Fuji X100

[Rick Dreher]

Here's a possible "wow" camera for you digital rangefinder fans.

http://finepix.com/x100/en/index.html

http://finepix.com/x100/en/pack/pdf/x100_English_0906.pdf

A thing of beauty, at the very least. Rumored availability early 2011. Time enough to save up, hopefully. I'll bet it's less than half the price of a Leica X1.

Cheers,

Rick

[Franco Darioli]

There is a theme developing here : retro/classic look and top of the range, never mind the cost, releases.
Have a look at Olympus re-launching the Zuiko name.
Franco

[Dirk Rabdau]

Terrific looking instrument, but if it is debuts around $1,000, it will be interesting to see how it sells.

[carl becker]

This may be just what I am looking for. I will be keeping an eye on this. I was impressed with their 6×7 folder but the focal length is not to my liking and I have gone completely digital.

[Rick Dreher]

If is performs as implied by the specs it will certainly sell, at least as measured from a low-volume camera standpoint. Consider the direct competition:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/650518-USA/Leica_18420_X1_Digital_Compact_Camera.html

Then add the $350 optical finder and the (so help me) $125 bloody grip (because you don't want to drop $2,350 worth of camera and finder just because we intentionally made it slippery). Certainly there's no red dot on the Fuji but it will still seem quite competitive in comparison. (And I have a hard time believing the X1 is going to hold its value in the magical red dot way. In five years it will be a five-year-old digitial camera with no upgrade path.)

The typical buyer of either already has a giant bag full of dslr gear and is looking for another path.

Cheers,

Rick

p.s. An added "hmmm" in view of rumo(u)rs the X100 might list for as much as $1700. It will be up to Fuji to clarify where this critter will be landing.

[Franco Darioli]

Fuji has made some very exotic, limited production cameras before , like some with/for Hasselblad .
One Fuji only version was the Natura (24mm 1.9) only sold in Japan . A mate of mine had one.
Sometime these products are flag waving exercises not meant to make money just to say "yes we can".
Franco

[T kawa]

I agree this looks quite tasty, but I can't afford it unless I win the lottery… fingers crossed.

I'm glad it's being made though, variety is good. interchangable lenses would have been nice though, especially with an adapter for my pentax ltds.

[Rick Dreher]

Luckily, we may only need to "place" in the lottery, as Fuji has indicated an MSRP in the US$1000 region.

Cheers,

Rick

[Rick Dreher]

Adorama is now taking pre-orders at $1200, FWIW.

Cheers,

Rick

[Dale Wambaugh]

Sexy and probably a good image maker, but the retro designs ruffle my feathers. Digital camera design does not need to be tied to the old 35mm SLR designs. They could do so much more, but I'm sure they are stymied by marketing issues.

[carl becker]

A DSLR is tied to the mirror box. EVF can change things a bit. Personally I like simple basic tools that are designed right the first time old or new. I do not like viewing from the LCD on the back of the body of a P&S. The Fuji X100 is a much better hiking package than my D700 but I don't like the fiddly filter setup Fuji always seems to put on their rangefinders, sad. I just went ahead a got a smaller Nikon to use hiking.

[Rick Dreher]

It's tough for me to so much as plug this camera into an existing category, much less pass judgment on its suitability. Fuji is pioneering new concepts here and that may explain why they're "going retro" with the general design, which I have no hesitation labeling "beautiful."

Foremost might the hybrid finder, which is beyond anything I'd dared imagine as a digicam viewfinder solution. If the execution is half as brilliant as the concept it could force other makers to emulate it–and everybody wins. (The rumor mill is whispering about a pro-grade Nikon mirrorless system announcement this spring, which would surely need a top-notch finder to attract the pro market.) I also like the finder's place to the far left, which means I wouldn't be forever pressing my nose into the rear display. Left-eye dominant folks might find otherwise.

The fixed prime is a surprise, but not unprecedented alongside the Sigma DPs and Leica X1. Surely Fuji invested their vast optics experience in making it excellent, and it is fast. Clever too is the internal ND filter, which will be a big help in taking advantage of the f:2.0 lens in daylight, as well as facilitate dragging shutter speeds for time exposures. Since it's a leaf shutter the camera should be effectively silent, and synchs with a flash at all shutter speeds, a big deal when using daylight fill flash or external flash.

Likewise, Fuji's imager and processing prowess should be on prominent display. If they can do it for Hasselblad….

Reconsidering what category to plug it into, the X100 will cost as much as, say, an E-PL2 two-lens kit with finder–an entire system for the same money. OTOH it's barely more than half the price of an X1, which doesn't even pretend to give you a viewfinder. Or, for the money you could buy both DPs (but be prepared for a mountain of frustration using them).

The digital market is squeezed from both ends. DSLRs are a mature market and no longer advance by great leaps, so sales are leveling off. Entry level compacts are being replaced by smartphones. Out of nowhere, mirrorless systems have staked out a good market share in a bit more than two years, especially in Japan and Europe. Because of all the turmoil, we'll see further innovation as even the most stodgy makers (i.e., Canon and Nikon) decide to hop off their comfy perches and turn their designers loose. In five years we'll hardly recognize the joint.

Cheers,

Rick

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