Fujifilm X10 12 MP EXR CMOS Digital Camera with f2.0-f2.8 4x Optical Zoom Lens and 2.8-Inch LCD

This is supposed to be my wife 's X'mas gift and it doesn't seem to turn out that way as I have been spending more time than her with this camera. To give you some background, I myself have already owned a Canon EOS 7D DSLR and a Sigma DP2S compact camera. While the Sigma is compact and excels in image quality when light is sufficient, it remains sluggish. It 's like an old man. Compared to the Sigma, the Fuji X10 is like an energetic pretty young lady. Fuji really knows how to market this thing by capitalizing its success on the X100.I originally was considering getting the SONY NEX-5N for my wife, but there were a couple of issues swaying me from SONY to Fuji. First, there was this clicking noise thing with the NEX-5N during video recording. Unfortunately, SONY screwed up and released the camera too soon without thorough QA. Despite the fact that SONY has offered new NEX-5N owners with free repair, I didn't want to deal with the hassle. I wanted a camera that worked out of the box for my wife as it was supposed to be a surprise gift. Because of this hesitation, I had a little more time to look at other cameras including the Nikon 1 series and even Micro 4/3.From the beginning, I didn't really like the Nikon 1 series at all. When a camera company employed Ashton Kutcher for its commercials and introduced a new line of camera with a pink body option, I knew I would try to disassociate myself from it, although my wife might have thought otherwise. For the record, our first digicam was a Nikon. So no offense to Nikon fanboys. I did actually try out the J1 at my local Best Buy. The J1 's AF was screaming fast. However, it lacked a PASM mode dial and VR seemed to be not as effective as I had expected. After some pixel peeping at Fuji X10 's captured images, I would say its IQ is on par with Nikon 1 series'. Another important thing to consider is that Nikon J1 is made in China and is priced higher than Fuji X10, which is made in Japan. The metal material on Nikon J1 body does not seem to be made out of magnesium alloy. It has a color coating similar to my Yashica EZ-F521 Chinese knockoff. On the other hand, the Fuji X10 really feels substantial in my hands. Its body feels really solid similar to my Canon EOS 7D.As for Micro 4/3, here you have Panasonic GF series and its latest pricey GX1, apart from the confusing and constantly revised Olympus PEN series. I almost clicked the buy button when the Panny GF2 was selling at $299 a couple weeks ago. However, I resisted. While my wife might have been glad to settle with the GF2 since she had owned a Lumix point and shoot before and liked it, I felt that Panasonic had not really made much progress in CMOS sensor advancement. Quite a few online reviewers like Steve Huff were saying that the Fuji X10 and Nikon 1 were as good as micro 4/3 in terms of IQ. And don't forget their sensors are smaller than Micro 4/3's. On top of that, Fuji X10 has a secret recipe which is its EXR technology. By pixel binning and doubling up the pixels in each color channel while sacrificing the sensor resolution by half, the X10 could either increase dynamic range in high contrast situations or reduce high ISO noise without sacrificing details in low light conditions. In the former case, it is similar to shooting HDR without the use of a tripod. With the X10, you can now capture HDR-like images with subjects in motion without the need of exposure bracketing and morphing multiple frames into one image. How cool is that? But then you only get 6 megapixels out of it. So what? Are you going to make large prints out of this compact camera? In essence, the most important feature with the Fuji X10 is its EXR mode. It can be found in the PASM mode dial. EXR mode is similar to iAuto of Panasonic Lumix except that Fuji 's version is more intelligent. The camera would analyze the scene and determine for you whether to apply more dynamic range or more noise reduction using its proprietary EXR recipe. This is a truly brain dead point and shoot to get the best image out of the camera. And I 've found it performed consistently well in my first few days of use. Image stablization also works nicely indoor. I could get pretty good still images around 1/8s shutter speed consistently. Well, not having a mirror flapping up and down did help.Since I have an interchangeable lens system already, I didn't want my wife to become another lens snob like me as I have already owned a bunch of lenses for my EOS 7D. This is pretty much my biggest gripe if I were to go with SONY NEX. The Fuji X10 features a built-in fast zoom lens. Unlike other compact cameras with built-in zoom lens, the Fuji X10 tops off at F2.8 when you zoom out to the telephoto end. This is quite a bit of advantage in terms of capturing freeze motion of your subjects in the entire zoom range. Another advantage of the built-in lens is that the sensor would be less prone to dust. Even though my EOS 7D has anti-static coating and ultrasound vibration in its sensor, I still need to clean it from time to time as I change lenses a lot in the field.As far as AF is concern, the Fuji X10 is quite snappy. There is one cool feature in its face recognition. The X10 could register a few captured faces in its memory and allow the AF to prioritize its focus to these registered faces upon recognized by the camera. Although I have not tried it yet, I think this is a pretty cool feature. This would be extremely useful if you let some brain dead strangers to take pictures of yourself and your family among other background pedestrians.Regarding the video recording function of Fuji X10, it really