Looks like Fuji is on a roll

[P_Schneider]

My wife's F30 still has the new camera smell and Fuji announces the F40fd already. Looks like this is a replacement for the F20. It has some new features like SD / XD card slots, new body style, 8mp sensor (although it still states 6th gen so it should be the same as the F30), different menus and of course, face detection. See the main page for details. There is also 2 new A series cams too. The biggest thing I see here is the trend to move to SD cards instead of XD. I might have to stock up on some 2 gig cards in case they discontinue making them.

[stever06]

I know what you mean. I'm on my 3rd charge and now it's an old model. Thank goodness they don't cost as much as cars. Cards shouldn't be issue as long as Olympus stays on this path (or did I miss something), but it seems that multi-card formats are becoming more frequent on new models.

[CMYanko]

I'm surprised the didn't update the aging E900??

I'm also surprised they didn't push for a wider angle on the low end. I really think more camera's should start down around 28 and then have 3.4 or 4x lens to get up around 100 like Sony did with the SD800.

Here is the F40fd page:
http://www.fujifilmusa.com/JSP/fuji/epartners/digitalF40fdOverview.jsp

I doubt they are getting away from the xD market but must have felt they may be losing sales.

[MaxxFusion]

I am curious to know the size of this camera. From the pic is looks thinner almost the size of the SD800.

[Camera101]

Is there some sort of theoretical benefit to Xd cards? I mean are there any areas that the Xd might be better than the SD type cards?

[DavidNJ]

I'm surprised the didn't update the aging E900??

I'm also surprised they didn't push for a wider angle on the low end. I really think more camera's should start down around 28 and then have 3.4 or 4x lens to get up around 100 like Sony did with the SD800.

Here is the F40fd page:
http://www.fujifilmusa.com/JSP/fuji/epartners/digitalF40fdOverview.jsp

I doubt they are getting away from the xD market but must have felt they may be losing sales.

These are PRE-Ces announcements. I imagine there will be an 8MP F50fd, maybe an E1000fd, and presumably an S7000fd in the near future, all with the new sensor.

The F30 will be two generations old (F31fd and F50fd) before the summer. Note the F30, F31fd, and S6000fd all have rebates. I was wondering about this. Now it appears to be clearing inventory.

[TooNice]

Umm, looking to upgrade my F11, which was only bought.. 12 months ago. Little did I know that the F30 was just around the corner then.

I really appreciate support for SD card in the upcoming F40fd (this is one of two things on my wishlist - the other being support a more efficient video recording format). But while support for ISO 2000 is better than the max of 1600 I have now, it is a step back from the F31fd on that department.

I suspect that resolution sells better than ISO, but I would have prefered if they had they kept the 6.3MP and ISO 3200 or better yet, allow an ISO of 3200 up to 6.3MP and tone and drop it at max resolution.

[CMYanko]

Umm, looking to upgrade my F11, which was only bought.. 12 months ago. Little did I know that the F30 was just around the corner then.

I really appreciate support for SD card in the upcoming F40fd (this is one of two things on my wishlist - the other being support a more efficient video recording format). But while support for ISO 2000 is better than the max of 1600 I have now, it is a step back from the F31fd on that department.

I suspect that resolution sells better than ISO, but I would have prefered if they had they kept the 6.3MP and ISO 3200 or better yet, allow an ISO of 3200 up to 6.3MP and tone and drop it at max resolution.

If they kept the 6.3 and ISO 3200 it would still be the f31fd! Still the compact I'm recommending these days.

[CMYanko]

These are PRE-Ces announcements. I imagine there will be an 8MP F50fd, maybe an E1000fd, and presumably an S7000fd in the near future, all with the new sensor.

The F30 will be two generations old (F31fd and F50fd) before the summer. Note the F30, F31fd, and S6000fd all have rebates. I was wondering about this. Now it appears to be clearing inventory.

