X Series · 2024

Fujifilm X100VI

Name: FUJIFILM X100VI
Brand: Fujifilm
Availability: InStock

A 40MP fixed-lens compact that people queue up to buy.

Short answer

The X100VI is a fixed-lens compact with a 40.2MP APS-C sensor, in-body stabilisation and a 35mm-equivalent f/2 lens. It has all 20 film simulations. It is the camera to buy if you want one small body that produces finished JPEGs without changing lenses.

The X100VI is the camera that made Fujifilm famous outside photography. It is a fixed 35mm-equivalent lens, a hybrid viewfinder you can switch from optical to electronic, and a body that fits in a coat pocket. The 2024 version added 40 megapixels and stabilisation to a formula that was already working.

Key specs

Sensor: 40.2 MP X-Trans CMOS 5 HR
Processor: X-Processor 5
In-body stabilisation: Yes · 6 EV
Viewfinder: Hybrid optical / 3.69M-dot OLED electronic
Video: 6.2K/30p, 4K/60p, 10-bit 4:2:2
Weight: 521 g
Battery life: 310 shots
Launch price: $1,599

Specifications

Released: February 2024
Sensor: APS-C · 23.5 × 15.7 mm
ISO range: ISO 125–12800 (64–51200 extended)
Burst: 20 fps electronic (crop), 11 fps mechanical
Screen: 3.0-inch tilting touchscreen, 1.62M dots
Lens mount: Fixed 23mm f/2 lens (35mm equivalent)
Card slots: 1× SD UHS-I
Dimensions: 128.0 × 74.8 × 55.3 mm

Dimensions

128 mm wide
74.8 mm tall
55.3 mm deep

Body drawn to scale from the dimensions Fujifilm publishes. Depth is listed, not drawn.

What the VI added

Two things matter. The sensor went from 26 to 40.2 megapixels, which gives real cropping room on a camera you cannot zoom. And in-body stabilisation arrived, rated at six stops, in a body only two millimetres thicker than the X100V.

Stabilisation is the bigger change in practice. The f/2 lens plus IBIS means handheld shots at 1/8 second are routine, which turns the X100VI into a usable indoor and evening camera rather than a daylight one.

Living with one focal length

The 23mm f/2 gives a 35mm-equivalent field of view. It is wide enough for a street and tight enough for a person across a table, and it is the reason the camera stays small.

The lens is not perfect. Wide open at minimum focus it goes soft, which is a known characteristic rather than a fault, and it has been that way since the original X100. Stop down to f/4 and it is sharp across the frame.

Fujifilm sells wide and tele conversion adapters if you need 28mm or 50mm, but they add bulk to a camera whose whole argument is that it has none.

Who should buy it

People who already own a system camera and want something they will actually carry. People who want to shoot JPEG and be finished. Travellers who do not want to decide between lenses at the airport.

It is a poor choice as a first and only camera if you photograph sport, wildlife or anything that needs reach. One fixed wide lens is a creative discipline, not a limitation you can work around.

What is good

All 20 film simulations, including REALA ACE
IBIS makes low light genuinely usable
40MP gives room to crop on a fixed lens
Hybrid viewfinder is still unique at this size

What is not

Weather sealing needs an adapter ring and filter
Single UHS-I card slot is slow for burst work
Soft wide open at close focus distances

Verdict

The X100VI is the best small camera Fujifilm makes and the hardest one to buy, because demand has outrun supply since launch. If you want one camera that produces finished pictures and never feels like equipment, this is it. If you need flexibility, buy an X-T5 and a lens.

Film simulations on this camera

20 film simulations

PROVIA / Standard The honest baseline every other look is measured against.

Velvia / VIVID Deep greens, hot reds and no apologies.

ASTIA / Soft Colour that stays rich while skin stays kind.

Classic Chrome Muted colour, hard shadows, magazine mood.

Classic Negative Drugstore film with a chip on its shoulder.

Nostalgic Neg. Amber highlights, deep blues, family album warmth.

REALA ACE Faithful colour with a firm backbone.

PRO Neg. Std The flattest colour profile Fujifilm makes.

PRO Neg. Hi Kind to skin, firm enough for real light.

ETERNA / Cinema Low contrast, low saturation, room to grade.

ETERNA Bleach Bypass Silver, steel and almost no colour.

ACROS Black and white with grain that behaves like film.

ACROS+Ye A little more sky, no cost to skin.

ACROS+R Black skies, white clouds, high drama.

ACROS+G The portrait filter, and the one for gardens.

Monochrome Plain black and white, harder and more graphic than ACROS.

Monochrome+Ye The everyday filter on the harder black and white.

Monochrome+R The hardest black and white Fujifilm will give you.

Monochrome+G Foliage that stays readable in a hard black and white.

Sepia The one almost nobody uses, and the reason it exists.

Recipes that work on this camera

classic-chrome X-Trans V Everyday Classic Chrome Straight Classic Chrome is beautiful and slightly miserable: dense shadows, cool colour, dark corners. This…

classic-chrome X-Trans V · X-Trans IV Grey City Grey weather defeats most recipes because there is nothing for them to work with. This one does not try to…

classic-negative X-Trans V Sunday Superia Superia was the film you bought at the airport because you forgot to pack any. It had too much contrast and…

classic-negative X-Trans V Night Market Most night recipes fail because they try to make a night scene look correctly exposed. A street at night is…

nostalgic-neg X-Trans V Golden Hour Amber Nostalgic Neg already puts amber in the highlights. This recipe leans into that and takes away every hard…

reala-ace X-Trans V · GFX Reala Ace Daily Most recipes have an opinion. This one does not, and that is the point. On a day where you will shoot a…

Common questions

Is the X100VI weather sealed?

Only when you fit the AR-X100 adapter ring and a protective filter. Without them, the lens barrel is open at the front.

Does the X100VI have REALA ACE?

Yes. It was the first X Series camera to get it, and it has the full set of 20 film simulations.

X100VI or X-E5?

Same sensor and processor. The X100VI has a fixed lens and a hybrid viewfinder; the X-E5 takes any X-mount lens. Choose the X100VI if you want one camera you never configure.