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First actual Fuji X100 sample images

By sample images I thought you meant samples taken WITH the camera? All I see is a picture of the viewfinder! :(
 
At first glance it seems like a competent camera, but that should not really be a surprise. I would expect any new camera to perform well.

I'm not 100% sure about his comparison pics though. The amount of image degradation on the circuit board does not match what he saw with the rusty hinge. And either he used a crappy lens on the D7000 or it's not focused/set up properly because the Fuji seems sharper. But as I can't read norwegian I can only go from what I see in the pictures.

Ruahrc
 
Ruahrc said:
At first glance it seems like a competent camera, but that should not really be a surprise. I would expect any new camera to perform well.

I'm not 100% sure about his comparison pics though. The amount of image degradation on the circuit board does not match what he saw with the rusty hinge. And either he used a crappy lens on the D7000 or it's not focused/set up properly because the Fuji seems sharper. But as I can't read norwegian I can only go from what I see in the pictures.

Ruahrc
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I don't see why you think he had to use a crappy lens for the fuji to be sharper. Fuji can and have made class-leading lenses. It is entirely possible that the X100 will produce sharper images than the D7000 with the best comparable (similar focal length) lens Nikon make.
 
robbieduncan said:
I don't see why you think he had to use a crappy lens for the fuji to be sharper. Fuji can and have made class-leading lenses. It is entirely possible that the X100 will produce sharper images than the D7000 with the best comparable (similar focal length) lens Nikon make.
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Fair enough. However, given my experience with Nikon equipment, those circuit board images aren't that soft because of equipment limitations- it looks mis-focused to me. Also on the rusty hinge, his ISO 400 sample is softer than both the 200 and 800, due to what appears to be misfocus or camera shake. Things like this call into question the validity of any of the comparisons the author has made. Again I can't read the text to see if he explains his methodology or motivations behind his testing design, just going from what I see in the pictures.
 
dpreview's preview of the X100 was also very positive. They basically said that the hype about the camera and its concept has some merit :)
dpreview's Preview of the X100 said:
The X100 is a camera that has intrigued ever since its announcement, and this has only been compounded by the wait since Photokina so see a working version. And while the model we have is still a prototype, it's fair to say that it lives up to expectations in many respects.
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In particular, they write that the build quality is exceptional and to be compared with a Leica M9 rather than anything else.

@Ruahrc
I noticed that about the test shots, too, and I was thinking for a moment that the author mistook the ISO 800 shot for the ISO 400 shot -- or simply didn't nail the shot. In any case, the image quality seems very good.

Regarding the lens, as others have pointed out, Fuji is very capable building a high-quality lens. They've built many exceptional lenses for medium format cameras, for instance. And the X100 has the advantage that the lens is built specifically for the camera. It even uses a bi-aspheric element. I don't have any concerns about the lens quality.

However, I was also wondering about the apparent lack of sharpness of the D7000's test images which are jpgs. Nikon doesn't apply strong sharpening to its in-camera developed jpgs -- which can account for quite a bit. And in case of the Nikon, the choice of lens is important, e. g. did the author use a macro lens? In any case, I think a valid conclusion is that the Fujinon lens seems to be very sharp. :)
 
Fuji have posted some sample images on the X100 site now. They have also released a press release regarding the commercial availability of the camera in the US (no news for use outside the US). Pricing on Amazon is the expected $1200
 
DPreview has a new article today saying it's been commercially released.

UK RRP seems to be £1020.

Personally, I'm loosing interest in this. The hybrid viewfinder sounds quite interesting, but I wasn't particularly impressed with the samples I've seen so far. Fuji have limited the design with some of the decisions they've taken - for instance you wouldn't be able to do any sort of interval timer shots or time lapse video with it, since it doesn't have an electronic release.

Looking too expensive and too limited.
 
firestarter said:
Looking too expensive and too limited.
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Unfortunately I am beginning to agree with you. Had pre-orders been available when it was first announced I might have bought one there and then (although I think I'd have waited for a review). Will be interesting to see what happens to the price after a couple of months. What seems expensive at >£1000 might seem OK at £750...
 
I'm inclined to wait 'till Nikon or Canon enter the 'EVIL' fray.

Shame that Panasonic has taken it's GF2 downmarket - I think the GH is a bit big. Now that Schneider has joined micro-4/3rds we might see some very interesting new lenses.
 
firestarter said:
I'm inclined to wait 'till Nikon or Canon enter the 'EVIL' fray.

