Fuji Introduces New X100S - Claims Worlds Fastest Autofocus

Yeah, the DPR previews are up for both of these cameras now and Fuji has clearly abandoned the idea of a raw button and switched to "Q" menu buttons on both. As I think was the obvious choice...

-Ray

I just wish they had given it the four way controller on the X Pro. That wheel is torture. On the other hand the Q button gets rid of the biggest problem with the little wheel which is trying to access the menu without hitting WB or whatever instead. Admittedly I'm really clumsy so it's probably just me.
 
Those of you that have the x100 and then go out for this .. must report back! Inquiring minds want to know..

I have pre-ordered it. The only things I love more than my X100 are my dogs and my X Pro. Outside of the little wheel from Hades, this is a dream camera for me. I love the X Trans sensor. They have also included a new processor with the sensor that should further improve on the X Pro and XE's already outstanding IQ. I shoot the X Pro at ISO 3200 all the time no worries. If the auto focus holds up (and it looks good on the Fuji guys video) this is going to be a great camera. Now I just have to figure out how to pay for it. I only need one kidney right...? I guess it would help if I would stop rescuing abandoned dogs and cats. :)
 
Those of you that have the x100 and then go out for this .. must report back! Inquiring minds want to know..

It's definitely going to to be a step up. But the bar was so high, I think the step up is realistically an incrementally small one.

But gearheads tend to make mountains out of molehills. I'm sure many will say that the "IQ" blows the old X100 "out of the water". My inkling is that if you looked at a gallery of 20 random shots, none of us would be able to pick out which camera made which shot. But I'm glad these camera makers keep pumping out new models. The used market is like a freaking buffet right now.
 
I went ahead and preordered one from Amazon this morning.I have confidence in Fuji that they will support any unforeseen glitches in this iteration if they need to.I have been so thrilled with my x100 that I already know what to expect in this model.I am buying this camera based mainly on the ability to manual focus it.Split focus and focus peaking along with a phase/contrast hybrid focusing system sounds like a dream.Improved resolution evf, better manual/s-af button,normal focus range brought down to 1.6 ft.,Quick menu,improved video,much to improve the pleasure of using this camera.If the IQ improves,that will just be a bonus.I think I can get what I paid for my X100 as I bought it cheap 6 months ago.So I can justify the purchase by not having to buy lenses for it.I have my E-M5 for that.I haven't heard anything about when it will actually be in my hands but I really am thrilled with the improvements,especially since they left the appearance unchanged.That, in itself,is quite amazing.
 
It's definitely going to to be a step up. But the bar was so high, I think the step up is realistically an incrementally small one.

But gearheads tend to make mountains out of molehills. I'm sure many will say that the "IQ" blows the old X100 "out of the water". My inkling is that if you looked at a gallery of 20 random shots, none of us would be able to pick out which camera made which shot. But I'm glad these camera makers keep pumping out new models. The used market is like a freaking buffet right now.
In terms of IQ, the improvement is an increment - more or less the same as the difference between the X100 and X-Pro / XE1. The new X100s should basically just take the small step to equal the current X-Trans IQ - no indication that it'll top them. But operationally, the changes appear to be more than incremental IF Fuji meets the grand claims they're making now in marketing materials. The AF speed should be a LOT better. everything about manual focus looks improved, from the throw of the ring to the two new visual focus aids. The speed of everything from write times to shutter lag to shot to shot time sounds considerably improved. The usefulness of the menu layout looks better all around and vastly better in terms of auto-ISO (one of my major peeves with the X100). How much these operational improvements mean to a specific user will vary, but they don't look incremental to me. The technical quality of the photos created will be very slightly better than the X100, but the shooting experience promises to be notably nicer indeed.

-Ray
 
It does look like the shooting experience will be significantly improved. As for IQ, I suppose that's more personal. I feel the difference will be very significant in terms of detail and the overall aesthetic of the files. My final output is print, so I suppose that influences my view.
 
I feel the difference will be very significant in terms of detail and the overall aesthetic of the files. My final output is print, so I suppose that influences my view.

