FinePix HS10, with a 30 x Zoom

If you are not in the megapixel rat race, go for this super zoomer.

It’s here, the maximum optical zoom on a consumer camera. It has, take a deep breath, 30x optical zoom. Yes, a 720 mm zoom lens, with triple image stabilisation and a brand new sensor with 10 megapixel back side elimination sensor.

It also has a fantastic 3 inch tilting LCD screen, which is viewable even from wide angles, both indoors and outdoors. The camera has an electronic viewfinder as well, which powers up automatically the moment you put your eye to it. And the camera will also give you full resolution continuous shooting at 10 frames per second, as well as full 1080 p video shooting with stereo sound. 

If you are looking to get creative with the camera, you can also use it for 1,000 frames per second video shooting, sweeping panoramic views and stitching the pictures together for really panoramic views. 

A special mode also removes any moving objects from the pictures that might cause a blur in the image. Best Frame Capture allows you to capture the best frame, before and after the click. The camera supports both Raw and Jpeg modes, and you can switch to either by pressing just one button. Plus, you don’t need to charge it, as it runs on regular AA batteries. So, goodbye to the headache of carrying chargers around.

There is also a manual zoom, which you can use just as you would in an SLR camera. The popup flash is manual (thank God it is not automatic) and a hot shoe for external flash units is also available. The big problem with this camera is that its LCD gets smudged with your nose. While the display screen can tilt, it does not fold back into the camera. The tilting screen, however, is very versatile in most shooting scenarios.

So if you are looking for a powerful consumer camera, with features that make you go wow, and are not in the rat race for the highest megapixel on the block, this super zoomer is a great buy at a brilliant price point.

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