Fujifilm X100T Review

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The Bottom Line

While the my Fujifilm X100T review shows a camera that has a couple of significant drawbacks and certainly isn't going to appeal to every photographer, it's a very impressive model in many areas. The image quality is very impressive, even in low light conditions, and this model's f/2 lens is of an amazing quality.
Fujifilm gave the X100T a hybrid viewfinder, which allows you to switch back and forth between an optical viewfinder and electronic viewfinder, depending on whether you need to see data about the settings in the viewfinder window.

The X100T can give advanced photographers plenty of control over the camera's settings.

Now for the drawbacks. First, if you're looking for a big zoom setting -- or any kind of zoom setting for that matter -- the X100T isn't your camera. It has a prime lens, meaning there's no optical zoom. And then there's the four-figure price tag of this model, which will leave it outside of the budget range of many photographers.

As long as you know exactly what the Fujifilm X100T can and cannot do, and it fits what you're seeking from a camera, it's worth considering. You'll definitely be hard-pressed to find anything like it in the market.

Specifications

• Resolution: 16.3 megapixels
• Optical zoom: None, fixed focal length
• LCD: 3.0-inch, 1,040,000 pixels (also hybrid viewfinder)
• Maximum image size: 4896 x 3264 pixels
• Battery: Rechargeable Li-Ion
• Dimensions: 5.0 x 2.9 x 2.1 inches
• Weight: 15.5 ounces (with battery and memory card)
• Image sensor: APS-C CMOS, 23.6 x 15.6 mm
• Movie mode: HD 1080p

Pros

• Great hybrid (optical and electronic) viewfinder option
• Very good image quality in all shooting situations, including low light
• Fast performance in burst shooting

• Plenty of manual control options
• Camera's design looks like a vintage model with plenty of dials and toggles
• Accurate autofocus mode alongside good manual focus system

Cons

• Lens has no optical zoom capability
• Starting price is very high
• Flash is embedded in front of camera body, rather than popup unit
• Requires practice to use all of the features properly

• Autofocus could work more quickly to minimize shutter lag

Image Quality

Fujifilm gave this high-end fixed-lens camera an impressive APS-C image sensor, which yields great image quality, no matter what kind of lighting you encounter. Low light performance is especially good with the X100T versus other fixed-lens cameras. It has 16.3 megapixels of resolution. You can record in RAW, JPEG, or both image formats at the same time.
Another interesting factor with this model is its inclusion of film simulation modes, some of which are not really available with other cameras.
The lack of an optical zoom lens with the X100T really limits its effectiveness to portraits or landscape photos. Action photos or wildlife photos are going to be a challenge with this model's lack of an optical zoom.

Performance

The prime lens included with the X100T is a very impressive unit. It's a fast lens, offering a maximum f/2 aperture. And the X100T's autofocus mechanism works quickly and accurately.
With a maximum burst performance of 6 frames per second, this Fujifilm model is one of the fastest performers among non-DSLR cameras on the market.
I was surprised with how effective the X100T's built-in flash unit was, especially considering its small size. You also can add an external flash to this unit's hot shoe.
Battery life is very good for a camera of this type, and you can gain even more battery life by making use of the viewfinder more than the LCD to frame photos.

Design

You'll definitely notice this model's design immediately. It's a retro looking camera that is similar in physical design to Fujifilm's X100 and X100S models that were released in the past few years.
The hybrid viewfinder is a great design feature of this camera, allowing you to switch between optical viewfinder, electronic viewfinder, or LCD/Live View modes to meet whatever you happen to need to frame a particular type of scene.
I liked the fact that this model has several buttons and dials that allow the photographer to control it easily without having to work through a series of on-screen menus. However, the placement of a couple of dials is poor, meaning you might bump a dial out of position inadvertently through normal camera usage or even while moving in and out of a camera bag.
Even though you may rely on the viewfinder most of the time when using the X100T, Fujifilm provided this model with a sharp LCD screen with more than 1 million pixels of resolution.