This is my review of the Hasselblad X1D-50c. This is the top flagship brand on DxOMark with a score of 102 for sensor (as of June 2018). The X1D is an impressive looking 50 MP medium format camera that comes in a compact size. It is also the first mirrorless medium format camera. The build quality is solid handcrafted Swedish design with a body milled from a single block of aluminum. Reminds me of the MacBook Pro in feel and aesthetics. The ergonomics is great. The grip gives a nice feel and allows the fingers to really dig deep to get a hold on the camera. It was much lighter than I expected too for a medium format. I was used to seeing the older bulkier Hasseblad like the 500C. The X1D is also a highly updated modern camera with USB 3.0, Wi-Fi and GPS. It has dual storage SD card slots as well. One thing I didn’t expect is a touchscreen LCD on the back for controls and settings.
The good thing about this camera is the quality is great as would be expected with the XCD lens series. The quality in sharpness and detail is there, but one thing I can say is you really need a steady hand to shoot with this. The lens don’t have image stabilization. Even a smartphone camera would do a better job stabilizing an image. Thus this camera is not for fast action shots, though it can still be tried. It is quite slow, no rapid burst mode since it has a maximum of 2.3 fps. The X1D shoots video at Full HD 1080p @ 25 fps using an H.264 codec. So this is not competing with the RED Weapon 8K in any way. I would have expected more for a flagship camera, but Hasselblad’s point here is that the X1D is for quality stills not video. The camera also uses firmware updates to enhance and add functions on a regular basis. Despite the good things about this camera, I still feel it is not really going to be like what Sony did for full frame. The body alone is close to $9,000 and a full camera package with the lens is over $11,000. One thing I see the X1D really ideal for is product photography. A truly professional camera not for the casual shooter.
