Is Fuji's X-S10 an Admission that the X-T4 is Too Big?

You must be aware that Fuji has released a new camera model. It's a "Really-New-Not-An-Update" introduction, which puts it in a special class of news these days; many new introductions are refreshes or revisions of previously existing models.

(That isn't a complaint. We approve of refinement—it's one thing that helps make cameras great—and we're spoiled for choice these days. It's not like we don't have enough variety to choose from.)

According to Camerasize.com, the X-T4 is 7% (8.6 mm) wider and 9% (7.7 mm) taller than the new X-S10, and weighs 31% (142g or 5 ounces) more. As you can see from the visual comparison at the link, it's a significant difference. 

It's significant because Fuji is one of the few cameramakers that provides a full range of compact lenses for its lensmount, rather than a smattering of token offerings. (I love the word "smattering.")

It seems to be human nature to "improve" products by a.) adding features, b.) adding expense, and c.) adding size and weight. Have you ever seen an original Honda Civic?! They're about the size of a beachball. I exaggerate, but they're Mr. Bean cars for sure. (In America we ride motorcycles that are bigger than the original Civic.) The current Honda Civic is larger than the original Honda Accord that came to America in the 1970s. The Accord was a "compact" then. These days, after decades of incremental bloat, Honda seems to be struggling to keep the Accord within the "mid-sized" category.

Personally, I settled on my "Goldilocks" ideal size long before digital was a gleam in Fuji's eye. It was easy—some cameras felt too big, and some cameras felt too small, so I just figured out where the middle was. Of course it's all individual. Whenever I use my original X-T1, though (I temporarily added the large grip just to see what it felt like and never took it off again), I'm struck anew by how "right-sized" it is. Not too big, not too small. The X-T1 with the smaller Fuji lenses is right there for me.

The X-S10 makes perfect sense for Fuji's lineup, though, which is nothing if not logical. The company seems to like pairing "rangefinder-styled" and "SLR-styled" digital cameras at every market segment. One way you can think about the new body is that the X-S10 is simply the SLR-styled counterpart to the X-100V.

I wonder, though, if the X-S10 might also be Fuji's implicit acknowledgement that the X-T[x] series is becoming a victim of incremental bloat. And maybe feature-creep too.

Mike

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

David L Glos: "Bloat is the short answer as to how I ended up on Fuji's doorstep. Like many, I started with a Pentax K1000, but my first camera love was a Nikon FM2, received as an 18th birthday present. Simple, extremely reliable, and compact, it was a faithful companion for many years. Eventually I started into Nikon's APS-C digital options, and finally ended up with a D800, which is everything an FM2 is not. Despite tremendous image quality, I just never bonded with the beast. Modern Nikon DSLRs, and companion Wunderlenses, are of a size and weight that I am no longer willing to schlep around for enjoyment. My current Fuji X-T20 based kit is a modern riff on my old FM2 kit, and has become a most agreeable companion. Surprise, I like my cars smaller, simpler, and fitted with a manual transmission too."

RubyT: "If they ever get these fires under control I might have to drive down to Boulder and handle one. It piques my interest, although if they'd give my X-T30 the Classic Negative simulation I'd mostly be tempted by the new lens, for hiking, which takes us back to the fires. Ah, well. It will help keep my holiday budget in check."

Comments

[Adam Richardson]

My theory is that the X-S line is the replacement for what would have been the X-H line if it had progressed beyond the X-H1 (which I own and really like). The X-S line will be the more video-oriented, and they're starting it out with a mid-range rather than a flagship to test the waters. Now they've figured out how to shrink the IBIS, it's hard to see the point of an X-H2 when you've got the X-S and the X-Ts around. I think in a year we'll see an X-S1 that is the X-H2 replacement, but more video oriented rather than hybrid-middle-of-the-road as the X-H1 tried to be, and with more pro features like dual card slots, full size headphone jack etc.

[Richard Tugwell]

Agree about the XT-1. I've had mine for years now and it feels a lot like the Olympus OM bodies that I used in the 80's and 90's. Especially as you say when coupled with small primes. Feels just right. I occasionaly think about upgrading to the X-T3 while it is still around....