puts my Canon EOS 7D to shame. Besides full HD 1080p/30, the X10 supports dynamic auto focus, auto adjustment of exposure, and even auto adjustment of white balance, all without significant lag when you pan the camera around the scene. It performs just like my old Digital 8 SONY Camcorder. No more fiddling with exposure knob and focus ring. I am jealous at my wife now. I will update more about video recording once we get more experience with it.Another important feature worth mentioning is the super macro mode. Since the X10 sensor is relatively small, it allows you to capture a magnified image of your subject better than a DSLR with a non-macro lens. Your working distance can be about an inch away. The super macro mode works very well especially it gives you more depth of field on the subject with the relatively small sensor. I actually prefer this than using the macro lens on my EOS 7D where I would normally have to go F11 or beyond to achieve more depth of field and bring the whole subject body into focus. If the light condition is not good, I would have to use flash, which is not my preference.So there you have it. A nice compact camera with beautiful retro styling packed with Fuji 's advanced EXR technology. Have I mentioned the price yet? Oh $599 may be a bit steep for most people. One would argue that you could almost get an entry level DSLR for that kind of money. At first I agreed and thought this camera should have been priced slightly above the Oly XZ-1 or Canon G12. But then when you look at it closely and check the images posted on X10 Group under Flickr, you would find this little camera really stands up against the bigger Micro 4/3. I told myself why not give it a try as I am intrigued by Fuji EXR sensor, which in my opinion is still inferior to Sigma Foveon sensor in broad day light. I figured that the opportunity cost would be the loss of our enjoyment if I have waited for the X10 price to drop when competition catches up. Yes, people are willing to pay a premium for new cool stuff. There are also reasons why people want to buy a Lexus over a Toyota even though some of their models are the same cars.I think most reviewers have covered other technical stuff on the Fuji X10 and I don't want to re-iterate other highlights. There isn't really much low light worth mentioning from me unless I want to nitpick this thing to death. I want to offer potential buyers another perspective in terms of choosing the right camera for their needs. You have to decide what your priorities first. For instance, if I were a starter in serious photography, I would not have picked the Fuji X10. I could get an entry level DSLR or even SONY NEX with more bangs for the buck. I would say this Fuji X10 is a very good companion to any serious photographer who has already had another main camera body for serious work. The X10 is meant for fun and casual. Don't treat its image quality too seriously like your DSLR. Just get a Sigma or any latest DSLR if image quality is your top priority. The Fuji X10 is perfect for street photography. It 's discrete and quiet. It draws no attention in the crowd. You could switch it to silence mode and nobody would even notice you taking pictures of them. With the cool looking hood, you would draw conversation from fellow photographers. It could even be your pick up line. Without any commitment to an interchangeable lens system, you can almost view the Fuji X10 as a good one night stand. A very good one with a smile indeed.And one more thing. There have been some discussion in dpreview.com about white orbs appearing in blown out highlight areas. So far, touch wood, I have not encountered such problem in my first few days of use. I tried to shoot at some reflective surfaces and light sources. I did not find any white blobs or dots what-so-ever in my images. If I ever do, and hopefully not, I would update this review accordingly.Update 12/6/11:After spending a couple more days deliberately shooting at reflective surfaces and light sources, I think I 've found on one occasion where there was a cluster of white orbs. I didn't see these orbs on X'mas tree nor any shiny surfaces both indoor and outdoor. The orbs appeared when I shot directly at the sun. The center spot of the sun in the captured image was a cluster of orbs with radiating light rays, whereas my other cameras would normally show one circular radiating star. It 's not that bad, not a show stopper for me. Perhaps this could be a calibration issue with the camera's analog front end since a handful of users claimed they saw more orbs than usual. I 'll trust that Fuji would fix it in its next firmware upgrade. Remember, cameras like this requires very high precision engineering and manufacturing. I wouldn't be surprised that there are defect escapes when new model is first released. In the past, I have bought a lemon lens and a defective speedlight from Canon to give you an idea. This is no worse than the dreadful red dot issue when the Nikon D7000 and Canon 5D MK2 were first released. That 's why I don't pre-order, and I always purchase from Amazon, Adorama, J&R, or BH photo so that I can return for exchange or refund immediately.Update 12/14/11:The face recognition really works marvelously. You can register faces of your partner, family members, or friends and the camera would name those faces when you look into the LCD viewfinder while taking your shot. It would even recognize the same face with or without eye glasses. Wonderful handy feature. Also I have not seen any white orb after over two weeks of usage. I believe my copy is a keeper. I would be cautious about upgrading the firmware once Fuji has it available for fixing the white orb syndrome.

