New Fuji S2000hd takes on superzooms and camcorders

It's nice when you design a superzoom and don't have to worry about your camcorder line. If you give your superzoom too many "video features" you risk cannibalizing your camcorder sales. If you don't give your superzoom many "video features", you risk getting accused of "dumbing down" and "crippling" the superzoom.

Fuji does not have to worry about that, which is why they have gone all out and gave their new S2000hd the "hd" - high definition - name.


Meet the Fuji S2000hd superzoom



Just like the other new Fujis of today, the S2000hd was leaked last week. The official Fuji USA press release can be found at the Imaging Insider and other photography sites.

Some of the key features include:

1. 15X lens, ranging from 28-414mm in equivalent terms
   
2. sensor-shift image stabilization. which Fuji calls "mechanically stabilized CCD"
   
3. does it have a zoom ring? The specs say nothing, but there are no zoom buttons
   
4. No RAW, but has shutter priority and manual exposure
   
5. manual focus, no details given, presumably using the EVF-LCD approach???
   
6. 10mp 1/2.33" sensor
   
7. new signal processor, 16:9 format, 1280x720 movies, hdtv output
   
8. Zoom Bracketing (three shots at current zoom, 1.4x and 2x)
   
9. Fast burst mode at lower resolutions: 6.8fps at 5mp and 13.5fps at 3mp
   
10. Miserable burst mode at full size: 1.1fps (3) in Top 3 mode, and 0.5fps in long-period turtle-burst mode. Enjoy your 10-megapixels :)
    
11. can zoom in movie mode
    
12. extra-large 2.7" LCD (not to be confused with a small 2.7" LCD) :)
    
13. No converter lenses
    
14. No xD memory card support, only SD/SDHC (Wake up Olympus and smell the xD-roses!)
    

The S2000hd is listed at Amazon for pre-orders with a starting price of $300, and an estimated shipping date of September 20. It is also eligible for the pre-order price guarantee, and a "Bill Me Later" promotion.


S2000fd Coverage on the Net

• DC Resource points out that you can get 400 shots with four AA NiMH batteries. Hooray!
  
• Dpreview has lots of details, including their gearhead-friendly detailed spec-sheet