It’s true, the Fujifilm X100V is hard to find these days.
But it’s actually much worst than that.
I took a look at all Fujifilm camera lines (the ones that survived, not the ones axed by Fujifilm), and we can see that the X100V enjoys great company when it comes to long waiting times.
What’s easy to find in stock are the higher end high profit margin top tier mainstream cameras.
This gives us two options on what is going on:
Fujifilm gear has suddenly become terribly popular, except for the X-T5 and X-H2s which don’t sell and hence are easy to find in stock
Fujifilm is struggling with parts procurement and is prioritizing high profit margin cameras that sell well and are crucial for Fujifilm’s future
X-E4 black is expected to ship in 6 to 10 weeks at BHphoto. No time indication for the other colors and kit combinations. We remind you the X-E4 was launched in January 2021 and the last time I’ve noticed the X-E4 in stock was back in October 2021. Not even the X100V has such a bad shipping record as the X-E4.
The Fujifilm X-T5 (both colors) is expected in 7 to 14 days at BHphoto. You can find it in stock at Amazon US and Adorama. There is 1 to 2 weeks waiting at Moment only for the black version.
The Fujifilm X-H2 is expected in 7 to 14 days at BHphoto. Out of stock with no time indication given at AmazonUS, Adorama and Moment. I guess the huge chunk of 40MP sensors Fujifilm has available are used for the Fujifilm X-T5, so this inevitably means that it prolongs the waiting for the Fujifilm X-H2.
Nokishita spotted a new Fujifilm camera registration with the code name FF220002.
The Fujifilm “FF220002” supports 5GHz Wi-Fi, which lets digicame-info speculate that it may be a higher end model.
Anything goes, from the Fujifilm X-Pro4 to a new X100 camera, a new GFX or even a mid-range camera (such as the rumored Fujifilm X-S20 or a Fujifilm X-E5 or Fujifilm X-T40) considering that Fujifilm is using 5GHZ WiFi also in sub $1,800 cameras.
What it is certainly not is all that entry level stuff like Fujifilm X-A8, Fujifilm X-M2 or Fujifilm X-T300, which Fujifilm declrared dead.
It usually takes 1 to 6 months for a camera to become public after a registration has been spotted.
NOTE: Sometimes registartions are even spotted AFTER the camera has been launched, so for example the X-E4 registration. But this does not seem to be the case with the FF220002.
The brand new Fujifilm TG-BT1 Tripod Grip is right now in stock at BHphoto, Amazon and Adorama.
The TG-BT1 allows you to record movies, take photographs, or adjust zoom on compatible power zoom lenses (XF 18-120mmF4 + XC 15-45mmF3.5-5.6) while holding this Bluetooth tripod grip.
The data is based on affiliate sales made via Amazon and BHphoto.
Sadly I don’t use the data of Adorama, as I have not found an easy way to display and rank the products. All I get is a list of numbers like “1236.5478.701164” and then I have to click on each number to see which product it is.
For the sake of my mental health, I can’t do that.
Finally the custom X hot shoe covers are widely available on Amazon, and it seems people love them (I own them too).
As for Nr.2 and Nr.5 on the list, these items definitely profited from the launch of the Fujifilm X-T5 and X-H2/s as for many of you, those cameras were also their first X series using the newer battery.
Interesting:
Most people went for the original battery as opposed to the third party options (just as I recommended in my article). I’ve even made the sum of the best selling third party NP-W235 battery options (Smallrig, Poweextra and Wasabi), but even in that case, the original battery has a distinct and safe advantage.
I make a prediction: the Fujifilm X-T5 will be matched in terms of sales only by the Fujifilm X-T6. The only camera that has a chance to even come close to it, would be an eventual Fujifilm X100V successor (the Fujifilm X200, or X100Vs, or X100VI or however they are going to call it).
In a normal year, the X-H2 and X-H2s would have been celebrated as top sellers with respectable sales number.
But 2022 was not a normal year: it was the year of the Fujifilm X-T5!
The X-T5 came here to do what it has to do: demolish the internal competiton and establish itself one more time as the top tier in the Fujifilm lineup. In fact, it was responsible for 65.5% of total camera sales via FujiRumors.
A pity for the Fujifilm X100V, which is basically out of the ranking just because it hasn’t been available most of the time. If supply would have been normal, I think it would have made it into the top 4 positions.
Well, it has been beaten by the Fujifilm GFX50SII, but only by 1 camera. So it’s basically a head-to-head. That’s astonishing, considering that the GFX50SII was in offer basically for the entire year with several more or less massive rebates, whereas the Fujifilm GFX100S saw it’s first time ever rebate only very recently.
