Budget Camera Grouptest - Fujifilm Z70

The undeniably fashionable Fuji Z70 offers something many of the rivals in its price range don't: style. This may not translate directly to how technically sound the photos are, but at least the camera looks more expensive than it is. The social networking features offer the ability to directly upload to the likes of Facebook and YouTube once the camera is connected, and the Image Search categorises your shots into various groups so they can be located more easily.

The Z70 also offers a 5x optical zoom which is a relatively narrow 36mm at its widest point. Digital image stabilisation, as per the Canon A495, is available, as is a single-press movie mode button for an immediate start when recording video. One of the more unusual design features is the sliding front, which acts as protection for the lens when the camera is turned off. There's also an SR Auto mode that automatically alters the camera's scene settings for the environment you happen to be in.         
The majority of the images taken were darker than expected, which may be down to the 36-180mm focal length losing more light en route to the sensor.

Post-processing does a decent job of hiding image noise, upping sharpness and only slightly muddying the colours in the process. Images come out a touch grey and the flash is advised for close-up work. Sharpness at the widest angle of the lens was quick, although at full magnification the digital stabilisation was pushed beyond its means. 

PRICE            £100
MEGAPIXELS   12.2MP
LENS    36-180mm (5x Zoom)
APERTURE    F/4-6.7
STABISATION    Digital
SCREEN SIZE        2.7in
ISO    100-1600
MODES    Auto, P, 16 Scene modes
MEMORY CARDS    SD/SDHC
SOCKETS        USB, AV
DIMENSIONS     91 x 57.1 x 20.1mm
WEIGHT        124.5g

Summary


The narrow lens caused fewer issues than expected, and image noise was hidden well by the processing of the camera.