Fujifilm X-M1 Performance

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Fuji X-M1 Performance

Timing and Performance

Mixed performance from the Fuji X-M1.

Startup/Play to Record/Buffer Clearing
Power on to first shot	~1.7 seconds	Time it takes to turn on and capture a shot.
Play to Record, first shot	~1.0 second	Time until first shot is captured.
Buffer clearing time	6 seconds after 16 Large/Fine JPEGs*	Worst case buffer clearing time. -- This is the delay after a set of shots before you can remove the card.
	9 seconds after 11 RAW files*
	11 seconds after 11 RAW+ L/F JPEG files*
*Note: Buffer clearing times measured with a SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/sec UHS-I SDHC card. Slower cards will produce correspondingly slower clearing times. Slow cards may also limit length of bursts in continuous mode. ISO sensitivity and noise reduction settings can also affect cycle times and burst mode performance.

Power on to first shot, and switching from Play to Record and taking a shot were a little slower than average. Buffer clearing times were quite good for its class with a fast UHS-I card.

Shutter Response (Lag Time)
Full Autofocus, Single Area (center) AF mode	0.381 second	Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, with the lens already at the proper focal distance setting. (*All timing performed with the Fujinon XC 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 OIS kit lens.*)
Full Autofocus, Multi AF mode	0.429 second	Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, with the lens already at the proper focal distance setting.
Full Autofocus, Single Area (center) AF mode Auto Flash Enabled	0.496 second	Time from fully pressing shutter button to image capture, with the lens already at the proper focal distance setting, TTL Auto flash enabled.
Manual Focus	0.091 second	For most cameras, shutter lag is less in manual focus than autofocus, but usually not as fast as when the camera is "prefocused".
Prefocused	0.055 second	Time to capture, after half-pressing and holding shutter button.

The Fuji X-M1's full autofocus shutter lag was slower than average for a compact system camera in our tests, and slower than most point and shoots as well. The Fuji X-M1 produced full-autofocus shutter lag (with the subject at a fixed distance) of 0.381 second using Area AF mode (center). Full AF shutter lag increased to 0.429 second using Multi AF mode. With the built-in flash enabled, the X-M1's full AF shutter lag in single (center) AF area mode was 0.496s to account for the preflash metering.

Manual focus shutter lag was quite fast though, at 0.091 second, and prefocused shutter lag was quick, at only 0.055 second. This is faster than most DSLRs and faster than many CSCs as well, though not as fast as some models with electronic first curtain shutters.

To minimize the effect of different lens' focusing speed, we test AF-active shutter lag with the lens already set to the correct focal distance.

Cycle Time (shot to shot)
Single Shot mode Large/Fine JPEG	1.13 seconds	Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots with no signs of slowing.
Single Shot mode RAW	1.21 seconds	Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots with no signs of slowing.
Single Shot mode RAW + L/F JPEG	1.28 seconds	Time per shot, averaged over 20 shots with no signs of slowing.
Early shutter penalty?	Yes	Some cameras don't snap another shot if you release and press the shutter too quickly in Single Shot mode, making "No" the preferred answer.
Continuous 5.6 fps Large Fine JPEG	0.18 second (5.70 frames per second); 16 frames total; 6 seconds to clear*	Time per shot, averaged over buffer length of 16 frames. Then slows to an average of 0.44s or 2.30fps when buffer is full.
Continuous 5.6 fps RAW	0.18 second (5.68 frames per second); 11 frames total; 9 seconds to clear*	Time per shot, averaged over buffer length of 11 frames. Then slows to an average of 0.80s or 1.25fps when buffer is full.
Continuous 5.6 fps RAW + L/F JPEG	0.18 second (5.68 frames per second); 11 frames total; 11 seconds to clear*	Time per shot, averaged over buffer length of 11 frames. Then slows to an average of 1.02s or 0.98 fps when buffer is full.
Flash Recycling	3.1	Flash at maximum output.
*Note: Buffer clearing times measured with a SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/sec UHS-I SDHC card. Slower cards will produce correspondingly slower clearing times. Slow cards may also limit length of bursts in continuous mode. ISO sensitivity and noise reduction settings can also affect cycle times and burst mode performance.

Single-shot cycle times were a little sluggish for a CSC. We measured 1.13 second when shooting large/fine JPEGs, 1.21 second for RAW files, and 1.28 second for RAW+JPEG files.

"Continuous 5.6 fps" mode speeds were decent for its class, at about 5.7 frames per second no matter the file type. The Fuji X-M1 also offers a "Continuous 3.0 fps" mode, but we didn't test that mode. In both modes, focus and exposure are locked at the first frame.

Full resolution buffer depth was fair at 16 JPEG frames with our difficult to compress target. You'll likely do better with typical subjects. When shooting RAW or RAW+JPEG files, buffer depth dropped to 11 frames. Buffer clearing was a fairly quick 6 seconds after shooting a max-length burst of JPEGs, 9 seconds for a RAW burst, and 11 seconds for a RAW+JPEG burst, though buffer depths weren't very deep.

Re-cycling the flash after full power discharges took an average of 3.1 seconds, on the slow side of average.

Note: We no longer test USB transfer speeds since most folks use a card reader these days.

Bottom line, the Fuji X-M1's performance was mixed in our testing, with somewhat sluggish powerup, slower than average autofocus speeds, and mediocre single-shot cycle times. On the other hand, manual focus and prefocused shutter lag were pretty good, and burst mode performance was decent, though nothing to write home about. Overall, the X-M1's performance should do fine for a wide variety of photography as long as it's not sports or fast action where the subject is changing distance from the camera rapidly.

Battery

Battery Life
Average battery life for a compact system camera.

Operating Mode	Battery Life
Still Capture, (CIPA standard)	350 shots

The Fuji X-M1 uses a custom rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack for power, and comes with both a single battery and a dedicated charger. The CIPA rated 350 shots per charge is about average for a Compact System Camera these days. As is usually the case, we recommend getting a second battery for your X-M1 if you plan any extended outings.

The table above shows the number of shots the camera is capable of (on a fully-charged rechargeable battery), based on CIPA battery-life and/or manufacturer standard test conditions.

(Interested readers can find an English translation of the CIPA DC-002 standards document here. (180K PDF document))