Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

You can look at my Amazon review for the x100 and see how desperately I wanted to love the camera. I gave it three stars, for all the wonderful things it could do, but I was let down by its slow auto focus and abysmal manual focus. But I kept it and used it for almost two years and got some fantastic images despite the quirks. FYI, "quirks" are what you call flaws in most cameras, but because of the stellar image quality of the x100 you call them quirks to be forgiving. Though I learned to live with the x100, I eagerly awaited what I thought would be the x200. Instead Fuji delivered the x100s and it really is all that I hoped for. Every major flaw that kept me from loving the x100 have been addressed. In short, the camera is fantastic. The image quality is superb. The colors are slightly different but not any better or worse. I appreciate the extra megapixels, but I'm not wowed by them. Though I am very appreciative that the extra resolution didn't introduce any extra noise. In fact, I think the S is better with noise than the original model - high praise. In good light, the auto focus is quick, very quick - just shy of lightning quick. The x100 doesn't even come close to the S in terms of auto focus. In low light, the AF is good. Not great, but solid and definitely very usable. The manual focus is infinitely better than the x100. The original camera's manual focus was so bad that I simply never used it. It was a huge oversight on Fuji's part. The new focus ring isn't a mechanical connection, but the feel of it is so much better than the original. But more than that, I really appreciate the split focusing. I find it incredibly useful. It also offers focus peaking, but I don't find it as useful. The EVF is amazing. My Amazon review for the x100 expressed my disdain for EVFs. The S changes my mind. All of my past experiences with EVFs were awful. The S has a beautiful, crisp and fast EVF that it really makes me want to use it. For the original camera, I almost always left it in optical mode. Now, I can easily see myself splitting my time between the two modes. As an added bonus, the video mode no longer sucks. Honestly, I don't know a lot about video, but I know that the x100 couldn't keep focus on even the slowest moving objects. The S is very usable. I feel that the x100S is a generational camera. That is, I see myself keeping it for a decade or longer - like really great 35mm cameras from past decades. My father used his Pentax K1000 for 20 years, I hope to have the same relationship with the x100s. In five years I may look back on this review and laugh as I shoot with my 3D holographic camera. But currently, I really do feel the x100S is that special. The x100S has fine enough image quality and speed, in such a reasonably sized package, that the next generation of camera doesn't appeal to me. The x200S could have twice the resolution and twice the speed and I simply wouldn't care. I'm not suggesting that the x100S is the pinnacle of fixed lens digital cameras. But I am saying that Fuji has achieved such a balance of features and performance with the x100S that I can't reasonably see myself upgrading or switching for the foreseeable future. I love this camera.