As the original poster, I'd like to make a perhaps vain effort to turn the conversation away from laments about Apple, color management, babies and bathwater, etc., and return to the original subject, which is the Phase One XF.
In that regard, a few items on my wishlist in case anyone connected with Phase is still following this thread after wading through irrelevancies:
(1) A vertical grip. As mentioned in one of my first posts in this thread, handholding vertically is adequate as-is, but the more I use the camera, the more convinced I become that an optional vertical grip would be very helpful.
(2) There should be some way to customize the size and layout of the icons on the top touch screen with a greater degree of nuance than there is currently. Currently, there's "classic" mode, which shows a bunch of camera parameters, and then "simple" mode, which limits the displayed parameters to only a few (aperture, shutter speed, exposure comp., and battery status). What I'd like to be able to do is (a) select which individual parameters to display and (b) be able to change the size and positioning of the displayed parameters. For example: When shooting quickly and wanting to change drive modes or exposure comp., I find that the icons are a bit too small: I sometimes end up accidentally touching the wrong parameter. Being able to select the individual parameters that I want to display (beyond the binary choices of classic mode and simple mode) and being able to alter their size so that they each take up more screen real estate when fewer of them are displayed would be very helpful.
(3) After reviewing an image on the rear screen and then going back to shooting, I've noticed that it consistently takes 3-4 taps of the shutter button to get the rear screen to turn off. In the abstract, not a big deal, but the screen should turn off as soon as the shutter button is tapped. The practical problem here is that if the screen is still on as you raise the camera to your eye, you end up being temporarily blinded (ok, that's an exaggeration) and it therefore takes a few moments for your eye to adjust back to the dimmer ambient light looking through the viewfinder. This problem is exacerbated if shooting indoors. It's less of any issue if shooting outdoors in really bright light because your pupils are already constricted anyway. But if indoors, e.g., under studio conditions, bringing the viewfinder to your eye while the rear display is still lit causes your pupils to constrict just as you're about to look through the viewfinder, and it therefore takes a few moments for them to dilate again and for you to be able to see clearly.
It's possible that my first 2-3 taps aren't firm enough for the back to register that the shutter release has been pressed and that the rear screen should therefore turn off; i.e., perhaps I'm tapping it too lightly at first and then progressively more firmly as I realize that the screen hasn't turned off....
(I'm also aware that I can turn down the screen brightness when shooting indoors. The point is that I like the brightness as it is; I just want the dang rear screen to properly turn off when I tap the shutter release once as I'm about to bring the camera to my eye.)
(4) The two-handed operation required to remove the back (for example, to clean it or to do a "power cycle"/reboot if it starts acting wonky) both feels much more secure than the previous method on older P series backs (where it could be done with one hand) but also is really annoying/cumbersome. I tried really hard to see if there was a way to remove the back one-handed: if there is, I couldn't figure it out. As it stands, you basically have to sit down and have the camera in your lap or place it on the floor or a table to get the back off: there's no way to hold the camera body in one hand and still be able to remove the back. I can picture many situations where sitting down to place the camera in your lap or put it on a surface to free both hands isn't a practical method to get the back off to clean it or reboot the system: shooting in Death Valley in the 100 degree sun (which I've done) or doing walk-around shooting (what are you going to do, stop and sit in the middle of the sidewalk to take the back off?) or while standing in the middle of a stream (which I haven't done, but plenty others do).
It's not a huge issue for me: I just liked the old method better. It may, however, be a real problem for someone with a physical disability affecting one of his/her hands.
Still liking it, a lot!