A Look at Fujifilm 2024 :: It’s Over in 2023 :: Managers Talk Kaizen and X-E Line Future :: Gear Shipping Struggles and More :: Top 10 October Articles

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Here are the top 10 articles for October.

  1. Fujifilm 2024: A Look Ahead Between Rumors and Speculations (X-Pro4, X100R, X-E5, X-T40, New XF Lenses, GFX Future)
  2. Fujifilm Manager: The End of Entry Level (X-E line?), X100V Successor, APS-C and GFX Full Frame Alternative, Market Share and More
  3. Fujifilm Manager Talk Kaizen, Telephoto Lenses, Why not Full Frame, X-E series Future, X100 Line and More
  4. RUMOR: Fujifilm X100V Successor Coming with a “New” Lens in Early 2024
  5. It’s Over my Friends: No More X or GFX Related Announcements This Year
  6. Fujifilm Digital Camera Sales Suspension Notice and Fujifilm Japan Apology
  7. SIGMA 10-18mm F2.8 DC DN Contemporary: Ultra Compact Wide Angle Zoom for Fujifilm X
  8. Fujifilm X-E4 Second Hand Price Higher than Original Launch Price
  9. The Latest X Series Reviews: Sigma 10-18mmF2.8, Fujinon XF8mmF3.5, Fujifilm X-S20, X-H2, X-H2S, X-T5
  10. EXCLUSIVE: This is Fujifilm’s Next XF Lens!

For personal reasons I was not able to make videos this month, nor to really work full power on the rumors and the blog in general. Sometimes life has other plans and sets other priorities.

Good news: an important medical check just a few days ago went well, so now it’s time for me to crawl out of my hole and gain back the energy to give you guys what you deserve: rumors!

So stay tuned… I am back ;).

Fujifilm Facebook Groups

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Fujifilm GFX50S II No Longer in Production and Fujifilm’s Biggest GFX Error Exposed

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The first stores in Japan have started to mark the Fujifilm GFX50S II as no longer in production, as reported by the Japanese website asobinet.

No longer in production does not mean you won’t find samples anymore around tomorrow. It is more likely that there will be still stable stock for quite some months ahead.

And yet, this news induces me to share some thoughts about the GFX50SII and the GFX system overall.

The GFX50SII was launched back in September 2021.

During these two years, it was often sold with a $800 discount (as right now), showing that the GFX50SII struggled to sell nearly as well as Fujifilm hoped.

The main drawback: the GFX50SII used the old non BSI sensor of the original GFX50S (and the even older Pentax 645Z)  in times when Fujifilm already offered the GFX100 and GFX100S with modern BSI sensor and 100MP. I guess most people decided to go for the more modern and higher resolution models.

In my opinion, the GFX50SII could have sold much better if only Fujifilm would have kept the retro dials layout of the original GFX50S. It would have differentiated it much more from the rest of the lineup.

And overall, the lack of a proper retro styled cameras in the GFX lineup is one of the big mysteries of our time. It’s Fujifilm’s biggest error and an enormous missed opportunity. Especially in times where there is no significant development on the sensor area, the one thing that can really boost sales for a new camera is offering a different shooting experience, which in the GFX world would mean to offer something different than the usual PSAM layout.

Make no mistake: my Fujifilm GFX100S is giving me great joy and it is extremely easy to operate. That’s not the issue. But if Fujifilm would make the camera with exactly the same GFX100S specs but with an X-T layout, I would sell it and go for the Fujifilm GFX100T (imaginary name).

I hope somebody at the higher ranks of the Fujifilm Japan HQ is reading these lines (and they do, they even use FujiRumors surveys for internal meetings).

I know, Fujifilm, you consider PSAM the “safe” approach, as it is more mainstream. But unless you drop a 150MP GFX or a 100MP stacked sensor GFX, you will keep struggling to sell GFX cameras (or be forced to give them huge rebates).

If you decide to stick with the current 100MP BSI sensor (no matter how much you optimise its circuits, AD converters, microlenses, etc), then the best thing to do to create a camera that sells like hot cakes is to offer a different photographic experience. And that camera is called Fujifilm GFX100T or alternatively also the GFX100R.

Trust me on this Fujifilm. Do it, and we will throw our money at you… and my money will be the first to fly to your bank account.

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Fujifilm X Autofocus Lenses Reviews Roundup

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Today we are going to share reviews about all kind of autofocus lenses for the Fujifilm X system, from Fujinon to third party lenses.

The lenses we will cover in this roundup are:

If there is any lens you are interested in listed above, then feel free to check out the review about it below.

Review Roundup

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** CLICK HERE to Read the Rest of the Article **

Shipping Struggles for GF30mmF5.6 Tilt Shift

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The Fujinon GF30mmF5.6 TS was supposed to ship in late October. And in fact, over at our GFX facebook group here we can see some guys already enjoying their sample. So it looks like in some countries the lens started to ship, but it does not seem to run smoothly everywhere.

Adorama says here they are still expecting delivery from manufacturer, Amazon at the moment does not even take pre-orders on it and BHphoto does not give any indication expect for a vague “coming soon”.

In Europe the situation for the GF30mmF5.6 is not much better, with stores like Calumet Germany expect stock in 1 to 3 months.

No problems on the other hand as far as GFX100II and GF55mmF1.7 goes, at least if you live in North America and Europe, where it is easy to find in stock. In other countries, also that gear experiences long delays.

UPDATE: the GF110mmF5.6 TS is supposed to ship sometimes in November according to press releases.

Tilt Shift Lens Stock Check

Latest GFX Gear in Stock

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Viltrox TNP-W235 Battery for Fujifilm Coming Soon (and About the Advantage of Using Original Fujifilm Batteries)

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Viltrox is going to launch its own NP-W235 third party alternative battery for the Fujifilm X and GFX system, called TNP-W235, as reported at the Chinese Weibo account 独立摄影师联合会.

So far this year the best selling gear on FujiRumors was the new SmallRig NP-W235 (which I own too).

The Viltrox TNP-W235 seems to use the same interface with a built-in USB-C port for direct charging and also the same power (2400 mAh).

The options in terms of third party batteries are substantial and often also of respectable quality.

The two brands I personally use as NP-W235 replacement:

However (and that’s valid also for other companies as far as I know), if you use third party batteries in your Fujifilm cameras, and that third party battery is cause of a problem (for example it swells up and gets stuck in the camera), then, even if your camera is under warranty, you won’t get the problem fixed free of charge. On the other hand, if you use the original battery, for as long your battery is under warranty, every problem caused by the battery itself to the camera will give you access to free warranty repair.

That’s why, if you want to go the 100% safe route during the time you camera is under warranty, you might want to stick with original batteries, so if any problem happens caused by the battery, it will be fixed under warranty.

In all my years using third party batteries, I had my first third party battery fail last year, where my Patona swelled up in my X-E3 and I had to fiddle around to get it out,

Battery Articles

Essential Accessories

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