Yahoo Lifestyle Fujifilm's X-S10 packs a lot of features into a $1,000 body
It comes with IBIS, 10-bit 4K external video and an all-new body and controls.
Fujifilm has unveiled the X-S10, a surprisingly powerful mid-range mirrorless camera. It has many of the features (and a similar price) to Fujifilm’s X-T30, including the 26.1-megapixel X-Trans sensor, 4K 30p video (10-bit external and 8-bit internal) and up to 20 fps shooting speeds. However, it introduces a new body design and control layout, along with in-body stabilization, a flip-out display and more.
The X-S10 has the biggest grip we’ve seen on a Fujifilm camera since the X-H1, even though the camera itself is much smaller and lighter at just 465 grams, compared to 673 grams for the X-H1. It’s also the company’s first major model with a standard “PASM” mode dial, meaning you don’t have to set aperture, shutter or program modes using the shutter dial and aperture ring as before. The idea, Fujifilm told Engadget, was to make the camera easier to use for folks moving over from DSLRs.
Unlike the X-T30 and the X-T3, the X-S10 has a fully articulating display that rotates 180 degrees. That makes it handy for low- or high-angle street photography, selfies and, particularly, vlogging. Fujifilm stuck with a 2.36-million dot EVF like the one on the X-T30, but you can now set it to work best for low light, high resolution or frame rate priority. It also supports blackout-free shooting for bursts as high as 30 fps with the electronic shutter.
It has just a single UHS-I card slot, unfortunately, with lower speeds that limits the number of shots you can take in a burst. The battery is the same as the one used in the X-T30 and conservatively delivers about 325 shots on a charge. Like the X-T30, the X-S10 has a tiny pop-up flash.
Inside, Fujifilm has fit in a five-axis in-body stabilization system that delivers up to 6 stops of shake reduction, less than the X-T4 but very respectable considering the camera’s small size. It also comes with digital stabilization for video, including an IS boost mode that smooths any panning or movements.
As with recent Fuji models, the X-S10 has reasonably fast burst shooting speeds of 8 fps with the mechanical shutter, or 20 fps in electronic shutter mode — both with continuous autofocus enabled. However, the number of RAW frames is limited to 18 in both cases (or 108 JPEGs max), likely due to the relatively slow card speeds. It shares its 26.1-megapixel X-Trans sensor with the X-T4, so image quality should be comparable. It also has 18 of Fuji’s film simulation modes including Eterna Bleach Bypass.
Fujifilm claims that the X-S10 can capture focus in as little as .02 seconds down to light levels as low as -7 EV. As with the recent X-T4, it has 2.16 million phase detection pixels, along with subject tracking and face/eye AF detection capability.
The X-S10 should be very capable for video, with DCI and UHD 4K video at up to 30 fps downsampled from 6K to maximize sharpness, along with face and eye detect AF for video. Like the X-T30, it supports 4K/30p 4:2:0 8-bit video internally and 4K/30p 4:2:2 10-bit video captured to an external recorder, along with F-Log recording. Meanwhile, you can shoot 1080p at up to 240fps, or 10 times regular 24 fps speeds.
Other video features include the aforementioned IBIS and digital image stabilization, along with a dedicated movie mode setting and record button on the top plate. It has a standard 3.5mm microphone input, a USB-C port for charging/data transfers (that also doubles as a headphone jack), and a Micro HDMI port.
All told, the X-S10 looks like a love child of the X-T30 and X-H1, with some X-T4 genes in there too. It’s not as pocketable as the X-T30, but the IBIS, bigger grip and articulating display could make it more useful, especially for video. The best part is that it only costs $100 more than the X-T30, at $1,000 (£950.00) for the body only or $1,400 (£1,300) with the XF18-55mm f/2.8-4 R lens kit. It should arrive in the US, Canada and the UK starting in November 2020. Fujifilm also introduced the new ultra wide angle XF10-24mmF4 R OIS WR lens, also coming next month for $1,000 (£900).
On another note, Fujifilm also said it will soon release a firmware update for the X-T3 that brings it up to par with the X-T4 in terms of autofocus capabilities. AF speeds improve from .06 to .02 seconds, while tracking performance has “doubled,” according to Fujifilm. It can also lock onto faces and eyes at double the speed in continuous tracking mode, and shoot in light as low as -7 EV. It’s set to be released on October 28th, 2020.
