Fuji FinePix 4700Fuji packs a 2.4 million pixel "SuperCCD" sensor and 2400 x 1800 images into an ultra- compact digicam!<<Video, Power, Software :(Previous) | (Next): Reference: Datasheet>> Page 12:Test Results & ConclusionReview First Posted: 10/7/2000 |
Test Results
In keeping with our standard policy, our comments here are rather condensed, summarizing our key findings: For a full commentary on each of the test images, see the FinePix 4700 Zoom's "pictures" page.
As with all Imaging Resource camera tests, we encourage you to let your own eyes be the judge of how well the devices performed: Explore the images on the pictures page, to see how well the 4700 performed, and how its images compare to other cameras you may be considering buying.
Because it produces a 4.3 megapixel file from a 2.4 megapixel sensor, the FinePix 4700 Zoom has been the subject of much controversy on the 'net. The claim has been that the unique pixel layout would allow a higher-than-normal level of interpolation, resulting in larger useful file sizes and more resolution. (For the record, *all* digicams interpolate, it's just a matter of the degree to which they do so: The 4700 uses a higher level of interpolation than most digicams on the market.) In our own testing, we felt that the 4700 did indeed perform a bit better than its raw pixel count would normally suggest, but only just barely. This conclusion was based on careful study of fine detail in a large number of test images shot with the 4700 and a number of other cameras we've tested.
An unfortunate aspect of Fuji's choice of a higher interpolation level than the competition is that its image on-screen look much softer than those from lower-resolution cameras, even though we believe that our tests demonstrate that the images contain the same amount of detail as those from other ~2.5 megapixel cameras. Unfortunate, because many people are likely to look at the camera's images on-screen, see the softness, and conclude that they have lower resolution than they actually do. The best test would probably be to make prints from the 4700's files and those of other cameras, and compare the images printed at the same size on paper. Most people won't have time for this, so we suspect Fuji will have a harder time in the marketplace than they might otherwise have had, with less interpolation.
In terms of the actual numbers, we "called" the 4700's resolution at ~850 lines per picture height horizontally, and 800 vertically.
Other key parameters of the camera are quite good, in that it carries forward the very compact and ruggedly constructed compact body design made popular by previous Fuji cameras. It also shows quite good color and is more light-sensitive than most of the competition, at a base ISO of 200, and with very acceptable noise performance at ISO 400. Color is generally accurate, although we often found better results with the "Fluorescent 2" white balance than with the daylight or automatic settings. Color saturation is just about right, and color reproduction is accurate: Most digicams fall into two camps with regard to color reproduction, tending to favor either the additive primary colors (red, green, blue) or the subtractive primaries (cyan, yellow, magenta), in terms of color saturation. The 4700 seems to be of the former camp, showing a slight undersaturation on the subtractive primary colors. We did feel that there was somewhat more noise in the 4700's images at ISO 200 than we're used to seeing in other digicams which typically operate at ISO 100, but by the same token, we've seen elevated noise levels in some digicams with lower ISO ratings as well.
We would have liked to see more exposure control (such as aperture-priority and shutter-priority exposure modes, preferably even full manual), but that may not be as big an issue for a camera like the 4700, obviously aimed at the bring-it-anywhere recreational shooter rather than the technically oriented enthusiast. (It does provide a "night mode" that biases the camera toward longer exposures, and the "portrait" mode should bias it toward larger apertures and faster shutter speeds, even though our test unit didn't appear to respond in this way.)
The FinePix 4700 did quite well in our low-light shooting, but you need to use its "Night Mode" for best results, as that's the only way to get to its 3 second maximum exposure time: Other modes stop at 1/4 second, something that strikes us as a needless limitation: We'd really like some of the flexibility of the Manual mode available with slow shutter speeds as well. Color balance in our low light tests was somewhat on the warm side, perhaps due to the lower color-temperature light source we use for those shots. Color was better than most digicams under low-light conditions however. Another area with at least some room for improvement is the 4700's optical viewfinder, as the current design only shows 76% of the final image area. Fortunately, the LCD finder gives about 95% coverage, so you can look to it for critical framing.
Macro performance was good, if not microscopic, with the camera capturing a minimum area of 2.56 x 1.92 inches (65.05 x 48.79 mm). This is about average in the current digicam market.
We're not sure if it's an optical necessity in ultra-compact digicams, but we've seen lower optical viewfinder accuracy on several models, both from Fuji and others: The 4700's optical viewfinder crops the subject rather tightly, showing only about 76% of the final image area. By contrast, the LCD viewfinder is much more accurate, at 96%.
As a bottom line to our tests, the 4700 delivered good images, clearly at the top of the ~2.5 megapixel range in terms of resolution and detail: The extra pixels in the final file format really aren't necessary or beneficial, in our opinion. If prospective users pay attention to how the images print on their printers, rather than how they look blown up 1:1 on-screen though, the camera is likely to be popular, given its extremely compact form factor and otherwise good image quality.
Conclusion
The Fuji FinePix 4700 is clearly one of the more controversial digicams in recent memory, which is why we elected to wait until a final production model was available before publishing our review. In contrast to at least one recent review, we feel that it does just fine as a 2.4 megapixel camera, as long as you're not fooled into thinking that softness on-screen means low resolution. There's clearly a full ~2.5 megapixel's worth of resolution in its images, just spread out over 4.3 megapixels worth of file "real estate." (We base this conclusion on extensive comparisons between files from the 4700 and a large number of other cameras in the 2.1 -3.3 megapixel range.) In the plus column for the camera, we'd count good color and resolution (again, subject to the 2.5 megapixel note above), the excellent compact Fuji camera design, nice user interface (we really liked the "soft key" jog control buttons), higher than usual ISO speed, and nicely-implemented movie functionality. On the downside, we're just as soon have seen fewer pixels in the final images, and battery life is a bit short, at about 80 minutes of continuous playback. The included high-capacity NiMH cells are a definite plus, and we recommend buying another four or so high-capacity AAs to pack along with you on outings. We see this as a good camera producing high resolution, good color, and good light sensitivity for the "road warrior" (or soccer mom) who wants a compact camera that won't get left in the drawer, more so than for the technophile enthusiast interested in extensive exposure control. Would we buy one? Well, we never answer that question, but will admit to owning a Fuji MX-1700 that's our "bring along" digicam, and the 4700 *does* have more resolution and better low-light performance than that model...
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