Two years ago, I upgraded from a Canon SD1000 to a Canon S90. The image quality was fantastic with great high ISO performance and sharp images, even wide-open in the corners. Other aspects of the camera bothered me though. It didn't feel expensive - the front control ring was loose and felt cheap when I used it to change aperture, the flash frequently jammed even when I'd never pushed it down or interfered with its motorized action, the buttons felt cheap, the LCD developed stuck pixels quickly and had an uneven backlight. This year, I felt I needed something new. Thanks to the popularity of the S90, even on the used market, I was able to recover about half what I paid for it new.Enter the Fujifilm X10.BUILD QUALITY & SIZE:The best build quality I've seen in a compact, ever. Speaking as someone who cares perhaps a bit too much about aesthetics, I'm in heaven. Magnesium and aluminum everywhere. The dials are tight and the zoom ring has a lovely heavy, fluid action. It's simply a joy to use. It destroys the PowerShot S90. The viewfinder is bright and big for a compact but it's total lack of shooting information makes using it more of a novelty under all but the most predictable conditions. Size-wise, the X10 is a bit smaller than expected. Holding it was initially awkward with the neck strap lug attachment in the way of my right hand but I'm beginning to adjust to it. More than anything, I'll miss the pocketability of the S90. Even with its case I could slip it into my jeans pocket. The X10, with it's protruding lens, will never fit in any of my pockets. I'm awaiting the Fujifilm LC-X10 case to come down in price to sane levels before picking one up.IMAGE QUALITY:The first thing that struck me about the X10's images was the color. Compared to the S90 and other compacts I've used, the colors are more realistic, more lifelike, less harsh and digital. They resemble my Canon 30D DSLR's images more than anything. Fujifilm cameras have long been known for their lifelike color reproduction and the X10 has it in full force.Dynamic range, even without using the EXR "DR" sensor-split expansion mode, is very good. Using DR400 at 6 MP gives it almost an HDR quality, but more realistic. Highlights are generally well-controlled although a phenomenon can occur at low ISOs with bright highlights like chrome: circular, hard-edged white orbs. I've seen these on a handful of shots and once you see them, you can't "unsee" them. I really hope Fujifilm can fix this with a firmware update. My S90 never had this issue, in fact, I loved using it to take 15 second night shots at ISO 80. Fujifilm has to address this. In my opinion, its the biggest flaw of the camera.High ISOs are very good. Things fell apart for my S90 above ISO 800. The X10 holds strong up to and including ISO 3200. More detail is retained and noise is finely-grained, not the jaundiced yellow blotches the S90 produced at ISO 1600 and 3200. I'd like to use RAW but Adobe needs to update ACR to recognize X10 RAW files first.Resolution is good but not appreciably better than the 10MP S90, particularly at low ISOs. The lens seems to be sharp in the corners, even wide open. There is some barrel distortion at 28mm but nothing too bad. The f/2-f/2.8 lens allows for much more depth-of-field control than what was possible with the S90. Will it replace my 30D and 60mm f/2.8 lens for portraits? Not quite, but it's darned good for a compact.My favorite "special feature" is the 360° Panorama mode. It works surprisingly well. The only caveat is the vertical resolution is an unimpressive 1080 pixels.Speaking of 1080 - the 1080p, 30 FPS video is pretty good. Autofocus and zooming are present and accounted for, unlike the S90. There is some of the dreaded CMOS "jellyvision" going on but only in certain circumstances.WRAP-UP:I'm sure you can tell that I really like this camera. Canon lost me with the S100, which I was eagerly waiting for - too much of a priority on compactness and lens range at the expense of control and image quality. Fujifilm built the X10 for photographers and its evident in how it looks, feels and operates. One thing to think about is this: Unlike Canon, Fujifilm doesn't have a low-end DSLR market to compete against. They went all-out with the X10 since that price bracket is totally empty for them. If you don't mind the relative bulk or price and you value a real "photographer's camera", the X10 is for you.***UPDATE***I tried to work around the "white dot" issue for months now. Even after the firmware update that was promised to reduce the phenomenon, the issue remains and is as bad as it ever was. It was very unethical for Fujifilm to roll out this update knowing it wouldn't resolve the issue, allowing the return window to expire as mine did. Now I'm forced to unload this camera used at a loss. Fujifilm will never have my business again.***UPDATE***In the end, Fujifilm pulled through and did the right thing. I sent my X10 to the New Jersey service center and received a brand new replacement, entirely devoid of the "white dot" phenomenon. This leaves me with an incredible compact that eventually led me to replacing my Canon DSLR with a Fujifilm X-Pro1. While some of Fujifilm's products can be a little rough around the edges, it is clear that the company has a strong collective passion for innovation in the field of photography and especially sensor design. Well done, Fujifilm!