Fujifilm FinePix E550: Fuji's Newest Packs a Punch

The Design: Fujifilm FinePix E550

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The front of the E550 has a large hand grip on the left side that makes handling the camera very easy. There is a self-timer lamp built in to the hand grip that lights up and blinks during a self-timer shot. The lens is capable of a 4x optical zoom with a 35mm equivalent to 32.5mm - 130mm. The wide end of the zoom is just a bit wider than average for most compact cameras. Above and to the right of the lens are the viewfinder window, flash control sensor, and microphone.

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To the lower left of the lens is the "adaptor ring release" button. By pressing this button, you are able to rotate the adaptor ring counter-clockwise. This allows you to remove the adaptor ring in order to attach optional accessory lenses.

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There are a lot of things to see on the back. The E550 features a large 2.0" LCD monitor with 154,000 pixels. On the left side is the E.C. (exposure compensation) button. In the upper-right corner are the viewfinder and the viewfinder indicator lamp. To the right is the flash release button. Pressing this button causes the flash to pop up from its closed position. To close the flash, you must push it back into the body. On the lower right side of the LCD monitor are some of the control buttons. Here, we see the 4-direction pad with separate Menu/OK button in the middle along with the Display/Back and Photo mode buttons. The directional pad is used primarily for navigating through menus. The Menu/OK button serves both to accept an option and to enter/exit the main menu. The Photo mode button is used to access image size, ISO, and color options. Above the Photo mode button is the Mode switch that changes the camera back and forth from Play and Record modes. Above the mode switch is the zoom controller that controls the optical and digital zoom in record mode as well as the magnification of an image in play mode.

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On the top of the camera is the built-in flash. The flash is spring-loaded and can be released by pressing the flash release. The working range of the built-in flash is 2.0' - 14.8' in wide angle and 2.0' - 7.2' at telephoto. To the right of the flash is the main power button. This button turns the camera on and off in either record or play mode. To the right are the shutter button and the Mode Dial. The Mode Dial has 10 positions that cover the range from Auto to Manual to Movie mode.

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The bottom of the E550 has a sliding door that reveals the xD-Picture card slot and the AA battery compartment. The E550 comes packaged with 2 Fujifilm AA NiMH 2300 mAh rechargeable batteries. The camera can also be powered with AA alkaline batteries or an NH-10 rechargeable battery. Additionally, there is an optional "PictureCradle" and AC power adaptor that can be purchased separately. The bottom of the E550 also features a plastic tripod mount.

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On the right side is a post for the supplied wrist strap.

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Click to enlarge.

On the left side, we can see the built-in speaker. To the right is a rubber tab that covers the A/V-out, USB, and DC-in ports. To access these ports, you must physically remove the rubber tab as it is not attached to the camera. Perhaps Fujifilm could have devised a way to attach the tab to the camera. Instead, they have simply included a spare tab in the kit should you happen to lose the original.

The Fujifilm FinePix E550 is constructed mostly from hard silver plastic, although there are some metal buttons and plates. It is very comfortable to hold, thanks to its light weight and generously-sized hand grip. Although it is fairly compact, you will definitely remember that it is in your pocket.