Sony Sensor Factory will Resume Operations at the End of May :: Will this delay affect the release of the Fuji X-T2?

There is a further press release regarding the Kumamoto Sony sensor production facility that was hit by the earthquake earlier this month (via SonyAlphaRumors).

Sony says they will resume operations at the End of May.

As you know, Sony makes the APS-C sensors for Fujifilm. For now I still believe the X-T2 will be announced in late June / early July. However, we can’t exclude that it will be available on the market later than orignially planed.

Status of Sony Group Manufacturing Operations Affected by 2016 Kumamoto Earthquakes (Third Update)

Due to the earthquake of April 14, 2016 and subsequent earthquakes in the Kumamoto region, operations at Sony Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation’s Kumamoto Technology Center (located in Kikuchi Gun, Kumamoto Prefecture), which is the primary manufacturing site of image sensors for digital cameras and security cameras as well as micro-display devices, were halted and currently remain suspended. With aftershocks continuing and employee safety the foremost priority, inspections of the facility and the development of a recovery plan remain ongoing. The current status of operations for the Kumamoto Technology Center is as follows:
  • Damage to the building itself has been confirmed to be primarily to the upper layer of the building, and reinforcement work will be carried out in this area.
  • The clean rooms used for wafer processing and manufacturing equipment, both located on the lower layer of the building have not been significantly damaged, and preparations are now underway to resume production. Manufacturing operations are targeted to resume around the end of May 2016.
  • Regarding back-end processes, such as assembly and measurement, as well as processing operations for components such as camera modules, which are carried out on the upper layer of the building, Sony has confirmed that there is damage to the clean rooms, manufacturing equipment and other equipment. Further analysis of the extent of this damage is currently underway.
  • Damage to finished product inventory such as image sensors at Kumamoto Technology Center is limited, and shipments of these products have already resumed. The status of semi-finished and uncompleted products is currently being confirmed.

The impact of the earthquakes on Sony Corporation’s (“Sony”) consolidated results continues to be evaluated. In the Devices segment, there is expected to be direct physical damage to Kumamoto Technology Center. Sony expects to incur expenses primarily for recovery and reinforcement work in response to the physical damage to the relevant portion of the Kumamoto Technology Center. Sony may also incur large opportunity losses, mainly in the Devices and Imaging Products & Solutions segments due to suspension of production for a certain period of time.

In addition, due to the suspension of manufacturing operations at Kumamoto Technology Center and potential disruption to the supply of components to Sony from certain third-party suppliers that also have manufacturing facilities in the Kumamoto region, it is possible that business operations within the Mobile Communications, Game & Network Services and Home Entertainment & Sound segments also may be affected. This potential impact is currently being evaluated.

Fujifilm 2015 Financial Report: Imaging Solutions Significantly Increases Profitability thanks to Instax & X-series!

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reproa

The 2015 Fiscal Year Reports are now online (FYI, the Japanese Fiscal year 2015 ended on March 31, 2016)

Instax and X-series sell strong. A special mention goes to the X100T, X-T1, X-T10 and also X-Pro2… and of course to the Hello Kitty Instax (a limited edition version has been launched in 2016… sorry guys I missed to share rumors about that one ;) ).

“Strong sales of the FUJIFILM X100T premium compact digital camera […] FUJIFILM X-T1 premium interchangeable lens camera, interchangeable lenses, and other products […] Though the sales volume largely decreased due to the contraction of the product lineup of compact digital cameras, the sales of digital cameras X Series, centering on FUJIFILM X-Pro2, a flagship model launched in March 2016, were strong.”

Some excerpts from the reports (full reports here):

In the Imaging Solutions segment, consolidated revenue amounted to ¥353.3 billion, down 2.1% from the previous fiscal year, due to the decrease in sales of optical device and electronic imaging business, despite the increase in sales of photo imaging business.

Consolidated operating income amounted to ¥32.2 billion, up 55.5% from the previous fiscal year, reflecting an increase in gross profit by the growth in revenues of the photo imaging business.

In the photo imaging business, sales of instant photo systems such as the instax series and various designs of instax films increased especially in the United States and Europe. Fujifilm strengthened its lineup by offering a new instant camera with instax mini HELLO KITTY 2016 limited edition and new Hello Kitty patterned films, which were launched in March 2016. Sales also increased as a result of the expansion in the high-value-added printing business. Main contribution to this expansion were sales of the Year Album service, which can select good photographs and arrange them automatically, and the Shuffle Print service, which can summarize photo data and print it on a single sheet.

In the electronic imaging field of the optical device and electronic imaging business, sales volume of digital cameras decreased due to the contraction of product lineup, while the sales of X Series were strong. This was due to further shift to high-end models such as the mirrorless digital camera FUJIFILM X-T10, which realizes outstanding image quality and comfortable operability with a compact and lightweight body and FUJIFILM X-Pro2, a flagship model which realizes the best ever image quality and comfortable operability among X Series, and the sales expansion in Asian countries. In the optical device field, sales of camera modules for use in smartphones significantly decreased. Fujifilm tries to expand global market share in broadcast zoom lens, with such products as those for use with 4K cameras which were launched ahead of its competitors and highly appreciated in the aspects of imaing quality in the market.

