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Fuji FinePix F601 Zoom A new SuperCCD sensor gives Fuji's latest ultra compact true 3.1 megapixel resolution and great color. Select a topic Reference: Datasheet FinePix F601 Photo Gallery! FinePix F601 Test Images --------------------------------- 1. Intro and Highlights 2. Executive Overview 3. Design 4. Viewfinder 5. Optics 6. Exposure & Flash 7. Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests 8. Operation & User Interface 9. Camera Modes & Menus 10. Image Storage & Interface 11. Video, Power, Software 12. Test Results & Conclusion --------------------------------- Print-Friendly Review Version Additional Resources and Other Links Reader Comments on FinePix F601 Review --------------------------------- Digital Camera Comparometer (TM) --------------------------------- <-- Digital Cameras (Home) <-- Digital Camera Reviews Index <<Operation & User Interface :(Previous) | (Next): Image Storage & Interface>> Page 9:Camera Modes & Menus Review First Posted: 6/21/2002

Camera Modes and Menus

A rant about the user interface
I don't normally have very strong feelings about the user interfaces on cameras, liking some more, other less. The user interface on the F601 though, proved to be one of the most annoying I've yet come across. (I hope I'm not offending any of my friends on Fuji's engineering staff, but I had such a strong reaction to the 601's UI design that I felt I just had to say something.)

There are two unique aspects to the 601's interface, and I found both inconvenient. As you'll see below, the sub-menus for the various functions available in each mode are arranged in a circle on the LCD screen. The problem with this arrangement is that you can't just press the rocker toggle in a single direction to step around the circle, but rather have to change from pressing left or right to up or down as you navigate around the choices. This is needlessly confusing to the user, and awkward besides.

The thing that really set me off though, was what happens once you'd selected a particular function you want to control. Rather than just presenting you with a list of the options available for that function, the F601 forces you to wait through a cutesy animation, in which horizontal bars containing the various options drop down from the top of the screen and "bounce" on the bottom before coming to rest. This is cute the first time you see it, but quickly becomes intensely annoying. I found myself gritting my teeth repeatedly, wishing that the camera would just let me *set the darn options* rather than making me wait for its clever animation to finish. There may be a way to disable this behavior, but I didn't uncover it in my time with the camera. (A suggestion for Fuji for the next firmware rev: Give the user some way to turn the animation off.)

OK, flame off and back to the review. I'm probably getting way too wrought up over something as trivial as a silly little animation in a camera's user interface, but this one really got my goat...

Manual Mode: (Camera icon with an "M.") Manual capture mode offers four exposure modes, including Program AE, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual. In each, the user has partial or total control over the exposure, as well as all other camera features. Pressing the Enter button pulls up the first of the two Record menu option screens (reported here clockwise from the top, followed by the items appearing on the second menu page):