An 8mp F50 is just an F40 and they're pushing that sensor as it is at 8mo so I doubt we'll see a 9 or 10 MP F50 even until they roll out the 7th generation chip. The S7000 already has been done already and I don't expect a S6100/6600 until the sumer camera show for release next fall. The S5Pro is already out so I doubt we can expect any kind of stabilization in something like the next one in the 9x00 line since it doesn't have a sensor based system like Pentax which I though Fuji might pursue.

Rebates aren't always about clearing inventory. In the case of the F30 it may have been but in the case of the S6000 I think it was just marketing boosting sales to help disappointing sales projections.

[DavidNJ]

An 8mp F50 is just an F40 and they're pushing that sensor as it is at 8mo so I doubt we'll see a 9 or 10 MP F50 even until they roll out the 7th generation chip. The S7000 already has been done already and I don't expect a S6100/6600 until the sumer camera show for release next fall. The S5Pro is already out so I doubt we can expect any kind of stabilization in something like the next one in the 9x00 line since it doesn't have a sensor based system like Pentax which I though Fuji might pursue.

Rebates aren't always about clearing inventory. In the case of the F30 it may have been but in the case of the S6000 I think it was just marketing boosting sales to help disappointing sales projections.

The F50 is an F40 with ISO 3200, aperture and shutter priority modes, and the one or two other features that distinguished the F30 from the F20. I would expect it within a couple of months at most.

The S6000fd is the only super zoom/SLR like camera in the Fuji lineup with the 6.3MP chip. I would expect it to get the chip upgrade, but not a new case like the others. Maybe it will gain little things: enhanced EVF resolution and brightness, simultanous RAW and JPEG, maybe faster RAW saves.

The real wild card is whether their will be an E900 upgrade with this chip/electronics package.

The annoying part is the 2-3 month lag between announcement and availablity coupled with the short life span (6-12 months) means that within months of buying a camera it is obsoleted by one with significant enhancements.

[mattdm]

Is there some sort of theoretical benefit to Xd cards? I mean are there any areas that the Xd might be better than the SD type cards?

xD is the update of the failed "SmartMedia" cards. Like those perversely named cards, they have no smarts at all, but rather rely on an intelligent controller in each device. Theoretically, this means they could be somewhat cheaper, but thanks to market forces, that's not actually the case. So in short, "no".

[DavidNJ]

The SDs are way cheaper. The lowest I've found for the 2GB xD is $65, however there are 2GB SDs advertsed for $20 or $25. For two, that is an $80 savings.

[Brain2Me2]

I wonder if they will release the V10 with face detection?

I'm going back to Fuji (from Canon) and I like how the V10 looks, but I'd like it to have FD...If not I'm gonna have to stick with the F40fd.

[soccerjoe5]

i wonder when they're gonna release an ultrazoom with real optical stabilization and SD card support? i'm really itching to get the S6000fd but i want those 2 features :confused:

[Camera101]

So will I have a big performance hit by getting a fuji F30 with the Xd card (type H) rather than waiting for the next generation of the F30 with the SD cards? Is it just in the price that the Xds have against them? I found a 1GB type H Olympus card for $30, which I can handle (Of course an equivelent SD would be $10) but if the Xd will slow the camera down I would rather just wait for the SD model.

[sjseto]

Is there some sort of theoretical benefit to Xd cards? I mean are there any areas that the Xd might be better than the SD type cards?

From the Wikipedia page on xD cards (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XD-Picture_Card):

Comparison with rival formats

The xD format primarily competes with formats such as Secure Digital card (SD), CompactFlash (CF), and Sony's Memory Stick.

Advantages

xD cards are fast in comparison with older formats such as SmartMedia (SM), MultiMediaCard (MMC), and MemoryStick (MS).
xD cards have a small form-factor in comparison with other formats (although Memory Stick M2 is smaller).
xD cards have a low power consumption.
xD cards are very small, which allows devices to be smaller, especially USB flash drives.


