Fun in the Sun: Fujifilm Z33WP
Seven waterproof digital cameras<<Olympus Stylus 550WP | Conclusion>>
Fujifilm Z33WP
Easily the most endearing camera of the bunch, the Fujifilm Z33WP doesn't just look good, it feels great to hold and use. Its skin is smooth and taut like a ripe nectarine. That sounds ridiculous in a camera review, but hold one and you'll want to take a bite. It's the smallest camera in this roundup, and I'd say it has the best engineered body of the bunch, at least from a marketing standpoint.
Its 3x zoom, ranging from 35-105mm is quite average, but for the price, don't be too surprised. The maximum aperture of f/3.7 does not recommend it as an indoor camera, however, nor does its lack of true mechanical image stabilization. Its 2.7-inch LCD looks great, if a little dim in bright sunlight.
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| Waterproof: | 10 feet |
| Shockproof: | N/A |
| Freezeproof: | N/A |
| Crushproof: | N/A |
| Resolution: | 10.0 Megapixels |
| Lens: | 3.0x zoom (35-105mm eq.) |
| LCD size: | 2.7 inch |
| ISO: | 64-1600 |
| Shutter: | 3-1/1000 |
| Max Aperture: | 3.7 |
| Mem Type: | SDHC/xD |
| Battery: | Custom LiIon |
| Dimensions: | 3.6x2.3x0.8in (92x60x21mm) |
| Weight: | 3.9 oz (111 g) |
| MSRP: | $200 |
| Availability: | 03/2009 |
Look and feel. Organic, curvaceous, cohesive: all are good words to describe both the look and feel of the Fujifilm Z33WP (can't say as much for the name). A large silver circle surrounds the smallish lens and cover glass, which seems to stretch the smooth skin around it to conform to its shape. Modern graphics etched into the skin just beneath the slight hint of a flash oddly and stylishly proclaim "Fujifilm WP Z," which is not the camera's name (at least in the US). Just above or next to the Fujifilm logo, a small lip rises subtly and usefully, serving as a soft, comfortable grip.
The Fujifilm Z33WP is available in black, green, and pink. Black seems the most attractive to me, but I'm sure my daughter would have gone for pink. My only argument in favor of green is that the Z33WP won't absorb as much heat while you're out having fun in the sun.
Controls. On the back of the Fujifilm Z33WP, the rubber-covered button matrix is more beautiful than functional, casting off the standard four-way navigation cluster, forcing the four arrows into its ten-button, two-row matrix. Pay attention and it works just fine. The soft, rubbery rise gives the only thumbgrip on the Fujifilm Z33WP, and to achieve that you have to rest your thumb on the upper right corner of the LCD, covering part of the view.
The two zoom buttons are at the top of this matrix, and at the bottom is a dedicated Movie button, something I appreciate. Unfortunately, it's a terrible location for a Record button, making for a less stable hold on this small camera when you start and stop recording. Be sure to use two hands to avoid dropping the Fujifilm Z33WP, and you'll probably eliminate a lot of the jostling too.
The shutter button also has a good two-stage feel. Though it's not as clear as the two Olympus Tough cameras, it's clear enough.
Shooting. The Fujifilm Z33WP is a pleasure to use. That small tight build makes using it fun somehow, an impression bolstered by the relatively good shutter lag times. At wide angle, it's 0.5 second for a full autofocus and capture cycle, and at telephoto it's a longer 0.72 second. Not bad, about what we're used to getting from a small point and shoot in 2009. Prefocused shutter lag gets even better at 0.037, which I call responsive.
Shot-to-shot in single shot mode is really bad, though, taking 3.6 seconds between shots. If you take multiple shots like I do to make sure the focus is right, it's a little frustrating. Startup is faster, at 2.2 seconds.
"Feels good in the hand" is trite, and really doesn't convey just how sweet the Fujifilm Z33WP feels. I predict instant impulse buys at camera counters.
But it's good we're reviewing it here, because it's not all good news. Optical and image quality are poor. Is that really a surprise in a digital camera that's currently selling for $160-$200 online?
VGA movie. Movie mode looks decent, which is another plus. Unfortunately, you cannot zoom while recording. (Click image to download 6MB AVI file.)
Corners are very soft, a softness that extends quite far into the frame. There's very little geometric distortion, happily, and though we call chromatic aberration "strong and bright" in our review, it's not going to be a huge issue in prints, because you're not going to be able to print that large due to the corner softness. Detail in the center never reaches sharpness, either. Is that due to noise suppression or optical deficiency? Hard to say. Probably both. If this were a six-megapixel sensor, it would probably look fantastic. I miss those.
As for noise suppression, even though it appears to be active, blurring the image, there's plenty of chroma noise to go around even at ISO 64. It's just not pretty no matter how you look at it, and the largest print size we recommend is 8x10.
As fast as Record mode is, it's surprising just how slow Playback mode is. The camera animates each transition, sliding it on the screen in the default Wipe mode. Other options are Slide-in, Fade-in, and Off. I recommend Off for a sane playback experience. Once I made that selection, the Fujifilm Z33WP seemed fast again.
The Fujifilm Z33WP has a "Trimming for blog" option, which is appropriate due to the low image quality. It actually does a lot more than trim, though, it allows you to edit the image's brightness, contrast, and color, as well as add several other effects.
Ultimately, the Fujifilm Z33WP is good at helping you capture images for printing at 4x6-inch sizes and for sharing on the Web. It's one of the sweet spots we were looking for, and the price is right. It's absolutely not for everyone, but it's a heck of a bargain in a waterproof snapshooter.
How the Fujifilm Z33WP fared:
Your intended use
- Purpose: The Fujifilm Z33WP's autofocus is fast enough for daily snapshots both indoors and out. Its 10-foot submersion rating makes safe to use in most light watersport activities.
- Kids: The LCD on the Fujifilm Z33WP isn't great in the sunlight, but it's still usable, and refreshes fast enough indoors or out. Compared to the other budget waterproof model in tis roundup (the Olympus 550WP), the Z33WP's shutter response makes it the hands-down winner where kids are involved.
- Ruggedness: It's not shockproof, so be careful.
- Cold: It's also not freeze proof, so keep it in warm clothing; you won't have to worry about perspiration.
Your expected output size
- Print sizes: The Fujifilm Z33WP's output is best for small prints and web posting: 8x10 is a stretch at the lowest ISO (5x7 inches is a more practical limit), and that remains true up to ISO 400, which is as high as we recommend you go.
- Landscape: It's cute and fun, but the Fujifilm Z33WP is not a landscape camera, so bring along your better, non-waterproof camera for capturing the scenery, or find the budget for a higher-end waterproof model.
Versatility
- As an indoor snapshot camera, the Fujifilm Z33WP has the AF speed, but white balance isn't the greatest, with images coming out reddish. This combined with the very soft images keep us from recommending the Fujifilm Z33WP as an everyday carry camera. If it had a decent six or seven megapixel sensor, it would probably be more forgiving of the lens' shortcomings, but 10 megapixels reveal all this lens's faults and adds noise, softening the image more. But at close to $150 as of this writing, it's a great camera for occasional splashing; reserve the other pocket camera for everything else.
Click here to see the Fujifilm Z33WP review
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