• Next/Back: Moves back and forth between the two menu pages.
• Self-Timer: Turns the 10-second Self-Timer mode on or off.
• Flash Mode: Sets the flash mode to Auto, Auto with Red-Eye Reduction, Forced, or Slow-Synchro (only if the flash has been released from its compartment).
• Continuous Shooting: Activates the standard Continuous Shooting mode, or enables Auto Exposure Bracketing, with exposure variable choices of 1/3, 2/3, or one EV step.
• Macro: Activates or deactivates the camera's Macro shooting mode.
• Exposure Mode: Sets the exposure mode to Program AE, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, or Manual.
• Image Quality: Specifies the image resolution and JPEG compression level. Resolution choices include 6M (2,862 x 2,128 pixels), 3M (2,048 x 1,536 pixels), 1M (1,280 x 960 pixels), and VGA (640 x 480 pixels). JPEG compression levels are Fine, Normal, and Basic, depending on the resolution set.
• Set: Displays the camera's Setup menu.
  • Image Display: Turns off post-capture image display, or enables Postview or Preview display modes. Postview displays the image for about two seconds immediately after capture, while Preview displays the image as well as options to record or erase it.
  • Auto Power Save: Sets the camera to turn itself off after two or five minutes. You can also turn the power save function off.
  • USB Mode: Specifies the USB connection as DSC or PC CAM.
  • LCD Brightness: Adjusts the overall brightness of the LCD monitor.
  • Volume: Controls the volume level of playback sounds.
  • Beep: Sets the camera's beep sounds to Low or High, or turns them off.
  • Date/Time: Sets the camera's internal calendar and clock.
  • Auto LCD Monitor: Tells the camera to automatically turn the LCD monitor on or off when the Mode dial is turned to the Auto position.
  • Language: Sets the camera's menu language to English, French, or German.
  • Reset All: Resets all camera settings to their defaults.
• Photometry: Sets the camera's metering mode to Multi (default), Spot, or Average.
• Exposure Compensation: Adjusts the exposure from -1.5 to +1.5 exposure equivalents (EV) in one-third increments.
• Flash Intensity: Controls the flash power and brightness, adjustable from -0.6 to +0.6 exposure equivalents (EV) in one-third increments.
• White Balance: Sets the camera's white balance to Automatic, or to match Sunny, Shade, Daylight Fluorescent, Warm White Fluorescent, Cool White Fluorescent, or Incandescent lighting.
• Focus: Sets the camera's focus mode to AF, AF Area, or MF.
• ISO: Adjusts the camera's sensitivity to 160, 200, 400, 800, or 1,600 ISO equivalents. (Note that 800 and 1,600 settings automatically set resolution to 1M (1,280 x 960 pixels) and JPEG compression to Normal.)
• Sharpness: Sets the image sharpness to Hard, Normal, or Soft.

Scene Position: In this mode, you can choose between a variety of preset "scene" shooting modes, including Portrait, Landscape, Sports, Night Scene, and Continuous Shooting (40-frame mode). Exposure is automatically controlled, and the flash may or may not be available, depending on the scene selected. The Record menu offers the following, more limited selections in this mode:

• Voice Memo: Turns on the Voice Memo mode, which records sound captions for individual images.
• Self-Timer: Turns the 10-second Self-Timer on or off.
• Flash Mode: Sets the flash mode to Auto, Auto with Red-Eye Reduction, Forced, or Slow-Synchro (only if the flash has been released from its compartment).
• Continuous Shooting: Activates the standard Continuous Shooting mode, or enables Auto Exposure Bracketing, with exposure variable choices of 1/3, 2/3, or one EV stop.
• Macro: Activates the camera's Macro shooting mode, or disables it.
• Focus: Sets the camera's focus mode to AF, AF Area, or MF.
• Image Quality: Specifies the image resolution and JPEG compression level. Resolution choices include 6M (2,862 x 2,128 pixels), 3M (2,048 x 1,536 pixels), 1M (1,280 x 960 pixels), and VGA (640 x 480 pixels). JPEG compression levels are Fine, Normal, and Basic, depending on the resolution set.
• Set: Displays the same Setup menu as described above.
  

Automatic Exposure: In Automatic exposure mode, the camera controls all exposure decisions, with the exception of the flash mode. Pressing the Menu button again offers a limited set of options. - The same options in fact as under the Scene Position setting just described. (And hence there's no point in repeating them here.)

Movie Mode: (Movie camera icon.) This mode records moving images with sound for as long as the SmartMedia card has available space, at either the 640 x 480-pixel or 320 x 240-pixel resolution setting. Only file size option and the Setup menu are available through the Record menu.

Audio Mode: (Microphone icon.) In Audio mode, the F601 Zoom records audio only (no image) for as long as 4.5 hours per recording (depending on SmartMedia space). No settings menu is available.

Playback Mode: Accessed by pushing the Mode switch to the playback symbol (as opposed to the Exposure Mode dial for the modes described above), Playback mode displays captured images and movies. Files can be erased, given a voice caption, or set up for printing on DPOF devices. Still images can be enlarged and cropped, or viewed in an index display. The Playback Menu offers the following options:

• Erase: Deletes the currently displayed image, all frames, or formats the SmartMedia card.
• Voice Memo: Records a short voice caption (as long as 30 seconds) to accompany a captured image.
• Set: Displays the camera's Setup menu.
• DPOF: Marks individual frames, or all frames, for printing on DPOF devices. You can also remove print marks from all frames or setup a time and date stamp on the image.