Exactly on the aesthetic, which to me is the most important part. The other improvements are nice. You can spend time in front of the computer emulating this, but I prefer not too. I also agree there is a difference if you print since I print quite a bit.
 
The AF speed should be a LOT better. everything about manual focus looks improved, from the throw of the ring to the two new visual focus aids. The speed of everything from write times to shutter lag to shot to shot time sounds considerably improved.

I hadn't seen any mention of a change to the operation of the manual focus ring, and while the new focusing aids are cool, I find pretty much ANY focus-by-wire mechanism so disconnected from how it SHOULD feel that I only use it for special instances (and I'm speaking about the improvements they made with the firmware with the shorter throw distance increments). If it can ever be made to feel like an old lens, that would be a different story.

I also think you got rid of your X100 before they sped up the AF. After the firmware upgrades, I think the AF is pretty darn fast. It's fast enough that I'm able to shoot my wife riding a horse in a dimly lit barn (and wide open, too with the shallower DOF).
 
I also think you got rid of your X100 before they sped up the AF. After the firmware upgrades, I think the AF is pretty darn fast. It's fast enough that I'm able to shoot my wife riding a horse in a dimly lit barn (and wide open, too with the shallower DOF).

+1 on this. As for focus by wire I concur. It's just not the same as a mechanical lens + OVF.
 
I hadn't seen any mention of a change to the operation of the manual focus ring, and while the new focusing aids are cool, I find pretty much ANY focus-by-wire mechanism so disconnected from how it SHOULD feel that I only use it for special instances (and I'm speaking about the improvements they made with the firmware with the shorter throw distance increments). If it can ever be made to feel like an old lens, that would be a different story.

I also think you got rid of your X100 before they sped up the AF. After the firmware upgrades, I think the AF is pretty darn fast. It's fast enough that I'm able to shoot my wife riding a horse in a dimly lit barn (and wide open, too with the shallower DOF).

One of the Fuji Guys videos showed the focus ring using a much shorter throw to work through the range from zero to infinity - kind of similar to the X-Pro which I've never had any problems with. I agree about the manual focus aids. As I think I mentioned elsewhere, the focus peaking and the split image aids are pretty cool but not something I'd personally ever use. My use of manual focus these days is almost always for zone focus, where a good distance scale matters and nothing else much does. And the X100 AF had improved considerably by the time I sold mine - I didn't mind it when it was new and it only got better from there. But then I'd shoot it or the X-Pro back to back with the EPL3 or now the OMD and the difference was stark. Didn't matter for the kind of shooting I do with the Fujis, but it was not a small difference and it would matter for some people more than others. And I generally like the feel of a snappy camera - it just feels that much more connected and able to get any shot you're going for that way.

I'm highly unlikely to get the X100s (although if it was 28mm instead of 35, I'd get it and lose the X-Pro). If the 28mm extension lens was smaller, I might get it and lose the X-Pro. I shoot the X-Pro mostly with the 18mm and just prefer that focal length most of the time and the X-Pro with the 18mm is a handier package than the X100 with the wide angle extension lens. So not much of a decision. But there's a lot about the X100s I'd like more than on the original (and a couple things more than the X-Pro) and if I was good with a 35mm equivalent, I suspect I'd be very excited about that camera...

-Ray
 
so you're buying the X-Pro1S then ;)

Beats me. But that's what I was thinking about in asking that other question about whether the initial X-Pro lenses would even be able to take advantage of any future bodies that might have the hybrid CDAF / PDAF focussing. If they don't, there might not be much point in upgrading, at least in the hopes of better AF performance. I guess time will sort it all out, but these recent announcements, while extremely interesting to a camera geek, seem to leave my butt cheeks welded pretty firmly to the fence for now. It's not like I find anything lacking in the X-Pro! So, maybe, maybe not....

-Ray
 
Used prices on the X100 are coming down already, so I can probably continue my routine of getting the second to the latest thing at a bargain. Yes! The E-P1 focused fast enough for me, so I suspect I'll be OK on the that score with the latest firmware. I'll get an S when the S2super-duper come along.
 
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