Fuji: Four new cameras include one waterproof, three long-zooms

 

 

Alongside its weather-sealed, ultrazoom bridge camera, the FinePix S1, Fujifilm has today revealed no less than four other models. Showing the way the fixed-lens, standalone camera market is headed, one of these -- the Fuji XP70 -- is waterproof, and the remainder -- the Fuji S8600, Fuji S9200, and Fuji S9400W are all long-zoom bridge cameras.

All four will all ship this March, and of the group, the Fuji S9400W -- priced at US$350 -- is perhaps the most interesting. Featuring a whopping 50x optical zoom lens, 16 megapixel resolution, and Fujifilm's new 5-axis image stabilization system, the Fujifilm S9400W also sports a hidden secret -- in-camera Wi-Fi connectivity. This allows you to transfer your images to your smartphone for quick sharing, great for the social networking crowd. Find out much more in our Fuji S9400W preview!

The Fuji S9200, meanwhile, is very similar to the S9400W, with a couple of key changes. What differs? Well, for one thing the Fujifilm S9200 lacks Wi-Fi connectivity, so you'll need to take the old-fashioned USB cable route, or sneakernet the camera's flash card from camera to computer. The only other difference is a pricetag of US$330, suggesting to us that the S9400W is a no-brainer upgrade. But if you prefer to save a little money -- perhaps you don't own a smartphone -- then you'll want to read our Fuji S9200 preview!

 

The Fuji S9400W couples in-camera Wi-Fi and a whopping 50x zoom lens, all for an affordable $350 pricetag.

Then there's the most affordable long-zoom model of the bunch, the Fuji S8600. This one differs from its siblings quite a bit. Resolution is still 16 megapixels, but the 36x zoom reach -- while still quite generous -- is rather shorter than that of the aforementioned models. The Fujifilm S8600 also uses a more straightforward sensor-shift image stabilization system, and it costs a whole lot less. If you're interested in picking this one up for US$230, then read our Fuji S8600 preview!

And so we come full-circle, to the waterproof Fuji XP70. Sensor resolution of this eyecatching camera, which retails in orange, blue, or yellow-bodied versions, is also 16 megapixels. It has a much smaller body and a shorter 5x optical zoom lens, though. And despite an affordable US$230 pricetag, the Fujifilm XP70 includes in-camera Wi-Fi connectivity, just as did the S9400W long-zoom. Unlike that camera, though, you can use this one 33 feet underwater. It's also shockproof, freezeproof, and dustproof. Want to know more? Read our Fuji XP70 preview!