| BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : NOVEMBER 22, 1999 ISSUE | ||||||||
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| INTERNATIONAL -- ASIAN COVER STORY
A Whole New Bag of Digital Tricks (int'l edition) It would be nice for Fuji Photo Film Co. (FUJIY) if digital cameras were as simple to make as the disposable film variety. But these complex devices pack about 200 components--from chips to software to liquid-crystal display screens and lenses--into a sleek metal box. And the dozens of manufacturers vying to survive in this cutthroat business are building digitals in almost as many flavors as ice cream. Fuji has mastered key ingredients in the recipe. But the competition is brutal, and where Fuji lags, the others excel. So BUSINESS WEEK took one of Fuji's latest cameras, the MX-1700, out for a test drive to check how it stacks up against two of its top rivals in the U.S., Eastman Kodak Co.'s (EK) DC280 and Sony Corp.'s (SNE) Cybershot DSC-F505. The verdict: They're all impressive examples of digital imaging technology, but the standout on pure image quality is the Kodak. PC-FRIENDLY. The Fuji and Kodak cameras most closely resemble traditional point-and-shoot models in appearance. The Sony takes a radical approach, with a big Zeiss lens attached to the camera on a hinge that rotates 120 degrees and with an LCD screen that makes an unconventional viewfinder. All three cameras store pictures on tiny memory cards, display pictures you've just taken on an LCD screen on the back of the camera, and let you download pictures onto a PC, where they can be edited and printed out. As high-end digital cameras, they are all designed to produce photo-quality pictures. None captures the rich colors of traditional film--no consumer digital camera can do that yet. But all three produce attractive 5 x 7 prints off a standard Hewlett-Packard Co. (HWP) 832 inkjet printer and photo-quality inkjet paper. That said, the image quality of these cameras is closely tied to the resolution of their charged coupled devices (CCDs)--the chips that are responsible for capturing images. The performance of these chips is measured in picture elements, or pixels. And while other factors affect the resolution, in general, a higher pixel count means a better picture. The Fuji camera uses a 1.5-megapixel CCD--meaning 1.5 million pixels per square inch. The others use 2.1 megapixels, and the difference is reflected in the price tags: The Sony lists for $999, the Kodak $799, and the Fuji $599. Fuji also makes a 2.3-megapixel camera, the MX-2700--but you pay for the extra quality. In short, the Fuji MX-1700 is a bargain. It is also the lightest and sleekest of the three. It's for people on the move who want a simple point-and-click design. It has a zoom lens and easy-to-use controls on the back, including an on-off switch for the LCD, to save battery power. But the Fuji has a limited bag of tricks. The Sony gives you the option of recording 15 seconds of video with sound, while the others produce only stills. A critical piece of the digital-camera equation is getting the images onto a PC, editing them, and printing them out. On that score, Fuji and Sony both play second fiddle to Kodak, whose software proved the most flexible when it came to downloading images and printing in different sizes. Kodak's simple software and the high image quality of its DC 280 give it an edge over the others, regardless of price. But Fuji and Sony aren't far behind, and Kodak can't count on holding on to any lead. It may last only until the next generation of digital cameras arrives. These days, that never takes more than a few months. By Geoffrey Smith in Boston _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ BACK TO TOP |
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 RELATED ITEMS Fuji: Beyond Film (int'l edition) COVER IMAGE: Fuji: Beyond Film CHART: Fujifilm Holds Its Profits High...While Banking On a Digital Camera Wave TABLE: How Fujifilm Stacks Up against Rivals A Whole New Bag of Digital Tricks (int'l edition) PHOTO: Sony's Cybershot Digital Camera with a Hinged Lens INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online | |||