The X-s10 on the other hand looks kinda small, although it does look similar in size to the X100T which I've had longer than the X-T1. Different use case of course

[Albert Smith]

In Fujifilm world, I'm more excited about today's announcement that counter to the rumors of the line's demise, they will be bringing out the X-E4 in the first quarter of 2021.

I have both an X-T2 and an X-pro2, but since getting a new-in-the-box X-E3 on sale it is the camera in my hand 80% of the time. Combined with the 4 "Fujicrons" it fits my style of shooting like nothing else since I stopped shooting film and relegated my Leica M6 to a display shelf.

As for the X-S10, I don't like that they departed from the normal to Fujifilm method of choosing exposure modes. They eliminated the shutter speed dial and put a beginner type of A,S,P,M dial. I like not having to think about which camera that I'm using, so I would rather not have to change how I select modes.

[Michael Walsh]

Finally a camera that could tempt me away from my Pen F - if Olympus fails.

[Christoph]

I'd say it is the camera for all the Sony-PASM-Vloggers, and now that they got that out of the way, Fuji will go back and cater to the friends of the manual dials, like us.

[John Krumm]

I look at the S-10 as a Fuji version of the Olympus 520, which was released 12 years ago. Competent, good grip, sturdy but light, not weatherized, and IBIS. Same sensor as the flagship E3, but fewer features, cheaper, and just more sensible for many people.

[William Lewis]

I tolerate small cameras. My Olympus E-P3 or the PL1 I still have are small and ok.

I actually prefer a larger camera - more to hold on to, easier to use the controls, etc. Compared to this new Fuji mine's ginormous! https://j.mp/31shmfA
But I'd rather it with a nice prime lens than the littler cameras I've used.

For what it's worth.

[Edwin]

This camera is more than just a matter of size. It's a departure from the original DNA of the Fujifilm digital cameras:
(Except for the lower end models and the X-H1)
On the top plate, there's the shutter release, exposure compensation dial, shutter speed dial, ISO visibility(either as a dial or as a window on another dial). The handgrip is always shallow (or non-existent).
This looks more like a mini-X-H1, with ergonomics matching.
It looks like it's an admission that the "mainstream" design cannot be ignored? Or is it an experiment?

[Edwin]

I believe they would have called it an X-S1 if the designation had not been taken. :)

[Dave]

I love my X-T2 with an L-bracket on it; without it, my last two fingers hang off the camera...

[Stan B.]

I was amazed at the size of the X-T3, let alone the bloated behemoth called the X-T4 which is almost the size of the original Honda coupe...

https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-reveille-model-krista-seen-here-posing-with-a-honda-civic-car-which-81747476.html

[That's very funny.... --Mike]

[Dan Khong]

I can confirm that the original Honda Civic is teeny and weeny because I owned one. It came only with the hatchback model, and smaller than a Harley (the only American motorcycle sold in my part of the woods).
You are also right that the current Civic is larger than the ol'Accord. But interestingly in Europe, they have cars made for one pax which you can park in a motorcycle lot.
I think camera manufacturers are realizing that being big (and hence more expensive) is not so cool now, especially when people are more than happy taking pictures with mobile phones. Unless of course someone has a 4x5 and looking forward to spending winter with something really constructive in mind. Ah, but that's another story....

[David Bateman]

I see the X-S10 as Fuji's answer to win over micro four thirds users. It has the same EVF and back screen as the EM1mk1, mk2 and mk3. It has the look of a Panasonic camera, no retro styling.
It has the full IBIS and customization of an Olympus.
May just grab quite a few orphaned Olympus users.

[Douglas Chadwick]

10 to 20 years ago digital cameras were sized according to their price. A $5,000 camera had to weigh two or three times as much as a $2k to $1k camera, and size was in line with weight. A big part of this was the need to impress clients, etc. A small camera was amateur, a big one was, well a big one.

Lucky for us Sony ended all that first with the NEX-7 and then the a7 series. But some people want a bigger camera, well just slap on a cod-piece, I mean a battery pack, excuse me.

I suppose we all have our idea of what the "right size" is. If you need to impress a client or your fellow camera buffs, I suppose big is better.

I remember one time on a job the putative client, the local newspaper editor, the land owner, and I were out at the site. The editor commented that the land-owner had a fancier camera than I did. I didn't bother to point out that a Leica M4 might look less impressive than a Pentax Spotmatic (OK it could have been a K-1000) but.......