Download New Fujifilm X-E2S Firmware 1.01 (Bug Fix) + Fuji X70 FW 1.10 (WCL-X70 Support) !

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Fujifilm released Firmware 1.01 for the Fujifilm X-E2S. You can download it here.

  • 1. The phenomenon will be fixed that the EVF doesn’t work on rare occasions right after Power On.

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There is also an update for the Fujifilm X70, ver.1.10 here.

  • Support for the wide conversion lens, WCL-X70. WIDE CONVERSION LENS in SHOOTING MENU and assigned to Function Buttons will be available.

Tips for Updating your Firmware

Fuji X-shooter cleans XF 50-140mm Rear Area… by disassembling it :: See the “Half-Naked” XF 50-140!

X-shooter yukosteel was brave enough to clean some dust spots inside his XF50-140… by dissembling the rear element. He says it was an “interesting activity” and shared his experience and some pictures of the naked XF50-140mm rear area at the FXF.

And it turns out he’s not the only one. X-shooter Fiddlergene disassembled his XF16-55mmF2.8. However, after he cleaned it up, he used one less screw to re-assemble it.

Check out more in this thread.

The Fuji Lens Teardown at LensRentals: “Excellent Construction. Designed by people who know how to make reliable lenses!”

The Fujifilm X100T Teardown :: Look Inside the X100T

miXed zone :: Fujifilm X-Pro2 Reviews :: Why use one RAW Converter Over Another? :: & more

Fujifilm X-Pro2

Making an eyecup for the X-Pro2 – Fuji X Forum

USA: BHphoto / AmazonUS / Adorama / CANADA: AmazonCA / EUROPE: AmazonDE / AmazonUK / WexUK / PCHstore / AmazonITA / AmazonFR / AmazonESP / AUSTRALIA: CameraPro

Studio session at Hotz in Belgium ~ Fuji X-Pro2 at prophotonut / When To Take That Photograph: And When to Fuggedaboutit (images taken with X-Pro2) at karenhutton / Five NB Questions about the X-Pro2 for professional photographer Leon Oosthuizen at myfujifilm / My first experiences with the X-Pro2 (part 2) at robvisualfuji / ACROS film simulation with urban and architectural elements (and the ongoing X-Pro2 report) at eyesuncloudedphoto / 15 Pictures that will revive your memories of the pyramids! at hakemphotography / Manipulated Landscape – Part 1 at olafphotoblog / NSFW – The X-Pro2 focus joystick at fabyandcarlo / Lady Liberty – using some extreme focal lengths with the Fuji X-Pro2 at aboutphotography-tomgrill / X-Pro2 Video for First WEC Press Conference of 2016 at macleancomms / Wedding with the X-Pro2 at davidmcclelland-photography / Postcards From Rome: Gear Chat By The River at karenhutton / Jackson Heights – an X-Pro2 test at josephpadiernos /

Other X-series cameras

X70 and X100T: Hipster Camera System at ivanjoshualoh

Photograph with an “S” (Fujifilm X-E2S): The essssence of photography at photodanielm / X70 review at stuff / Fuji X-E2 the camera system for Live Theater at stanleyleary / Fast Action Fight Sports Photography with the Fujinon XF16-55 and XT-1 at caveiraphotography /

Lenses

Real world testing of the Fuji 100-400mm and 50-140mm on safari in the Kruger National Park South Africa at philogene / Japanese XF100-400 review at dc.watch (translation) / 100-400: Fujifilm XF100-400 Lens Around Town at brandonremler / Thoughts On the Fujifilm 50-140mm + 100-400mm Lenses As Well As the Fujifilm Matched 1.4X Tele-Converter at thewanderinglensman / Sharpness of Fujifilm XF50-140mm lens with XF1,4× teleconverter at michalkrause / XF35mmF2 at jamesbrokenshaphotography / Going back in time to 16 mm Fuji summer – Landscape Photography at miksmedia / The Fujifilm 35mm F/2 R WR is a Must-Have at resourcemagonline /

Jpeg / RAW / Converters

Why use one RAW Converter Over Another? (An excerpt from my upcoming Fuji X-Trans Guide for Iridient Developer) at thomasfitzgeraldphotography /

Travel X / Switch (or not) to the X / Fuji X for Weddings

Into the desert with the X-Pro2 and infrared X-T1 in German at qimago (translation) / Three-part story from beautiful Venice at jonasjacobsson Part1 – Part2 – Part3 / Vacation to the Chattanooga, Tennessee at mattrussellphoto / A Weekend Away with the FujiFilm X-series at caveiraphotography / Six Days in Tokyo | Sky-hi & Down-lo – The Last Hours at laroquephoto /

Acessories / Flash / Bags

Shapeways Eyecup Adapter and Hand Grip for X-T10

Cotton Carrier chest harness for Fujifilm X-series at ksgphotography / Lee Filters – 100mm or Seven5 on the Fuji X at billallsopp / Are UHS-II SD cards really faster? Test at the French site tirages-pro (translation) /

a bit of everything

The Black and White Renaissance at japancamerahunter / Bokeh – meaning and use of bokeh in photography at sebastianboatca / Is That Lens Sharp In The Corners? No? Are You Sure? at thewanderinglensman / A Look at Electromagnetic Focusing at lensrentals /