Fujifilm Considers Stopping Orders of X100V Due to Popularity
Fujifilm is considering the ironic step of ceasing production of its X100V camera because it’s simply too popular.
Sometimes it happens that certain specific camera models become unusually popular among aficionados and photographers, even to the point of no longer being easy to obtain.
This is what has happened to Fujifilm’s X100V despite the unprepossessing little camera having been released back in 2020 and despite it not having many exceptional features.
While many of Fuji’s cameras, such as the X-H2 and X-H25 are extremely popular among photographers of all kinds, the X100 series has truly gone through the roof in its popularity, so much so that its price has risen enormously too.
Not only is the little camera getting pricier despite being 2 years old, it’s also becoming increasingly unobtainable to the point that the backlog of orders for it with Fujifilm is making the company consider no longer accepting new orders.
One of the reasons for this unusual leap in demand is, curiously, due to the social media platform TikTok.
Given Fujifilm’s known reputation for delivering excellent JPEG image quality and color right from the camera with little need for editing, creators on TikTok who want a quick but high.-quality means of posting photo and video content online have fallen in love with the X100 camera and its successors.
This has already led to a situation in which the original X100 and its successors, the X100S, X100T, X100F and most recently, the X100V have all gone back up in price, sometimes enormously.
Currently, the original X100, which upon release retailed for $1,199 and later went down to just a few hundred dollars, is now again in some cases creeping back towards a $1000 price tag (though we’ve found copies on Amazon retailing for just $598.) The highly compact camera offers relatively simple specs and only offers a 12.5MP sensor.
The original Fujifilm X100
The X100V on the other hand now retails for a whopping $2,400, which is far more than its original post-release retail price of just $1,399.
If the skyrocketing prices weren’t enough of a headache for all four X100 variants, their availability is also decreasing.
Many online retailers still have used copies of the X100 and its S, T and F variants available for sale (at elevated prices), but for the X100V, some sellers and even Fujifilm itself are running out of stock.
For anyone wondering why a company as wealthy and large as Fujifilm can’t simply manufacture more copies of the X100V, the answer is that there’s also a parts shortage hitting the market.
We’ve already covered how this has affected other major camera releases from other brands, and now here we can see it apparently happening to Fujifilm.
According to the company and others, a blend of shockwaves from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions (especially from China), and a global chip shortage for all sorts of electronics have all come together with rising X100V popularity to make Fuji unable to fulfill new production demand.
Nikon, Canon, Leica, and even Sony have all had to delay releases of their own planned camera models and have in some cases also suffered production delays of existing camera models. Two recent examples are Nikon’s rumored delay into 2023 for releasing its Z8 and Canon’s delay in releasing its EOS R50 camera.
Regarding the shortage of X100V editions, Fujifilm has released a statement claiming:
“Thank you for your continued patronage of Fujifilm products.
Regarding the high-end compact digital camera “FUJIFILM X100V”, we have received orders that have greatly exceeded our initial plan, and we are unable to keep up with the supply of products, so we will temporarily stop accepting orders from today. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused to our customers.
In addition, we will inform you again from our website about the resumption of orders.
We will do our best to deliver it as soon as possible, so we appreciate your understanding.”
If you’d like your own Fujifilm X100V camera, it’s still possible to find copies, or alternatively, you can settle for its also great predecessors in the X100 lineup, which are more obtainable (and certainly cheaper).
Alternatively, you could just ignore a social media craze for a specific camera model and go for any number of other excellent mirrorless device options from Fujifilm itself or its competitors like Sony and Canon.
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Stephan Jukic is a technology and photography journalist and experimental photographer who spends his time living in both Canada and Mexico. He loves cross-cultural street photo exploration and creating fine art photo compositions.
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