Disadvantages

Traditional xD cards have a fairly small theoretical maximum capacity in comparison with other formats, though with the introduction of Type H technology this is less of an issue.
xD cards are much slower than their main competitor, SecureDigital (SD).
xD cards are generally more expensive than cards of other formats.
xD cards are less widely supported than many other formats, both by camera, reader, and accessory manufacturers.
xD card is a proprietary format only used by Fujifilm and Olympus, much like the Memory Stick card is with Sony. This means that no public documentation or implementation is available. Compare this to the somewhat open SD, or the completely open MultiMediaCard and CompactFlash standards.
xD cards could be lost or broken due to their small size (as with all smaller memory cards).


The advantage that I found most interesting was the low power consumption. I thought that perhaps it's one of the reasons why the F10 and F30 get such amazing battery life. Except that when I look at the average to mediocre battery life of the Fuji Z1 and some of the Olympus cameras that also use xD cards, that theory doesn't always hold up.

Stephanie

[TooNice]

If they kept the 6.3 and ISO 3200 it would still be the f31fd! Still the compact I'm recommending these days.
A F31fd with an SD card slot. That, would make my purchase decision far easier.

[Duwenbasden]

If I can stop production of a card type right now, it will be xD:

- it is SLOW (my old Kingston slow-speed SD writes faster than my high speed Oly xD-H)
- it is expensive ($20 for 2GB SD, $100 for xD 2GB)
- my Sandisk card reader have BIG troubles reading the card quickly, unlike CF and SD.

I think Fuji will stay the F50 at 8MP, because I think they know what the F30 crowds are and wants and displeasing them isn't the best decision. Most of the F30 people bought it because they know about the ISO and big pixel size (sensor size / pixels). I am hoping they stay that way, otherwise I'm going to another brand if they EVER TRY a 1/2.5" on the F50.

[mattdm]

So will I have a big performance hit by getting a fuji F30 with the Xd card (type H) rather than waiting for the next generation of the F30 with the SD cards? Is it just in the price that the Xds have against them? I found a 1GB type H Olympus card for $30, which I can handle (Of course an equivelent SD would be $10) but if the Xd will slow the camera down I would rather just wait for the SD model.

The F30 is a really fast digital camera. I doubt the F50 (or whatever) will be significantly faster on either media type. Possibly slower, since it'll presumably be saving bigger files.

Plus, that model isn't likely to be available until July or later. That's a pretty big performance hit right there, if you're actually in the market for a camera now. :)

[Camera101]

The F30 is a really fast digital camera. I doubt the F50 (or whatever) will be significantly faster on either media type. Possibly slower, since it'll presumably be saving bigger files.

Plus, that model isn't likely to be available until July or later. That's a pretty big performance hit right there, if you're actually in the market for a camera now. :)

Yea I know... I already got the F30 anyway, hoping it will arrive soon;)

[opteron]

I expect F50 will feature a real manual mode and a real image stabilizer. F line, at least, should not given solely to marketing people.

[mattdm]

I expect F50 will feature a real manual mode and a real image stabilizer. F line, at least, should not given solely to marketing people.

I'll be shocked if there's an image stabilization system. Next year, maybe.

[aurin]

IS in the f50 (or otherwhere) would imho be a disadvantage, as the physical properties of such a "feature" will make the camera more succesible to damage!
In my short time with the f31 it has been suviving interesting drops with grace, and i have learned to trust a sturdy design, allthough grip could be better:

Look at the HP 817 design if you have a chance, with curves in the metal fitting your fingers both back and front and big buttons that can be used with glowes, that was awesome (it had perfect panorama stictching built in; serious noice starting at iso 200 makes it useless for scandinavian winter pictures...)

The SD lack had me avoid the f10, but finally the f30 was too good specs - now i lost the cable and have no xD reader, so my f31 sits there and grins at me:o

For my palm tx i use the ingenious SD Plus USB card, and have people googling, really hope it can be used in a f50!

Aurin
Finland