A powerful and capable camera in its own right, that can take stunningly good images let down only by glaring usability issues. The overall performance envelope is head and shoulders above any prosumer class camera on the market. The only cameras that can best the s9000 in performance, handling, build and image quality are current dSLR's. And even then, not by much.

You would have to spend real money in dSLR land for the body and lenses (plural) to match or beat what this camera is capable of.

Unfortunately, you may not get that impression upon first use out of the box. The unintuitive menu system alone made me want to bash the camera against a hard rock. The AF system seemed to hunt all over the place. The pictures didnt seem as sharp as its predecessors. Low light performance seemed abysmal. The write speed is often slow.

This isnt a point and shoot camera for the new photographer. It is a hugely capable camera for the serious photographer. The learning curve is steep. Very steep. Reading the manual and taking the time to learn the features and capabilities is mandatory, not optional.

But once you do learn the camera, it is a delight in operation and image quality. It is super quick. You can have it powered up, up to your eye, focused and ready to take the picture in less than 2 seconds. The focusing system, used properly, is sure and fast. The images capture a wide range of subtle details. The colors are natural and are nicely punched up in Chrome mode. ISO from 80 1600 is available in all modes. You can take pictures in near darkness (ISO AND EV compensation is your friend). The handling is sweet. The camera feels like professional kit.

(Edit after 6 months of ownership for new s9000 owners)

Per my experiences :

A) Read the manual, Read the manual, read the manual. The camera is capable of quite a bit, so there is a lot to learn about what it is capable of. The initial learning curve is steep.

B) Take time to learn the menu, where all the settings are, because thats where you have to change things like the ISO, color mode and whatnot. Biggest pain in the butt of the camera.

C) For speed, shoot in JPEG mode it slows down hard when shooting in RAW. When shooting in JPEG,you can either shoot 5mp or 9mp for speed and space. The 9mp files are big, so it can slow you down shooting, while the quality of the 5mp files is REALLY good, so unless youre shooting for full quality, you can pretty much shoot in 5mp mode.
(The 5mp images from the s9000 are better than most 5mp images.)

D) ISO characteriistics

The s9000 gives great quality and low noise up ISO 800, where noise will start to show, 1600 is only for truly horrible lighting conditions.. If you want no noise and quality, shoot to up 400.

The camera is very flexible and will handle most lighting conditions with ease. Until you get fading light, then the autofocus and exposure gets slow and indecisive. Recognise that point and go up on ISO, even if you think you have enough light.

Again, you have to go into the menu to change ISO, so you want to learn where it is to change quickly.

E) Image quality.

The image quality may seem not so sharp on standard settings. It is VERY sharp, but on default settings, there is no sharpening applied to the image, unlike most point and shoot cameras which applies a lot of sharpening, so it will seem the image is soft when it's actually quite sharp.
If you think you need to sharpen the images, you can change the sharpening settings in camera or just shoot on default settings (recommended) and sharpen in post processing.

F) The Lens

Zoom is addictive, and the zoom range on this camera is very addictive. :)

Recognise that 200mm is the magic point. Over 200, small movements are amplified, low light shooting is harder and the image quality gets a bit soft. Best to shoot wide at night.

The zoom is manual, so this makes it a two handed camera, if youre used to motorized zoom. The manual makes the zoom very very fast.

Remember to lock the lens hood when using it. Otherwise, its easy to accidentally knock off and lose.

G) Essential accessories

A UV filter to protect the lens and cut down on UV light. Get one. Do not mess around.
Bigger memory cards. xD cards are more expensive than CF cards.
Monopod (with stand up legs) and Tripod, with a ball head.
Cable release (the shutter is threaded for this reason).

H) Other

The camera is very very capable. If the pics arent coming out the way you want, its not the camera, its you. Just work with it.

This camera will make you a better photographer.

Like all Fuji cameras Ive ever used, once you take the time to really learn it, hidden capabilities seem to appear out of nowhere, making you glad that you chose a Fuji.