Ahead of CES, Fujifilm is announcing two new digital cameras for their entry-level A line. The Fujifilm Finepix A800 and Finepix A610 provide new affordable options for first time buyers or people looking for an easy to use upgrade camera. There are a lot of similarities between the cameras and the biggest difference is the capture resolution. The A610 is a 6 megapixel camera and the A800 is an 8 megapixel camera. Both cameras will be available in March with the A610 costing $129 and the A800 running at $179.

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One of the things that stood out for me in the press release was that both cameras feature a memory card slot that can accept xD-Picture Cards or SD memory cards. I hope this is a sign that xD is on its way out.

According to market research referenced in the Fujifilm press release, more than half of digital camera purchases in 2006 were made by first-time buyers. Of those first time buyers, about 60% of the purchases were for less than $200. The A610 and A800 are targeted right at these first time buyers, or people looking to upgrade their older 2 or 3 megapixel camera while retaining ease of use.

Here are some of the features that the two cameras have in common:

• New icon-based user interface that includes brief descriptions of the modes and settings
• Fujinon 3x optical zoom lenses
• 10MB of internal memory so you can take a few pictures in a pinch when your memory card fills up
• xD/SD memory card slot
• 2.5 inch LCD
• Plenty of scene modes: 2 shooting modes, 17 scene positions on the A800 and 2 shooting modes, 14 scene positions on the A610

Fujifilm Finepix A800

In addition to the features listed above, the A800 is the first 8 megapixel sensor in Fujifilm's A series of the digital cameras. The 8 megapixel Super CCD also features the low noise performance (at higher ISO settings) than comparable cameras. The A800 can shoot at up to ISO 800 at full resolution.

The A800 is also the first A model to feature a mode dial that allows the user to easily switch between capture mode, playback mode, and movie mode.

Additional A800 features:

• Center AF with macro focus range as close as 10cm
• White balance: Preset(Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light(Daylight),Fluorescent light(Warm White), Fluorescent light(Cool White), Incandescent light )
• Built in flash with wide angle range between 1.6 feet and 12.5 feet
• Movie capture of 320x240 resolution at 30 frames per second with monaural sound
• 2 second and 10 second self-timer
• USB High Speed interface
• Dimensions: 3.8(W)× 2.4(H)× 1.2(D) in.
• Powered by 2 AA batteries

Fujifilm Finepix A610

The A610 is essentially the same camera with a lower resolution and a slightly different spec sheet. Probably the most notable difference, besides the capture resolution, is that it has fewer scene positions (which is really not that big of a deal).

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A610 features:

• Center AF with macro focus range as close as 10cm
• White balance: Preset(Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light(Daylight),Fluorescent light(Warm White), Fluorescent light(Cool White), Incandescent light )
• Built in flash with wide angle range between 1.6 feet and 11.5 feet
• Movie capture of 320x240 resolution at 30 frames per second with monaural sound
• 2 second and 10 second self-timer
• USB High Speed interface
• Dimensions: 3.8(W)× 2.4(H)× 1.2(D) in.
• Powered by 2 AA batteries