FujiFilm FinePix S5100 Zoom (FinePix S5500)

Opinion: I bought this camera about 2 years ago when it first came out. I payed almost $600 CAN for this camera and 6 months later it dropped to $300, and a year later 5200 came out with the price tag of $300.
In other words, I've payed quite a bit for this camera.
But I must say I have been very happy with this camera.
(I'm sure that i took more than 3000 shots with this camera :D)

10X optical zoom gives the user the versitility they would need for almost all situations.
Image quality and AWB was satisfactory or great.
One of the best thing about this camera is that this camera is extremely easy to use.
Even though the RAW mode is buried inside the menu, all other essential functions can be accessed quickly and easily.
Noise level is low, ISO 400 is usable.
There is nothing particulary good about this camera but it is great all around.
oh.and the Construction is good too :D

In regards to the battery life, it is amazing.
On my trip to Quebec, with 4 AA Ni-MH 2300 mAH batteries, I was able to take more than 400 shots before needing to recharge them. (no flashes used)

Opinion: An ok camera.

I bought this a while ago at the cash converters, and thought it was great.
However, after using SLR (film) I can see the huge limitations that this camera has - such as the zooming and focusing are quite poor.

The fact that it only allows up to 512mb memory cards is poor, and also the very slow continuous shoot is annoying, and the video is also average (and short)

The noise (grain) is quite bad on this camera - much worse than D-SLR cameras or other larger point-and-shoot cameras, but it is much better than most smaller compact cameras.

Also, the lack of hotshoe is quite poor - an option for an external flash would be good.

Opinion: The image quality rivals my Canon D-60 (dSLR). In fact it has better color, contast and shadow detail! Sharp enough for cropped 11 X 14 prints.
Excellent feature set and ergonomics. I love the high-speed, back 3 frames for sports shooting. I have the Fuji 1.7 tele-extender and even with that attached I can get sharp prints up to 11 X 14. (A mono-pod is a must.)
Overall, for its size and price, this camera packs a punch. I can't imagine traveling without it.

Opinion: This camera is a bit old now so one can't be too harsh on it. I use it at work to take pictures of furniture.
It really struggles in low light but when you get it right with this camera it takes beautiful pictures.
The user interface is good, but the menu system isn't great.
I can still not understand why this camera and the 5600 still do not have image stabilizer. If it did have it would be one of the best on the market.
It uses four batteries which gives it a great lifespan and also allows the flash to charge rather quickly.
Although very light and cheap feeling, it is easy to hold and use. It has a handy little clip for the lens cap to attach to the strap in order to keep it out the way - I would have liked this for my Sony which I use at home.
The zoom is a little slow but okay and autofocus isn't the best in low light.
I like this camera due to its lovely picture quality, but I would rather look at the competition before I bought this one or the 5600. My advice is to go for the Sony H2, the Canon S2 or the Lumix FZ-5

Opinion: Not to bad for amatures of photogrphy.Used it for about a year and for me it was a step up after few canon's (A60,A90) cause of DSLR like look.I have to tell you that it is a great camera to practice with and I even decided to keep it as a back up.

Opinion: Great camera. Many features of more expensive cameras for a lesser price.

Opinion: This camera ROCKS! I bought it in January of 2005 and have very few complaints. Nice big zoom and GREAT lens. Macro mode is good, and colors (except for reds) are excellently reproduced. Noise isn't the best, but for the price it's pretty good. For anybody who wants an inexpensive digital camera that's EXTREMELY versatile. It's a great camera to learn on. I originally owned a Honeywell-Pentax film SLR from the '70s, and this, even though quality isn't quite as good, is a great value. If you want to become a pro someday or something, the S5100 is a great learning camera.

Opinion: Great cam, normal quality is a bit high on compression, BUY THIS ONE!!!!

TAKE MY WORD FOR IT!!!

Opinion: I have been using this camera for last two months. The picture quality is very good. Macro mode is just awesome. Manual control of the flash is too good to control the feature, compared to automatic. The usual AA battries is another thing to notice compared to the special battires that comes with the camera, when running out of battery you can just be on with a energizer or duracell battries.