Second all those who pour on this camera didn't find anything better to complain about that is "poor noisy ISO-1600". Who shot on ISO 1600 unless you are a spy ? I make some 22000 (twenty two thousands, not a typo) photos during a year 2005, I found 16 (sixteen, not a typo again) made on ISO 1600. It is pretty much useless ISO that virtually NO ONE uses. It is the same thing as to complain that your car has a poor acceleration on the altitudes above 8000 feet. May be it really does but who cares?!
Second this camera has SUPERIOR VIDEO mode. You can capture full blown videos, movies and make it as a top quality camcorder does and it is extremely nice!!! I don't take my camcorder anymore, I bring back some 15-20 minute of nice footage , because no one bother to watch longer than that anyway.
Third, the RAW mode. First of all the RAW isn't "hidden in the menus" but it is readily available with super usable, under finger "F" menu. Second no one who is not completely retarded takes RAW shots to convert them to JPEG. If you do it, take the basic photography class, read some books and do not embarrass yourself by publishing this pulp to everyone's eyes. You take in RAW something that is really worthy the effort, some super duper sunset for example and so on. And the included software converts it to TIFF because FUJI assumes that the camera users aren't morons!
Take this camera and learn to use it and enjoy photography. I use Fuji equipment for over two decades from their studio MF cameras to MF GA645-SZ and they never been anything less than THE BEST.
I can understand the fury of manufacturers of low end DSLRs but it is not a way to deal with a competition by pouring on the superior product. You should strive more and make better cameras. Fuji has its own superior sensor, they make their own superior glass, they have their own superior designers, they make unique , wonderful cameras. They have a luxury not to drag in a tail of someone else's sensor design they do on their own.
Every camera that I get from Fuji rejuvenates my interest to photography again and again. Thank you guys at FUJI.

Product Reviews:

       
Don't sell your S7000 until you try it., April 19, 2006
Reviewer: Forest7
This camera has received a lot of good reviews, but as other S7000 owners have commented, it doesn't take as good pictures as the S7000. It seems to me that they cut corners on this camera to pay for the larger lens. There is a USB port, not a USBII port, and the door for it is flimsy rubber.
The manual zoom does not produce better results. The faster shutter speed seems to give less focus time, producing pictures that are less focused.
I know that there are those who like this camera... and I am mainly writing to those who have the Fuji S7000. Don't sell that camera until you try the S9000. I'm glad that I still have mine.

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You "Professionals" that rate the S9000 less than average are out of your minds, March 26, 2006
Reviewer: Devon Cloud "Devon"
I have owned this camera for three months now. When I purchased the camera, I almost did not due to (a) lack of knowledge of photography along with (b)the fact that some of the so called "professionals" were giving this camera a less than average rating. I figured that due to the number of bad reviews by the "professionals" that there had to be something wrong with the camera.
As I did more and more homework, I noticed that everyone that bought the camera for the most part loved it. Those that did not, I noticed turned around a few weeks later and stated that the S9000 was actually the best camera they had ever owned and that the problems they were having were user related.
So, with this in mind, I went ahead and purchased the camera. I wanted a camera that would give me excellent quality pictures but not have the cost of an SLR (professional) camera, and this camera fit the bill.
This camera is awesome! it takes pictures that are good enough quality to blow them up and frame, be in magazines, and I cannot tell a bit of difference between the pictures I take with this camera compared to the pictures my Uncle takes with his SLR. It has features that no other prosumer camera has, it's zoom capabilities are awesome for a prosumer, 9 megapixels, macro and super-macro, and manual focus capabilities... you name it, they tried to fit it into this package... and did.
While I am just a beginner, I have done my homework enough over the last few months to finally understand why this handfull of "professionals" gave this camera a bad rating. They are comparing this camera to their professional SLR setups that probably have cost them thousands upon thousands of dollars instead of comparing this camera to the class of camera that it belongs in, the "Prosumer" class of cameras.
Why is this? I don't know for sure, but I bet it is because they picked up this camera and it has an SLR feel, can do about 90% of everything their SLR setup can do, and for a prosumer camera it has a ton of functions that until this camera came out, only SLR's had the capability of.
What does this mean? The S900 is a "Prosumer" camera that is actually closer to an SLR than a prosumer camera!
I will put it to you this way: anyone that knows a little about cameras that have looked at comparisons and reviews know one major rule: you have comparisons between one prosumer camera and another, or you have a comparison between one SLR compared to another. The S9000, a "Prosumer" camera, is being compared to the SLR's!!!!
Now, for those of us who are thinking rationally about a camera that is worth spending our hard-earned money on, this is huge if you ask me. I can buy a camera in the prosumer costrange (all be it the high-end of that range) of cost that will do most everything an SLR can do! There are of course some limitations such as not being able to change out lenses, but the lense that is on there has such a huge range of capabilities that changing the lense is not necessary for over 90% of the pictures cameras can take!
But, to the "professionals", the fact that there is some "noise" in the 1600 iso setting range on this camera makes it an inferior product???!!!! Come on here guys... name some other prosumer cameras that even have this range! There are none that I know of, and if there are some out there, let's see some comparisons!
The fact that you "professionals" try to place this "bridge camera" in the same class as your professional equipment speaks an incredible amount of superiority of this camera compared to anything in the class of cameras the S9000 truly belongs in (in my opinion of course). Why? because the professionals won't even attempt to compare another prosumer camera with the SLR's. Not only is the S9000 of good enough quality to be compared to the SLR's, it actually held it's own in a number of those comparisons and was even considered a worthy advesary in some of them.
So, let's stop bashing this camera you professionals. I know it stings when you pick this camera up and for $600.00 can do 90% of what your $10,000 setup can do, but let's give credit where credit is due.
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