Fujifilm CEO Says Retro Cameras are Difficult to Mass-Produce, Gives Production Insights and Talks Brand Power
Recently Fujifilm published their (excellent) financial results for the imaging solution.
Now they have also published the Q&A sheet, where the Fujifilm CEO answers to a range of questions, including the production issues with Fujifilm cameras.
In short: there are the usual struggles with semiconductors, but in addition to that, he also explains that mass-producing retro-styled cameras is difficult, because the process of creating a classy design “is close to handmade“. Also, they misjudged the demand for Fujifilm X100VI. They doubled the production capacity, but that’s not enough. They are working to match the huge demand (as we already reported, production increase should be achieved by the end of this summer).
I find the part of the challenges with retro camera production particularly interesting. And I guess also why most brand either do not offer vintage styled cameras at all, or, if they do, they release them in significantly lower numbers compared to their more mainstream PSAM models.
And of course: what takes more time to produce is also more expensive to produce. So, from that point of view, it makes little sense for companies to release retro-styled cameras.
But what I love of Fujifilm is that not only they do offer them, but they offer quite a few of them.
In fact, as we could already see, Fujifilm offers more X series camera lines with Retro dials than with PSAM dials. The only problem is that some of them (X-E and X-Pro) do not get refreshed as often as the PSAM models, which therefore gives the impression that Fujifilm is offering more PSAM styled cameras.
But the Fujifilm X-E line will get a refresh, the Fujifilm X-E5 is coming next year. And you bet, there will also be a Fujifilm X-Pro4 at some point.
- Fujifilm camera lines explains: Retro beats PSAM
- Why Fujifilm Retro Dials are Superior to PSAM Dials
With that said, I leave you with the relevant transcript of the Q&A below.
Fuji’s Vintage Cameras
- X100VI
BHphoto / Amazon (black & silver) / Adorama / Moment / Nuzira - X-T5
BHphoto / AmazonUS / Adorama / Moment - X-T50
BHphoto / Amazon / Adorama / Nuzira / Moment - X-E5
work in progress and expected announcement - X-Pro4
no rumors so far (except for this one) but it is confirmed to come by Fujifilm
Q&A
[Q]: Finally, I would like to ask about Imaging. I believe that both instax and digital cameras are doing very well. Also, seeing how these are sold out in stores, and the response to the lack of availability and not taking back orders, it appears that this plateau condition will continue for a year. What is the reality of this situation? I think you are already at full capacity, but even so, do you think it will go up further in Q3 due to seasonality? Please tell us about these expectations.
Fujifilm CEO Goto [A]: As you said, the supply is not keeping up with the demand. The demand for digital cameras is quite strong, and our features and brand power are gaining ground. From the beginning, we planned to double the production of the previous model and put it on the market, but even so, production has not been able to catch up, and we are now trying hard to catch up.
The rate‐limiting factor is that the manufacturing of semiconductors, be they image sensors or processors, must be included in the semiconductor manufacturers. Another problem is the design of the top part of camera, although this is related to our excellent design. The X100VI, with its various dials and such, is so popular as its design is quite retro. Their production is done by cutting and other process, in order to create a classy design, which is close to handmade and difficult to mass‐produce.
We are taking various steps, such as accelerating the delivery date from the vendor, and will do our utmost to make it available to customers.
Our idea is to create brand power. Especially after the introduction of interchangeable lenses, sales will not continue without brand power. So we are experimenting with different sizes of CMOS, developing different functions and processors, and many other things. This will continue for all time. Companies are competing with each other for improved features and image quality. Recently, more and more movies are being taken with mirrorless cameras, and we believe that the market in this area will continue to expand due to competition.
You can read the full Q&A here.