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Announced in September 2021, the Fujifilm X-T30 II was reported to begin shipping the following month, in October. Apparently, though, this date seemingly got pushed back until January 2021. Well, now January 2021 is here and the Fujifilm X-T30 II is now shipping, with a number of retailers having the camera in stock and ready to send out the door.
Supplies, however, look to be pretty low, with some retailers already sold out and Amazon reporting only 10 body-only packages in stock (2 silver and 8 black). Other retailers, such as B&H do have them, of course, they don’t report their stock levels and there’s no telling when retailers might get more in once these body-only packages have sold.
The Fujifilm X-T30 II is largely the same as the Fujifilm X-T30, however, it does have a couple of hardware changes. It has an upgraded 1.62 million pixel LCD screen (like the X-Pro3, X-T4, etc) and an increased memory buffer. Other than that, all of the changes over the X-T30 are in the firmware, including improved battery life, new film simulations (Classic Neg, Eterna Bleach Bypass), an AF Range Limiter, Clarity Setting, HDR mode, 9 shot multiple exposure mode, better low-light autofocus and improved continuous shooting – particularly with JPG – thanks to that new bigger buffer.
| Fujifilm X-T30 II | |
|---|---|
| Sensor | 26.1-megapixel X-Trans IV CMOS |
| Format | APS-C |
| Lens Mount | Fuji X |
| IBIS | None |
| Pixel shift | No |
| Continuous shooting | Up to 30fps for 29 frames (JPG) or 17 frames (Raw) |
| Battery | NP-W126S Rechargeable Lithium-Ion, 7.2 VDC, 1260 mAh |
| Card slots | Single Slot: SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I) |
| LCD | 1.62m-dot tilting touchscreen LCD |
| Price | $899.95 (Body only) |
As well as the features mentioned above, the Fujifilm X-T30 II also sees the video recording times extended over the X-T30 bringing 4K up from 10 minutes to 30 minutes, 1080p up from 15 minutes to 40 minutes and 1080p at 100/120fps for 6 minutes and 200/240fps for 3 minutes.
That the changes seem to be largely software-based, with the only practical hardware difference for most people being the LCD screen, it suggests that we won’t see any more updates for the original X-T30, which is odd, given the massive overhauls Fuji’s given older models in the past with new firmware to add some serious new functionality – like when they gave the Fuji X-Pro 2 4K video two years after its initial release.
With camera sales across the board dipping somewhat over the last couple of years, it makes sense from a business standpoint for Fuji to release an updated firmware as an entirely new camera rather than a free update for existing X-T30 owners. But if you are one of those X-T30 owners, unless there’s a particular feature you really need from the X-T30 II, you might be better sticking with what you already have.
The Fujifilm X-T30 II body-only is available to buy now for $899.95 and is obviously shipping now (but who knows for how long). The two kit lens options including the camera and the 15-45mm lens or the 18-55mm lens are still both yet to start shipping. The silicon shortage shows no signs of slowing down, so I expect once the current crop sell out, you may be in for a wait for the next round.
If you were thinking about the Fujifilm X-T30 II after reading our guide to the best beginner cameras under $1,000, then now’s the time to strike if you haven’t already. And if you miss out, well, there are still other options out there.
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