The Fujifilm X-T1 is one of the best APS-C sensored cameras we’ve tested in recent years, and now it has a more-compact, more-affordable stablemate. The new X-T10 offers a similar sensor, super-quick focus times, and manual controls as the larger and pricier X-T1, and we can only hope its image quality keeps pace, too. If it does, it’ll be a bargain.
This isn’t simply a cheaper and smaller version of the X-T1, of course; that would be capitalist madness! For one thing, the X-T10 isn’t weather-resistant like the X-T1. A quick look at the controls reveals a few more tradeoffs: There appear to be fewer fast-access buttons and knobs as compared to the X-T1, and the lack of a dedicated ISO dial and a focus-assist button are the two most noticeable omissions. You’re also not getting as prominent a handgrip as the one on the X-T1, and the X-T10 has a fully electronic shutter instead of the focal-plane shutter of the X-T1.
But this tinier and more affordable version brings a few new bells and whistles. There’s a little Auto switch on the top to get it there quickly, and this new addition to the X-series has a built-in pop-up flash as well. And while there’s no quick-jump button for its focus assist features, the X-T10 still has focus peaking and other helpful tools---you’ll just have to do a bit more menu-diving to get to them. That electronic shutter also has a significanly faster top speed of 1/32000 of a second.
The sensor is still the APS-C size imager found in the X-T1 and most consumer DSLRs, and it shoots 16-megapixel stills with a zippy top continuous speed of 8fps. It has both a 2.36-million-dot OLED eye-level viewfinder---which matches the X-T1 spec---and a tiltable 3-inch live-view LCD. The ISO settings also match those of the X-T1: a range of 200-6400 in normal shooting modes, with the ability to extend it up to 51,200.
Just like the X-T1, the X-T10 also offers 1080p video recording at up to 60fps and WiFi controls---the latter of which should be great if they’re on par with those found in the X-T1. The icing on the cake is its price: At $800 for the body only, $900 as a kit with a standard-issue 16-50mm/F3.5-F5.6 lens, and $1,100 with a solid 18-55mm/F2.8-F4.0 kit lens, the price undercuts that of the X-T1 by $500 or so when it was launched. If the photo quality out of the X-T10 matches up, that’s a strong deal.
It’s due in June, but keep an eye on the X-T1’s price in the coming months, too. It’s bound to drop as well.