[John Merlin Williams]

Has everyone missed the most significant element of the X-S10 ??!! If we can believe Fuji's claims (I find their product claims to be generally trustworthy) a traditional camera company has developed the closest thing to the level of phone camera computational photography yet.

Watch the Fuji Summit video from 19:05 to 20:10
at https://youtu.be/tIhdK2W0dtw

Fuji's AUTO mode is a pretty impressive advance toward the level of computational photography we see in today's phone cameras.

I have several Fuji X-series bodies and half-a-dozen Fuji lenses, but I also bought an iPhone 11 Pro because of the sophisticated image processing and its combination of 13, 26, and 52mm equivalent optical lenses for everyday photos (because three grandkids).

The thought of having a true-system camera with the same, or near-enough, image processing software as an advanced phone camera is pretty exciting stuff. Hats off to Fuji. Pay attention to what matters folks - and it isn't whether it's smaller than the X-T line, for crying out loud!

[Yonatan Katznelson]

I finally stopped putting off the inevitable and recently bought into the Fuji-sphere with an XT-3 and a 35/f1.4. It is the camera (+lens) that 'fits' me - the love child of my Pentax K-5 (+ FA 43 ltd) and Panasonic GX7 (+ P20), as it were. It feels just right in my hands, and while I may lust after other lenses (and have the 16-80 that came with the camera), I don't imagine the 35 coming off the body very often (though once I have an adaptor for my FA77 ltd, we'll see).

When I saw the announcement for the X-S10, I worried a bit about making the wrong choice (because of the IBIS) - until I read about it and saw a picture. It seems like a good camera, but it doesn't appeal to me. Most cameras in the $800+ price range (including most iPhones) have the technology to make great pictures these days, but if you don't like the way the camera feels in your hand, the pictures don't get made.

[Steve Rosenblum]

I'm actually very interested in the X-S10. I have always liked smaller camera bodies (Pentax ME Super, Olympus OM4T, Nikon FM3a...). I also find IBIS to be very helpful. I have an X-H1, but find it to be on the heavy side and a battery eater. So a smaller Fuji body with a good grip and IBIS to mount my lovely compact Fujicrons on that costs less than a grand sounds pretty good. Yes, I would prefer dedicated dials, but the three dials on the X-S10 are reportedly configurable and I have simple needs. I suspect the smaller viewfinder will be the main drawback for me.

[Adam Lanigan]

One thing I've noticed in myself in using the X-T4 for three months now after selling my X-T1 is that subtle weight difference may be driving my lens selection a bit. Whereas the 23mm f1.4 rarely left my X-T1, I have gravitated much more to the 35mm f1.4 when strolling with the X-T4. Maybe I've tripped across that optimum weight line. Or maybe I'm just in a mood.

I do hope that the X-T4 marks the zenith of size and weight for this series, as I am much more enamoured with the traditional dials approach than the X-S10's PASM mode dial. From what I've read, the new IBIS in the X-S10 is 30% smaller than that in the X-T4, which in turn is 30% smaller than that in the X-H1. So it seems Fuji has turned a corner with that technology and could very well return the T-series to it's original Goldilocks roots in further refinements.

[Mike Ferron]

Mike my take is Fuji is making the same mistakes that Nikon and Canon have made. Too many models. Correct me if I am wrong but I believe that makes 7 lines Fuji is promoting and selling. Wait! That does not count the medium format lines. Remember when you bought either a Nikon F series or it cousin the Nikkormat? One pro and one amateur model. Rollie had the flex and the cord. Now it is near mind boggling how many models these folks produce. It is one thing to come out with a new improved model and another to confuse folks with yet another “almost the same” camera.

[Peter from Boulder]

If they put that new IBIS mechanism in the rumored X-E4 I’ll upgrade right away.

[Rob L]

I love the X-H1, but it's a tad bigger than I really want some days - mostly it's perfect. Using my X-T1 reminds me how good Fuji came out of the gate - it still is my favorite body to use Leica glass on. The X-S series, if it becomes a series, may well be my follow-on body, small with IBIS and a deeper grip is an attractive option.

