Labs

Speed is a much underrated aspect of digital camera performance. You'll know what we mean if you've ever missed capturing that special moment because your camera took 10 seconds to start up. This is something that affects budget digital cameras more, particularly at higher resolutions.

It's not something that the F10 suffers from. Its start up time is barely noticeable and once it's switched on, you'll be firing off shots like David Bailey. There's even a fast shot mode for even quicker shot-to-shot times, but it's so swift in normal mode that we couldn't tell the difference. Speed isn't the only impressive thing about this camera. It has one of the most sensitive CCDs we've seen in a compact model.

You can also choose to vary the ISO rating right up to a very impressive 1600 setting - considerably higher than any other camera on test. Even more impressive is that, where upping the ISO sensitivity on other cameras introduces a lot of noise or increases the amount of visible grain dramatically, with the F10 pictures remain smooth even at maximum sensitivity.

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Unfortunately, with no manual control over shutter speeds or aperture available, you're forced to use the range of built-in preset scene modes - night, landscapes, action shot and so on - or set the ISO level to achieve the desired effect. Its optical zoom, at 3x, is among the smallest on test.

Other than this though, the camera is a joy to use. Its aluminum body feels extremely well built. The menu system, while confusing at first, is easy to navigate once you learn where everything lives. Also on the plus side, the 2.5in colour screen is larger than average and a joy to use.

It's hardly surprising to find that, with a higher resolution CCD than any of the other cameras on test, the F10 is best at detail capture. And on closer inspection it doesn't disappoint, just edging out the Kodak Z740 on all-round picture quality, though it does fall behind the Canon Powershot A610.

Though the Canon isn't as good in low light conditions, in normal circumstances, the F10's images look both noisy and slightly washed out in comparison. And there's markedly more purple fringing around objects shot against bright backgrounds too.

All-in-all, the F10 is a good compact digital camera. It performs well in a variety of high and low light conditions, has fast power-up and shot-to-shot times plus a large, bright screen. The only thing missing is a range of more advanced controls.