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IRL: Trading in Fujifilm's X-E1 camera for the X-E2
A quick look at my Engadget profile can confirm I've owned too many cameras over the years. For the most part, they've been unassuming tools that have helped me make a living. Fujifilm's recent X-Trans cameras, however, have been something more -– they've been conversation starters. From random passersby to billionaire CEOs, folks have often commented on the aesthetics and image quality of my previous X-100 and X-E1 models. Now that the X-E2 is here ($999 for the body), I expect that trend to continue.
Fujifilm launches mid-tier X-E2 and XQ1 cameras with fast imaging and WiFi
The refined image processing from Fujifilm's X100s and X20 is at last reaching more affordable cameras: welcome the X-E2 and X-Q1. The X-E2 is a direct upgrade to the X-E1 that brings the company's 16.3-megapixel X-Trans CMOS II sensor and EXR Processor II to a mid-tier interchangeable lens design, giving welcome boosts to both the image quality and autofocusing speed. Software upgrades like split image display and 60 fps 1080p video come along with the new hardware, and there's both WiFi photo transfers as well as a much sharper one-megapixel, three-inch preview LCD. The X-E2 will ship in November for $1,000 in body-only form, or $1,400 when paired with an 18-55mm f/2.8-4 zoom lens. Photographers looking for a more pocketable shooter will want to look at the XQ1. The 12-megapixel compact cam is a spiritual successor to the XF1 that ditches the faux leather look in favor of a plainer, smaller body. It still has a non-removable 25-100mm f/1.8-4.9 lens, but it gets the X-E2's image processing upgrades and WiFi. An improved three-inch, 920,000-pixel LCD is present as well. The XQ1 should arrive later this month for $500.