[Paulo Bizarro]

The XTxx series is already smaller than the XTx series. I think the XS10 is the SLR counterpart to the XE series, not the X100V.

[Scott Kirkpatrick]

Original Honda Civic? You bet. We had one, but living a little north of NYC, we quickly discovered that it had little traction in snow and no sense of which axis should point ahead. I usually keep a car as long as possible, but not that one.

[Tom Burke]

I don't think all manufacturers make cameras bigger - at least not all cameras.

Here's a link ( https://g3.img-dpreview.com/1A2D13B5B4344D9C8BF5ADB6EFD13A89.jpg ) to a photo I took this morning. It's a simple comparison image of an EOS 600 and a 90D, both from Canon. Both might fairly be called 'reasonable enthusiast' cameras. As you can see, they're pretty much the same size - the 90D is slightly deeper (front to back), but the 600 is slightly wider (left to right). They're pretty much the same height and weight - with batteries they both weigh just over 800 gms.

The significance of these two cameras is that they represent just about the first and last SLRs in Canon's EOS line-up. The 600 (UK name - possibly 630 in N America?) has the same body as the EOS 620 & 650, the very first EOS cameras from over 30 years ago, while the 90D is one of the last DSLRs from Canon - most other recent cameras have been mirrorless. Along the journey Canon have also released cameras, both film and digital, that were bigger - the EOS 5, 5D and of course 1 families; the same size - the EOS 10, 100, 30/33, and all of the XXD cameras; and smaller - the Rebel line, both film and digital, and of course the very small SL range (100D/200D in the UK). I think therefore that Canon have done a good job over the decades in keeping the user experience constant, as far as size, weight and physical ergonomics are concerned. A film Rebel user, for example, could pick up an XXXD camera and have it feel very familiar in their hand.

[Brandon]

I would not compare the X-S10 to the X-T4 in terms of size since the X-T30, which fills that role in the current lineup, is much smaller and lighter.

I have been looking to upgrade my current mirrorless camera, and my basic wish list is IBIS, built-in EVF, small/lightweight (I think somewhere around 450 g including battery is ideal), ergonomic grip for someone with long fingers, ergonomic dials, and a good selection of lightweight prime lenses.

In looking at my options (prior to the X-S10 announcement) among new and used mirrorless cameras released in the past 4-5 years, any choice involves some obvious compromise: newer m43 cameras with large grips have become pretty big/heavy, APS-C offerings from Canon and Nikon lack both IBIS and a solid lens selection, the only Fuji with a deep grip (X-H1) is too big/heavy, and the Sony A6600 seems a bit challenged ergonomically.

It is, of course, impossible to know without actually using the camera first, but this X-S10 seems like my ideal camera. Mike, I thought it might have also been an ideal camera for you as well, but then I saw that fully articulating screen...

[Mark]

No shutter speed dial, no thanks.

[JimH]

It's not the Mr. Bean Mini in the video that's Roland Atkinson's most famous car. He's know for being one of the first owners of a McLaren F1 - and crashing it twice - before selling it for an astronomical price.
https://jalopnik.com/rowan-atkinson-just-sold-his-twice-crashed-mclaren-f1-f-1710189175

[Greg Heins]

I moved to an X-T4 after a few months with an X-T30. The T-30 drove me crazy with some button that was precisely where my thumb fell when I held the camera. The X-T4 finally made me happy when I got the SmallRig L-bracket grip for it, which extends below the camera baseplate just far enough to give my right pinky a place to rest. I'm printing at 18-inches short dimension and I must say that I'm pleased. I've gone over to choosing comfortable cameras, in all the meanings of that.

[Dr Tom Bell]

looks well built and substantial ... and I love the IBIS as so often it means you can see the ISO lower in poor light.

I would have loved it to be weatherproof though as Dartmoor is a testing environment ...

It's funny how difficult it is to get exactly what we want .. in my case

IBIS
X-Tx dials
Big grip
Non floppy out screen

That is life!

[David Bennett]

This is true not just for the X-T series but also the X100 series. I am still using the X100s, and that is already too heavy. The lens wide open might better on the later versions, but the cameras are heavier.

To my mind the real competition for the X100 series is the XF10 or the Ricoh GR range. If Fuji could put an X100 in a body midway between it and the smaller cameras...