XF1
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Fujifilm X-E1 hands-on (video)
Sure the XF1's nice to look at, but the real star of Fujifilm's 2012 Photokina lineup has to be the X-E1. The X-Pro1's little sibling offers up most of the functionality of its bigger, pricier brother -- save for its inclusion just an electronic viewfinder -- into a body that's roughly a third smaller. That said, this is hardly a compact mirrorless -- the X-E1's still got a bit of girth and weight to it, compared to some of the smaller entries in the field. Still, it feels nice in the hand and isn't likely to weigh down your shooting -- particularly for those accustom to using a larger DSLR. It's also worth pointing out, right off the bat, that the retro-styled interchangeable lens camera is significantly cheaper, running you $700 less than the X-Pro-1. Flip the camera over and you get a 2.8-inch 460k-dot LCD. Just above the display is a devoted button that will pop up the retractable flash directly above. The X-E1 will be hitting stores in November, carrying a $1,000 price tag. Buy a kit with a lens and you'll still come in $300 under the X-Pro1's $1,700 price tag, making for a full-featured and great looking little mirrorless for a lot less money.%Gallery-165702%
Fujifilm's XF1 makes a fashion statement at Photokina, we go hands-on (video)
Point-and-shoot or fashion accessory? This is the conundrum posed by the XF1, a new retro-styled point-and-shoot from Fujifilm. It's a nice looking camera with a solid and fairly light build, certainly, and while the faux leather (in black, red or tan) might not be for everyone, the company was quick to point out that it'll go nicely with your new designer handbag, for whatever that's worth. The textured design is complimented nicely by a metal border on the top and bottom. There's a bit of a learning curve here, when it comes to just turning the thing on -- give it a twist and a pull, not unlike a childproof pill cap to put it in standby and another pull to get things started. There's a big, bright three-inch LCD on the rear of the device. Click the E-Fn button on the bottom right, and you can actually reassign the button mapping on the back to your liking on the display. Of course, such style and functionality comes at a price -- this guy will run you $500 when it goes on sale next month.
LG's XF1 500GB multimedia hard drive touts HDMI, shimmery case
Looking for an external hard drive with a flashy color-shifting case, reasonably stout multimedia credentials, and a website with an outrageously long flash intro? Look no further than LG's XF1, a 500GB machine with a USB interface and HDMI output to stream some high-def content straight to your set -- but at a maximum of 1080i. It'll do AVI, Xvid, and MPEGs 1, 2, and 4 along with your typical audio codecs, but conspicuously absent on the video side are H.264 and MKV, meaning it's not exactly the comprehensive playback device you might be looking for if you haven't gotten around to standardizing your downloads to a single encoding. (Guilty.) In fact, it sounds almost exactly like Iomega's 500GB ScreenPlay in a slimmer, sexier case, and when it comes to perfecting your home theater does anything other than sexiness matter? Well... maybe price and availability, but sadly those are pieces of intel LG isn't sharing just yet.[Via Everything USB]
