Although this camera is now a bit out of date, it's still an excellent buy in my opinion. I bought this over a year ago and spent a long time searching for the 'perfect' digital camera. This one fit the bill.

It's small and light enough to be carried anywhere and the quality of the pictures are *excellent* for the size of the machine. At the time of buying, I had the choice of the larger, heavier model with higher quality pictures or this lighter one with slightly less quality. I'm very pleased with the decision I've made, and have taken 100s of beautiful pictures with this camera, and it's still going strong!

The battery can be a bit fussy sometimes but has a long life and charges exceptionally well. I haven't had a problem with it, or the accompanying software, as of yet.

My only complaint is that the travelling case is insufficient. It merely has a small loop to go around your neck, which is uncomfortable. They'd do better to make a shoulder-strap for it, but then again I could easily rectify this situation by buying myself a proper carrier.

Over all, I think if you're just someone like me who appreciate small, sleek, high quality devices and just want to take some beautiful pictures then this is a very good choice for a digital camera. If, however, you're looking into professional photography or are a bit of a 'camera snob' I don't think this will be what you're looking for, but luckily there are many great digital cameras out on the market now that would be perfect for you.

Had a problem with recharging the camera (not a battery problem, defective camera). Attempted to use the warranty: after hours spent on the phone with unhelpful Fuji staff, after months of waiting, after Fuji not returning the battery (took 6 weeks to get it back), we got a beat up refurbished camera back!!! It broke within a week!!!! Thanks for nothing, Fuji.

I got the finepix F401 to replace an Olympus digital camera that was dropped to the floor. At first I was impressed. The camera is very easy to use, the software is very good, and downloading pictures to the computer is extremely easy. Teh small size makes it very easy to carry anywhere.

However, I soon discovered what I think is a major flaw. The camera is great for outdoor pictures, but close to useless for anything indoors. As others have mentioned, the flash is grossly inadequate. Even at 4-5 feet the pictures come out poorly illuminated. The Olympus coudo take great flash pictures at 10 feet or more, while the Fujifilm has trouble even at 4-5 feet. Using the supressed flash/strobe flash function is not a solution because you cannot hold the camera in your hand while doing so -- pictures come out blurred. The autofocus does not work well indoors, to the point that I have to try several times until the camera finally manages to focus.

I am very disappointed with this camera and surprised that Fujifilm would put out a camera with such an inadequate flash. After having spent money to get this, I am reluctant to get another camera so soon (it will certainly NOT be a Fujifilm), but I may have to. This camera is useless for even the most basic indoor pictures.

Don't waste your money -- get an Olympus instead.

I have had this camera for almost a year and can't say enough about it. The main point would be the size, it is small enough for me to stick it in a pocket and forget I have it. As a result, I take it to many places I would have never hauled a camera before.

Also, as a digital, I upgraded to a 128M card and can take almost 100 pictures. I have never run the battery out even using the flash extensively. Since I bought it in June 2003, I have taken 2245 pictures! I don't think I took that many pictures my entire life before that. In addition, these pictures are organized on my computer, posted on the web, burned on CDs and sent to parents, and printed using online services at $0.12 ea for 4"x6" prints!

In short, not only do I like the digital aspect, I like the reliability and size of this specific camera. I would recommend it hands down for the people like me, that want more pictures of their friends and family and don't want to spend a fortune on film or carry a cumbersome and delicate camera.

For the price, this is a huge step up from my former digicam. I found out about fuji finepix when i was visiting the site: http://megan.scatterbrain.org/notmartha/index.html the photos on that site look like they are taken with a 3,000 dollar camera but they're not, they're taken by a finepix so i bought this one. While i believe LIGHTING IS EVERYTHING in photography, I just can't believe the quality of photos this camera takes, whatever the lighting situation. It's SUPER easy to use and I can use smartcards (which are cheaper than those new type of cards) I love the way you turn it on-- sliding the bar with the little lights on it in the front) It's very tiny! people are amazed how small it is when i bring it out. It's smaller than it looks in the picture. The battery lasts forever and you can charge it in 3 hours by just plugging it into the ac adapter which is SIMPLE!!! USB cable is SIMPLE and i use XP's picture wizard that comes up automatically when i plug the camera in. I've taken some very high fashion shots during a photoshoot with my brother and they came out nearly as good as his nikon which is worth thousands. and i didn't even have the luxury of the flashing light boxes. Overall I'm VERY happy about this camera it was an excellent investment and I did lotsa research at steve's website and decided to go with this one. Soon, I'm going to be posting some cool great pictures that i take with my new camera at my clothing design website curvegirl.com so watch out for that.

I got this camera as a gift about 2 years ago. It was my first digital camera, so of course I was super excited and impressed (mainly because I didn't know any better). It is a cute design, compact, and sleek. But after using it for a couple of months, I'd compare my pictures to other people's pictures with different digital cameras and their pics always looked clearer and brighter. But I still liked my camera because it was a gift from a special person and I was content with the functionality of the camera. But recently, the camera all of a sudden turned red. It was like there was a really bad filter on the camera. I took it to the repair shop and they told me that it would cost $144 to fix it. Fuji's repair costs are really expensive. Needless to say, I'm searching for another camera (I think I'll get a Canon). All in all, it's an okay camera, but you could probably get something much better at about the same price.

I purchased my F401 from Wolf camera in the Fall of 2003. Photography is one of my hobbies and with small kids, I needed something small, and light that travelled well. The F401 was on sale for $150.00 and I jumped on it. The salesman explained that it was a discontinued model, but I got it anyway. I was so impressed with its functionality and photos. The pictures come out very clear without alot of work. They download easily to the PC, although I usually take my Smartmedia card to a CVS and print the shots there, then delete them if necessary. I purchased a larger Smartmedia card to allow for more photos.

Just this month, I pulled out the camera to use and the pictures were blurry. The colors look as if they are running. I took it to Wolf for advice and the sales rep advised me that it was problem with the lens. He said it had been dropped (no!) or crushed some way (?)! I used in on a rainy day once and I think the moisture creeped inside and destroyed the lens. It would cost more than the camera was worth to fix. However, I love this camera so much that I am searching for another one just like it. The only reason why I did not give it 5 stars is because it has been discontinued and I may have to pay more for it now than my initial purchase price. BUT YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!!!!!

had it for 1 DAY then the problems started!!!! It cant take pictures anymore i dont know what the problem is but the pictures are never good its all black with messed up green blobs and no picture at all....
and the people that answer calls for fuji are no help at all!!
get something diffrent

Mine won't be the greatest of reviews as the camera I ordered arrived in non-working condition and I had to get a refund... Whether it is a really good camera or a bad one I simply cannot say as I never had the chance to use it. Sorry.

Take outstanding outdoor photos. Easy to use, aim and shoot. I highly recommend the Fujifilm FinePix F401 to new users of digital cameras.

Well, the camera is apparently a very popular fuji brand. However, when I purchased my camera (brand new) the LCD view finder monitor didnt even work! Production on the particular item has long ceased, which makes it vertially impossible to fix or replace. So, if you want to take a coin toss chance on spending your hard earned money, be my guest. I did, and lost!

I RECEIVED THE CAMERA AND IT WAS DAMAGED WHEN I CONTACTED THEM THEY SAID THEY DID NOT HAVE ANY MORE OF THAT SPEC. ITEM BUT THEY WOULD SEND ME A RETURN SHIPPING LABEL AND THEY DID WHAT THEY SAID IT WAS GREAT SERVICE.

Three times I have contacted the supplier and I never have receive a response. The camera received was broken and I demand a reimbursement or a new product.