Chinese Manufacturers Developing Autofocus Zoom Lenses also for APS-C and the FujiRumors Top Zoom Lens Wishes

According to reports from the Chiense Weibo account 独立摄影师联合会, three (3) Chinese lens manufacturers are developing autofocus zoom lenses, as reported here.

It’s unclear how many of them will be also for APS-C, but for sure at least one brand will be offering also an APS-C zoom lens.

We know: Viltrox is working on autofocus zoom lenses.

So there will be two more brands joining.

In the Chinese prime lens world, we often see just the very same lens being re-branded over and over again. Let’s hope this won’t be the case with these zoom lenses, and that they all will be unique zoom lenses that not only differentiate from each other, but will also offer something not yet available in the Fujifilm X mount world.

And in terms of zoom lenses, here are the top 3 zoom lens wishes as voted in our mega-lens survey back in 2022.

Top 6 Zoom lenses:

  1. XF 16-55mm f/2.8 MK II
  2. XF 16-35mm f/2
  3. XF 11-30mm f/2.8
  4. XF 16-70mm f/2.8-4
  5. XF 16-135mm f/4
  6. XF 18-55mm f/2.8-4 MK II

Since some are similar, we could merge them into a single lens, and ultimately come up with this lis:

Top 6 Zoom lenses (with some lenses merged into 1 lens)

  1. XF 14-30mm f/2.0
  2. XF 16-55mm f/2.8 MK II
  3. XF 16-70mm f/2.8-4
  4. XF 16-135mm f/4
  5. XF 18-55mm f/2.8-4 MK II
  6. XF 23-55mm f/2

If you want to know what the overall most wanted lenses are (primes included) check out this article here.

Fujinon XF500mmF5.6 Size Comparison vs Other XF and GF Lenses (Based on Speculations)

FR-reader Hiergeist made a rendering of the Fujinon XF 500mm f/5.6 R LM OIS WR and compared its size to the Fujinon XF200mmF2, XF150-600mm and also the GF500mmF5.6.

There is a difference in flange distance between G-mount and X-mount of 9 mm – so the lens has to be 9 mm longer at the mount (assuming the optics will be almost identical between GFX 500 and XF 500). Hiergeist aligned the picture along the lens mount.

To be clear:

  1. this is not the real lens, just a rendering
  2. the size of the XF500mmF5.6 is based on the speculation that because it has the same filter size of the GF500mmF5.6, Fujifilm might simply have made and XF version by changing the mount

If that was the case then that is what that lens would look like mounted on an X-H2.

REPORT: Fujifilm X-M5 Release in October: 26MP, 4K/120p, Cheap Build Quality and Made in Thailand

The Chinese Weibo account 独立摄影师联合会 unveiled that it could already go hands on with the upcoming Fujifilm X-M5. In his Chinese tweet he says here:

I just saw the real Fujifilm XM5, which is probably made in Thailand. I feel the workmanship is not very good. It will be released next month [sad face]

Update: It is a prototype, no wonder it feels a bit loose [doge] It has an unusual color scheme, which is quite cool ​​​

This is also the camera that hides behind the code FF240002.

In a follow up tweet a few days later the Chinese account shared some specs here:

  • 26MP X-Trans BSI image sensor
  • X-Processor 5 image processor
  • 3-inch vari-angle touchscreen
  • 4K60p video (4K120p in crop mode)
  • Vlog mode
  • 425-point hybrid autofocus system
  • 20 built-in film simulations
  • Bluetooth and Wi-Fi
  • Expected to be released in October 2024

A little curiosity: there was a time, when the cheapest Fujifilm cameras sold insanely well in Thailand, grabbing 50% of the mirrorless camera market share as we reported here.

Let’s see if the Fujifilm X-M5 will be able to have a similar success as the X-A line had in Thailand. Although I doubt that, as times have changed since back in 2018 and smartphone cameras have become even better. And for Vloggers filming content on the go and without huge image quality aspirations, gear like the DJI Osmo Pocket 3 or similar might be the more convenient pick.

But let’s see how the X-M5 turns out to be.

I am personally not interested in it but I hope the Fujifilm X-M5 will have some aspects that surprise me positively. Fujifilm (or should I say Xacti? ;)) was quite ingenious with some ideas implemented in their cheapest cameras and still today I do not understand why Fujifilm has not passed those ideas to higher end models.

RUMOR: Fujinon XF16-55mmF2.8 MKII is About 30% Smaller and Lighter than Original XF16-55mmF2.8

I have been told (THANKS!!!) that the new Fujinon XF16-55mm f/2.8 MKII will be about 30% smaller and lighter than the original version.

BE AWARE: Our sources said ABOUT 30% and not EXACTLY 30%! So don’t sh*tstorm too hard on me if it ends up being 34% or 26% smaller. ;)

I guess (not rumor) that in terms of size the new XF16-55mmF2.8 will be getting a step closer to the Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 DC DN, which at this point is probably also its closest competitor.

Now, this is not a rumor (!!!) but a speculated list on which lens will be the better pick:

  • PROS of Fujinon XF16-55mmF2.8 MKII (vs Sigma 18-50mmF2.8 DC DN)
    – 2mm wider
    – 5mm longer on the telephoto end
    – aperture ring
    – probably better weather sealing (the one of the Sigma has been reviewed as being “rather basic” by reputable review sites like photozone here)
  • PROS Sigma 18-50mmF2.8 DC DN (vs Fujinon XF16-55mmF2.8 MKII)
    – price
    – probably still a bit more compact

And then there are of course lots of things we still don’t know, so this is just a very approximate and rough list that is far from being any recommendation to go for one lens or the other.

Oh, and the image you see above is just a rendering I quickly made of the XF16-55mmF2.8 MKII.