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Ricoh GR Digital III hits the review bench, collects plaudits
The dudes and dudettes at Photography Blog are nothing if not thorough, and their latest review is no exception. The GR Digital III and its peculiar 28mm wide-angle fixed focal length lens (i.e. no optical zoom) have been subjected to an inspection and the verdict is an exuberant thumbs up. The aluminum alloy body impressed them right from the off, and the reviewers also liked the customizable menus, improved shutter speed, Dynamic Range double shot, and Adobe DNG RAW output. Those were all mere cherries, however, to the cake of "excellent" image quality and "stand-out" Macro performance. The sole blemishes found were the price (£529 / $699) and noise issues beyond ISO 800, but then the latter is a well known weakness of compact cameras. Check out the read link for sample images and the (very) full review.
Ricoh's 28mm GR Digital II camera gets reviewed
It's taken a little while for Ricoh's 10-megapixel GR Digital II to make the rounds since it was announced late last year, but it's finally wound up in the capable hands of the folks from Photography Blog, who've now turned out a full review of the camera. Among other things, this one is particularly notable for its use of a 28mm fixed focal length lens, which Photography Blog found helped deliver some solid images with "very little distortion." They were also pleased with the addition of a RAW shooting mode (even though it slows things down quite a bit), and the camera's intuitive control system, which can be "almost completely configured to suit your way of working." On the downside, they found the camera suffered from the common drawback of excessive noise at ISO 400 or above, and there is the small matter of the $699 price tag, which puts it on the level of some pretty impressive non-28mm cameras, and within striking range of the 28mm Sigma DP1. Still, the GR Digital II appears to hold its own, and seems like it'd be an even better buy if you can find a good deal on it.
Ricoh's GR Digital encore: the 10 megapixel GR Digital II
After a two-year stint, Ricoh is finally rolling out a successor to their GR Digital -- the GR digital II. No really, that's the 10 megapixel GR II up there not their 10 megapixel GX100. The GR II boasts a 1/1.75-inch CCD, ISO 1600 max sensitivity, improved RAW and JPEG recordings, VGA video recordings, SDHC/SD card slot, and option for a Lithium-Ion power plant or pair of AAAs in a pinch. Right, just like the GX100. The GR II, however, is a tad smaller and lighter than the GX100 while offering a slightly larger, auto-rotating 2.7-inch LCD, and the same 28-mm (not 24 to 72-mm wide-angle) lens found on the original GR Digital. Expected in Japan on November 22nd for about ¥80,000 or right around 700 bucks.[Via Amateur Photographer]
Ricoh unveils First Anniversary GR Digital camera
Following up on Canon's own celebratory diamond IXUS, Ricoh is tooting its own horn by releasing a vividly-colored GR Digital to commemorate 10 years of the GR series and the first anniversary of its digital flavor. Presumably sporting the same 8-megapixel sensor and peculiar fixed lens, this special edition boasts an unmistakable paint job featuring "a blue sky and clouds" with "angel figures on the front and top of the enclosure," care of renowned Japanese illustrator Katsuya Terada. In addition to the atypical artwork, the camera includes a wrist strap and angel-themed dust cloth, and unsurprisingly lacks an MSRP -- but considering these units are limited to 1,000 (and the ordinary version already demands $700), only the most serious Terada aficionados should probably apply.[Via PhotographyBlog]