So, despite Fujifilm being much more agressive with the GFX50SII, the GFX100S stands its ground and is actually about to pass the GFX50SII thanks to this sweet deal.
The explaination is simple: the XF16-80mmF4 (as well as the XF18-55mmF2.8-4) enjoyed a substantial sales push because it was offered in bundle with Fujifilm X-T5.
But this alone would not be enough.
Fujifilm also initally shipped out way more X-T5 kits than body only, so if we wanted to wait less for our new camera, we had to grab the X-T5 kit. And this makes Fujifilm more money.
Cynical?
Probably, but Fujifilm is just a business as many others, and other companies are no different. And yet, I wish Fujifilm would have done differently.
Anyway, the good thing is that if you bought it with a bundle, you got the lens for a discounted price. That’s already nice. And you always have the option to sell it “like new” so you should get back most if not all of the money you’ve invested in the lens. Or simply use it and enjoy the lens :).
We have a rocksolid performance for the XF56mm f/1.2 MKII. No need for deals or bundles to push that one.
Excellent sales (and very close to grab the second spot) is the Fujinon XF150-600mm f/5.6-8. Looks like a wise decision by Fujifilm to make it smaller, lighter and more affordable thanks to its f/8 on the long end.
Oh… and I made the mistake to enter a photography store with my wife… here is what happened.
So, the lovely new 30mm Macro enjoyed great sales, too. I handled one in store myself, and if my wasn’t for my wife being in the store with me, I probably would have left the shop with one for myself. But my wife just asked “don’t you already own a Macro lens“? And since I had no brilliant answer to give, I passed. Please guys, advice me on what to say next time ;).
On Nr.7, an all time favorite for many of us, the lovely Fujinon XF27mm f/2.8 R WR.
In the GF world, the new GF 20-35mmF4 is selling strong.
A crazy good deal is also pushing the GF35-70mm to great sales. For 500 bucks you get a compact allrounder zoom lens capable of resolving 100+ megapixel. It would be too good to pass also for me, if I’d not already own the GF32-64mmF4.
And yes, I know there is an unwritten rule that every list should end with the Nr.10, but the sales of the lenses on the 11th position were so close to the XF16-55mmF2.8, that I felt I need to include them.
For Fujifilm, I guess the biggest disappointment are the sales of the video-centric Fujinon XF 18-120mm f/4 PZ. I guess it’s a niche lens within a niche brand, so one can not expect all too stellar sales.
There was a time, when the third party ranking was dominated by manual focus lenses. But those times are gone.
Since Fujifilm took the (long delayed) decision to open their mount, other companies like Sigma, Tamron, Tokina, Viltrox, TTArtisan and Samyang started to offer X mount AF lenses. A decision rewarded by Fujifilm X shooters, who now prefer to grab third party autofocus lenses over the manual versions.
Eduardo Soteras has just been awarded with the UNICEF Photo of the Year 2022 for the image you can see above. The story is this one:
Although destroyed, the library in this elementary school in Ethiopia’s Tigray region is where two children have taken refuge in books. This little moment of happiness shows in their smiles. It is a rare moment. Because of the armed conflict with the central government, 5.2 million people in this region in northern Ethiopia are suffering from violence, displacement, malnutrition and a shortage of drinking water.
[…] The desire to discover and learn new things is often so great in children that it makes them forget the threat of a situation.
That is the message of the Unicef photo of the year 2022,” said Unicef patron Elke Büdenbender, wife of Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
“The winning image challenges us to do everything we can to ensure that children can play and learn even under the most adverse circumstances.
Because this is the only way they can maintain their hope and confidence in times of war and other crises.
Given the importance of this image, little it matters that the EXIF data shows it has been taken with the Fujinon XF 16mm f/1.4 R WR.
Here on FujiRumors we just want to congratulate with fellow X shooter Eduardo Soteras for his important recognition and for making the best possible use of our beloved Fujifilm gear: encapsulating meaningful moments and important messages into a single powerful image.
You can read more about this image and Eduardo Soteras at the dedicated UNICEF page here.
Thanks to Daniel Stocker (instagram) for letting me know about it.
And in case you are being brainwashed by some YouTubers that you can only get real Pro work done with Full Frame gear, check out the articles below.
Fujifilm has released firmware updates for X100V, X-Pro3, X-E4 and GFX50SII.
Down below all details and download links.
We remind you that yesterday Fujifilm released firmware updates for X-T4, X-T3, X-S10, X-T30 and X-T30II to add support for the Fujifilm TG-BT1 tripod grip and fix some bugs. All details here.