Fujifilm X100T gets more streamlined controls, electronic rangefinder focus

Fujifilm doesn't overhaul the X100S for its third-generation APS-C compact camera; instead, it streamlines the layout and brings some of the features up to date for the X100T. The company's latest $1,300 (£999, Australian pricing and availability as yet unknown) advanced fixed-lens camera introduces some relatively subtle but certainly welcome changes.

What's different

• Updated viewfinder. In addition to expanded coverage from 90 percent to 92 percent for its optical half, the camera's already multifunctional hybrid viewfinder gets another view, an electronic rangefinder which lets you focus as if the camera had mechanical rangefinder. It also catches up to the rest of the pack by offering the ability to preview effects. Fujifilm also claims better performance for the EVF part, especially in dim or dark conditions. There's also a new view that overlays a 100 percent electronic version on top of the optical view.
• Wi-Fi built in. We welcome the X100T to 2014.
• More stops, more granular. The aperture ring on the lens has been updated to operate in third stop intervals, and exposure compensation now goes up to +/- 3 stops from +/- 2.
• Improved control layout and operation. While the fundamental body remains the same, the controls have been reworked. For instance, the back has been simplified a lot, with smaller buttons and the relocation of the drive and AE/AF-L button for more sensible, right-thumb operation. The cheap-feeling dial is gone, and the four navigation buttons are now unlabeled and fully user-mappable -- there are now seven programmable buttons. And the lever-that-looks-like-a-dial on the back of the X100S turns into a real dial on the X100T, while all the dials were tweaked to feel better.
• New LCD. The buttons on the left side of the display are smaller because the display got a little bigger: 3 inches (7.5 cm) up from 2.8 inches (7.1 cm) and much higher 1.04 million dot resolution, as befits a camera at this price.
• New color preset. As with the X30 , Fujifilm adds a Classic Chrome preset to its stable of Fujifilm film-profile emulating settings. ("Chrome" as in color-reversal film, like slides). According to the company, it renders "muted tones and deep color reproduction."

My take

The X100 and X100S are well-loved by their fans, and Fujifilm seems to have fixed the issues I had with the controls; plus, the company's X-Trans-sensor-based camera still does produce sharper images than other APS-C competitors. The company also seems to be catering to its fans with the rangefinder emulation. I wish one of the updates had included a movable LCD, but this camera's features really target a particular subset of people who probably don't care. Overall, though it's not the most exciting update, the X100T looks like it still has enough steam to make it respectably through another year.