution of 640x480. The duration of each movie is only limited by the capacity of the memory card. The fastest speed you can record at is 30 frames per second. Combined with the resolution this should produce TV quality movies. Sound is recorded by the camera but the zoom lens cannot be used whilst the movie is being recorded.
Among the more advanced features are shutter speeds ranging from 1/1500 seconds to two seconds, exposure compensation (-2 EV to +2 EV in 1/3 EV-step increments) and white balance control (automatic, Fine, Shade, Fluorescent (Daylight), Fluorescent (Warm White), Fluorescent (Cool White), Incandescent).
Fuji supplies all the necessary cables and software to connect the Finepix F460 to a television set, computer, and PictBridge compatible printer.
Ease of Use
This is a fairly straightforward digital camera and you should not have too many problems using it. There are not too many features to confuse you and you will be able to get to know this camera quickly. Standard buttons controlling zoom, flash, reviewing images and macro mode etc. are all found on the back of the camera. The menu system is a bit fiddly, but easy enough to use once you get used to it.
Cost
You can pick up a Fuji Finepix F460 for around £160. This compares to around £215 for a Canon IXUS 55, £210 for a Sony DSC T5 and £180 for a Fuji Finepix Z1.
As you can see the Finepix F460 is cheaper than standard five megapixel, ultra compact digital cameras. It is fairly priced, but if you can afford to pay out a bit more you will see an increase in quality.
Style
The Finepix F460 is a standard shiny, silver rectangle. There is a small raised area on the front to help you grip the camera while taking a shot. The camera has a pleasant, simple design. It weighs 122g and has dimensions of 91.9mm x 58.1mm x 19.7mm. It has a metal body.
Batteries and Memory Card
A rechargeable NP-40N battery and a charger are supplied with the camera. This type of battery keeps running costs to a minimum. Spare batteries can be expensive though so it may be wise to simply make sure the battery is always fully charged before you set off with your camera.
Fuji have built 13MB of storage into the Finepix F460. I was able to take 12 photos before the storage was full. Therefore you will need to buy a high capacity memory card to go with your camera. xD Picture cards are the only type of memory card you can use with this camera.
Click here to save money on xD cards..
Points I like:
Low price
Ease of use
Where it is not so hot:
Photos lose sharpness near edges
Indoor photos
Summary
Judging the Fuji Finepix F460 is not easy. It is certainly cheap for an ultra compact digital camera, but some of its problems make it hard to recommend even at this price level. If you can afford to it is well worth spending a bit more and buying greater quality.
Fuji Finepix F460 Front View
Fuji Finepix F460 Back View
Fuji Finepix F460 Top View
Sample Menus
| Fuji Finepix F460 Summary |
| Description: | 5 megapixels with a 3x optical zoom lens |
| Ease of Use: | 8 |
| Features: | 7 |
| Colour: | 8 |
| Macro: | 7 |
| Indoors: | 6 |
| Value for Money: | 8 |
| Style: | 8 |
| Movie Mode: | 8 |
| Image Quality: | 7 |
| Build Quality: | 8 |
| Total: | 75 |
| Verdict: | Although the Fuji Finepix F460 is relatively inexpensive compared to other similar models I would personally rather pay more for better quality. The camera struggles indoors and the quality of the outdoor shots does not make up for this weakness. |
| Review Date: | January 2006 |
| Click for: | Specification Sample Images |
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