Shame that Panasonic has taken it's GF2 downmarket - I think the GH is a bit big. Now that Schneider has joined micro-4/3rds we might see some very interesting new lenses.
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Yeah, Olympus have said they are going to release a more up-market/pro-oriented m4/3 body in the near future along with some higher priced/more exciting lenses too. I could end up with a m4/3 camera as my small/carry anywhere option yet :)
 
firestarter said:
Personally, I'm loosing interest in this. The hybrid viewfinder sounds quite interesting, but I wasn't particularly impressed with the samples I've seen so far.
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I don't understand this: nothing really new has been put in the announcement. Why would you be more disappointed now compared to a few days ago? dpreview's preview was rather positive.
 
OreoCookie said:
I don't understand this: nothing really new has been put in the announcement. Why would you be more disappointed now compared to a few days ago? dpreview's preview was rather positive.
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I took the opportunity to re-read the specs. Fuji had instigated a consultation period last year, and opened up a suggestion page on their X100 web site - implying that they were taking on suggestions and still making changes to the software.

I'm sure I wasn't the only one who pointed out to them that the mechanical shutter release left them with a camera that couldn't do interval timer shots and therefore time-lapse photography (which is currently something the Panasonic 4/3rds cameras are widely used for). They could have put a timer mode into the software, but did not. Mixed photo/video is an important 'use case' for me, for a camera which I'd want to use as a lightweight travel camera.

Today's announcement that the camera is now released, effectively shows that Fuji haven't taken suggestions on board, and have fixed the specs without features like this. That's what's changed (oh yes, and the RRP is towards the top end of expectations).
 
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firestarter said:
I took the opportunity to re-read the specs. Fuji had instigated a consultation period last year, and opened up a suggestion page on their X100 web site - implying that they were taking on suggestions and still making changes to the software.
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I agree they could have incorporated some suggestions. On the other hand, most of the reactions were very positive (just have a look at the threads dedicated to the X100).
firestarter said:
I'm sure I wasn't the only one who pointed out to them that the mechanical shutter release left them with a camera that couldn't do interval timer shots and therefore time-lapse photography (which is currently something the Panasonic 4/3rds cameras are widely used for). They could have put a timer mode into the software, but did not. Mixed photo/video is an important 'use case' for me, for a camera which I'd want to use as a lightweight travel camera.
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Since I'm not someone who is into time lapse photography, I didn't even think about that. But even now, given that the idea behind this camera is to make a modern-day replacement of a rangefinder (sans interchangeable lenses, of course), I still think they're spot-on with the design.

Of course, options like interval timers would be a nice addition, but to me, it's not a deal breaker. The higher than expected price hurts a little, but I wasn't planning on getting an X100 until I change jobs. I'm tired of waiting for Canon and Nikon to give us an EVIL camera -- and even if they do, I'm not sure their first iteration will be such a finely crafted piece of camera. Although I wouldn't mind to be proven wrong :)
 
Like all things, we each have a set of features we want to see, some of which are 'must have'. To win me over, this would be up against my current travel rig, which is a Canon 550D and 24mm lens (so I'm happy with just a single focal length).

I'm definitely going to try one when they hit the shops. I used to own a Fuji fixed-lens rangefinder camera (the GW670III) for a few years, so I don't need convincing that Fuji can make great cameras, or that the rangefinder format is worthwhile.

I read the DPreview preview and saw that they liked it, but I'm not really swayed by the whole 'design beauty' thing - I prefer functional cameras. One problem with Japanese camera buyers is that they seem to have some sort of 'rangefinder fetish' and that raises my suspicions that a company like Fuji might concentrate too much on form at the cost of function.
 
firestarter said:
One problem with Japanese camera buyers is that they seem to have some sort of 'rangefinder fetish'
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Yet they don't seem to be willing to buy enough rangefinders to make cheaper than Leica digital rangefinders worthwhile making for anyone (if they were there were Epson might have continued the R-D1 series). They like stuff that looks superficially like a rangefinder. I loved the X100 when I first saw it. Now I'm a little worried it's too much style over substance.
 
Somebody is going to someday make an affordable Leica M9 sort of camera, probably a smaller company than Nikon or Canon.

The Fuji is very nice, but a fixed lens is just not enough in this range.
 
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