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Question

Samsung wb600 vs fujifil finepix s2950/s3200

Aug 14, 2011 6:17AM PDT

Hello nerds Wink

I've been looking the last week for a new camera.I need a camera with good optic zoom (minimum 12x) , that takes good pictures, and also good video options (minimum 720p recording, use zoom while recording and good focus while recording). I have narrowed it down to these two:

Samsung WB600 or Fujifilm Finepix s2950/s3200?

I can't choose between these two. So I was hoping for your recommendations. Or recommendations on other cameras in the same price range.

Pros for the WB600:
Easier travel size (more compact).
Gets better recommendations on rewiews + alatest rating.
Looks like the focus is a bit better during video recording (looked at some youtube videos taken by each model), however don't know if it's a settings question,

Pros for s2950:
Better zoom.
Used 4*AA batteries, not lithium like WB600.
VIEWFINDER (I like)

Pros for s3200:
Same as s2950, but read on cnet that this model and up records in mpeg-4 h.264.

Hope you could shed some experties on my dilemma.

Regards Mathias

Discussion is locked

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Answer
Travel Zoom Group
Aug 14, 2011 1:46PM PDT
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Need more help :)
Aug 14, 2011 7:53PM PDT

Thank you for the review, have already read it. Problem is that the winner cameras cost the double of the ones i suggested + the models i suggested aren't even in the comparison.

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Optical Zoom
Aug 15, 2011 5:20AM PDT

For the average person, any optical zoom over 10X is overkill.
When you zoom past 10X you need a tripod to get good pictures.
Very few people want to carry a tripod.
Not only does a zoom lens multiply the image, it also multiplies camera movement.
The further you zoom the more critical it becomes to keep the camera completely motionless.

Here is a review of the Samsung WB-600.
With its smaller size, it should be a good travel camera.

http://www.trustedreviews.com/Samsung-WB600-compact-camera_Digital-Camera_review

..

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Answer
Info on Fujipix S3200
Sep 2, 2011 4:27PM PDT

Hi Mathew,

I own a Fujifilm Finepix S3200 and bought it after long years of service from an Olympus compact and 150,000 photos. I do have extensive experience with 32mm film cameras as I did a lot of press photography many years ago, but it was a means to an end and I wasn't into arty farty stuff. I would like to have bought a DSLR, but just couldn't afford the body plus lenses. The S3200 was the next best thing for landscape and bird photography.

Info on the S3200 is so hard to find online and it was with fear and trepidation that I bought this camera. I wanted it to take reference shots for my paintings. To say I'm delighted with it is an understatement. It's is very good in difficult lighting conditions and shots taken into a low evening sun give amazing colour and detail in those silhoutte-like shadows when you bring up the shadows in a photo software programme. Virtually no graininess at all. Lots of information there that the software can play with. The camera thrives in low light situations as well as bright sunlight.

The superzoom of 24 X is nothing short of amazing. The image stabilizers in the camera work extremely well and I'm producing crisp, clear zoom shots without the use of a tripod, which I still can't quite believe! I just wedge my elbow close to my body and use the viewfinder instead of the screen. Old habits die hard, but this also acts as a stabilizer helper.

The five hundred or so shots I've taken so far have all been on the Auto setting. I've felt no need to play with manual settings yet. When I try to take photos of my landscape paintings this comes a bit unstuck as the camera recognizes them as a landscape and puts itself into "Landscape" mode but still producing quite good shots apart from barrel distortion caused by the telephoto lens used at close range.

Bad points of this camera are the fact that it produces JPEG images and not RAW and there is marked barrel distortion when using the camera for closeup shots of around 3-5 feet. This last is caused by the long zoom lens which cannot be all things to all men.

I have not tried the video settings yet. If I wanted a video camera I'd buy a dedicated video camera. The instruction manual is not the clearest bit of technical clap trap I've seen, but neither is it the worst!

I suspect from the few reviews I have found, and which you too have probably read, that there may be a percentage of "lemons" of this camera in certain manufacturing batches. No problem if you buy from a reputable seller who will honour a guarantee.

I think this must be the best value for money camera on the market.

Hope this is not too late....

Dale