Announced today, the throwback-styled Fujifilm X10 aims to outgun competing cameras in the "premium point-and-shoot" class. Because of its size and feature set, it's more of a competitor to the larger Canon PowerShot G12 and the Nikon Coolpix P7100 than to more-compact options such as the Olympus XZ-1, the Nikon Coolpix P300, the Panasonic Lumix LX5, and the Canon PowerShot S95.
The new X10 offers a larger sensor than all of the cameras mentioned above, as well as a wider aperture than all but one of them at the telephoto end of its zoom range. Like most of them, it offers full manual exposure controls, a RAW shooting mode, and a few unique extras that should make it a compelling competitor for other performance-minded (semi-)compact cameras.
It's also a bit bigger than the rest of the pack, clocking in at 2.2 inches deep, 4.6 inches wide, and 2.7 inches high--more like the size of a compact interchangeable-lens camera, except with a fixed lens.
In addition to its old-school aesthetics, the X10 also features an optically stabilized, manually operated 4X (28mm to 112mm) zoom lens; you twist the lens barrel to adjust focal length rather than use a powered zoom toggle. The top of the camera also hosts a dedicated exposure-compensation dial for fast adjustments.
The camera lets you select between manual focus and autofocus via a front-mounted dial. The X10's lens has maximum aperture settings of F2.0 wide-angle to F2.8 telephoto, and is faster at the telephoto end than we've seen in any competing camera other than the Olympus XZ-1 (F1.8 to F2.5).
Besides a back-mounted 2.8-inch-diagonal LCD viewfinder, the X10 also offers an eye-level optical viewfinder. Unlike the unique electronic/optical "hybrid viewfinder" found in the Fujifilm X100, the viewfinder in the X10 is a purely optical version with diopter adjustments. The camera also has an electronic level, which you use via the LCD screen.
The Fujifilm X10's 12-megapixel EXR CMOS sensor (2/3-inch type) is larger than those found in many other performance-minded point-and-shoots. Like the company's previous EXR-branded cameras, the X10 offers a few EXR-specific shooting modes in addition to aperture-priority, shutter-priority, and full manual exposure modes: a signal-to-noise mode for capturing low-noise shots in dim lighting, a high-dynamic-range mode, and a high-resolution mode for well-lit situations.
Other in-camera features include a "motion panorama" capability that stitches together an instant panoramic image by panning the camera; bracketing modes for exposure, ISO, HDR photography, and effects filters; and a pop-up flash in addition to a top-mounted hot shoe.
Fujifilm says the camera can power on and be ready to shoot in less than a second, and that the ring around the lens barrel can be used to power the camera on for a quick start-up time as you're framing the shot through the optical viewfinder. Fujifilm also claims that the X10 has a minimum focal distance of less than 0.4 inches in macro mode, and that the camera has an extremely fast shutter response time to go along with its boot-up speed.
In burst mode, the camera can capture 7 frames per second at full 12-megapixel resolution, as well as up to 10 frames per second at about a 6-megapixel resolution. The X10 also offers a 1080p video mode at 30 fps, saved as .mov files.
Comments
nightshooter said: This may be what street photographers who shoot mostly at night have been dreaming of
Frank said: Canon does neutral density filters inside the lens if you want to use it wide open on a bright day like in its new S100 Dont know if Fuji has it though
Gardener said: Simon not such a serious limitation even if you dont have ND filters Simply set the ASA sensitivity setting down to 100ASA Unless you are wanting to shoot sun spots with a shallow DOF that should do it However this serious limitation can also be conquered simply by switching the aperture to F28 where shutter speeds of up to 14000 secare available for a veryinsignificant increase in DOF Few compact camerass can beat that by more than 1 stop 18000th sec and most of those are restricted by offering only aF28lens anyhow
iveljay said: Its the set-up that formed the basis of many of the worlds greatest photographs It was the basic configuration of pre-digital pro cameras and with this camera you get the benefit of a decent zoom thrown inLooking forward to it
Simon said: Indeed- on a dull day it might be ok- shame about the bright day though To have to use an ND filterif indeed you can use one on the X10 to accommodate a design flaw is poor- 11000 sec is a serious limitation
Mr_Mistoffelees said: Have you never heard of neutral density filters And what about those times you want a shallow depth of field on a dull day
Simon said: I dont see the point of having an f2 lens when the minimum shutter speed at this setting is 11000 sec Complete nonsenseAny shot which requires a shallow depth of field on a bright day might prove very difficult Bad move Fuji- and please ditch the EXR nonsense