Announced aback in March the Ricoh Caplio GX100 is clearly the almsman to the GX8, but it could appropriately able-bodied be declared as a zoom adaptation of the flagship GR-D, as it shares a actual agnate design, affection set and interface. The GX100 has several appearance to set it afar from the majority of 10MP compacts, a lot of interestingly a 3x zoom lens with an unparalleled wideangle capability, accoutrement a ambit agnate to 24-72mm on a 35mm camera. This equates to an access in the askew acreage of appearance of about 20 degrees acreage of appearance compared to the 35 or 36mm abbreviate end of a lot of bunched camera zooms - that's a huge aberration if you're cutting interiors or landscapes. The GX100 is aswell the world's aboriginal agenda bunched to action an (optional) disposable cyberbanking viewfinder, which block into the beam hot shoe and tilts upwards through 90 degrees.
Like the GR-D the GX100 offers 'SLR like' ascendancy acknowledgment to accompanying ascendancy dials, raw abduction (using the 'universal' DNG format) and a top akin of customization options. All this, accumulated with the black architecture and finish, is advised to leave abeyant purchasers in no agnosticism that this is a austere camera for austere users absent an another to an SLR that they can blooper into a anorak pocket. On cardboard the GX100 offers a abnormally ambrosial mix of features, so let's acquisition out how able-bodied it does in practice, starting as anytime with the banderole features:
Having afresh taken its continued zoom cameras into anytime added DSLR-like territory, Fuji's S8000fd is something of a departure. The S8000fd places a abate sensor abaft a abundant longer-range zoom lens in a beneath SLR-like body. Going arch to arch with the Panasonic FZ18 and Olympus SP560UZ the S8000fd is Fuji's a lot of aggressive zoom bunched to date. It is aswell the aboriginal long-zoom camera from Fuji to action angel stabilization (in this case a CCD-shake system), which is offered by a lot of aggressive brands and is appealing abundant capital with a zoom this long.
The S8000fd packs an abominable lot into its bunched body, and seems to be aggravating appealing harder to be all things to all people, with chiral acknowledgment controls sitting alongside point-and-shoot accessibility appearance such as face detection. There is a accelerated cutting access (at bargain resolution), and some acutely top acuteness modes (again at lower resolution), for cutting in low light. What compromises this all-embracing access brings, we shall see.
Panasonic's aboriginal agenda SLR acquired absolutely a activity at an contrarily blah PMA 2006, due in no baby allotment to its different Leica-inspired administration and Vario Elmarit 14-50mm optically counterbalanced lens. But ultimately the DMC-L1, bootless to construe all that barrage absorption into absolute sales. This was acknowledgment in allotment to its top amount (the kit lens accounting for bisected the $2000 ticket) and rather attenuate affection set. But the added botheration - aggregate with the Olympus E330 (on which it was based and with which it aggregate abounding components) - was that the beefy anarchistic styling, afflictive viewfinder and bulky Live View Implementation beatific abeyant purchasers scurrying aback to the 'safe' best of an SLR from a added boilerplate manufacturer.
And now we accept the additional Panasonic Lumix DSLR, the DMC-L10, a far added accepted activity (it in fact looks a lot like a reflex adaptation of the FZ50) that offers some cogent new appearance including a absolutely articulating LCD monitor, user interface improvements, a resolution backpack to ten megapixels and the adeptness to use contrast-detect autofocus in Live View approach application the sensor itself (though alone with accordant lenses - basically the two new zooms appear today). There are aswell several appearance that accept migrated from Panasonic's bunched Lumix range, including Intelligent ISO mode, quick 'FUNC' card and a admixture of arena modes.
Like the L1 the new archetypal is the bake-apple of the affiliation amid Panasonic and Olympus, and already afresh it appearance a Live MOS sensor and SSWF dust abatement filter, (we don't accept audible advice yet, but the mirror box and sensor are, we doubtable the aforementioned as the E-410). Already afresh the kit lens is a Panasonic/Leica collaboration, complete with optical angel stabilization, admitting (presumably to accumulate costs down) it is a lighter, slower zoom (F3.8-5.6) and it doesn't accept an breach ring. The L10 aswell does abroad with the L1's acceptable bang acceleration punch in favor of accompanying ascendancy dials.
The capital blueprint differences are apparent below, but aboriginal let's alpha with a arbitrary of the important stuff:
Olympus was one of the aboriginal manufacturers to apprehend that architecture digicams about baby sensors allows abundant best zooms to be offered after the aggregate of the camera acceptable unmanageable. With its "Ultra zoom" range, starting aback in 2000 with the 2.1MP C-2100UZ, Olympus about abandoned created a alcove for digicams alms 10X optical zooms in almost bunched formats. Over the years, that alcove has developed into a accepted and angrily fought bazaar segment.
Realizing that the account of a 10X zoom was abundant abundant to accomplish abounding users discount the compromises that such a ample zoom ambit entails, Olympus absitively to investigate whether barter would put up with still added compromises if the zoom ambit was even greater. The aftereffect was the SP-550UZ with its amazing 18X zoom range. And, just a few months later, the Olympus was abutting on the bazaar by agnate offerings from Panasonic and Fuji, suggesting it wasn't abandoned in its thinking. So actuality we accept Olympus' second-generation 18X zoom camera, the SP-560UZ. The catechism is, accepting absent its different affairs point, can the Olympus still accomplish a acceptable angle for your money, and accept the SP-550's shortcomings been overcome? Let's acquisition out...
Olympus was one of the first manufacturers to realize that building digicams around small sensors allows much longer zooms to be offered without the bulk of the camera becoming unmanageable. With its "Ultra zoom" range, starting back in 2000 with the 2.1MP C-2100UZ, Olympus almost single-handedly created a niche for digicams offering 10X optical zooms in relatively compact formats. Over the years, that niche has developed into a popular and fiercely fought market segment.
Realizing that the utility of a 10X zoom was great enough to make many users overlook the compromises that such a large zoom range entails, Olympus decided to investigate whether customers would put up with still more compromises if the zoom range was even greater. The result was the SP-550UZ with its astonishing 18X zoom range. And, just a few months later, the Olympus was joined on the market by similar offerings from Panasonic and Fuji, suggesting it wasn't alone in its thinking. So here we have Olympus' second-generation 18X zoom camera, the SP-560UZ. The question is, having lost its unique selling point, can the Olympus still make a convincing pitch for your money, and have the SP-550's shortcomings been overcome? Let's find out...
The Cyber-shot DSC-H3 was aboriginal appear aback in August 2007 and is the latest accession to Sony's High Zoom ambit of bunched cameras - and something of a abandonment (previous models were all appreciably beyond 'SLR-style' affairs). This 'baby-brother' of the Cyber-shot H7/H9 offers a 10x zoom in a actual bunched physique for photographers on a bound budget. It is able with an 8MP sensor and has affiliated a amount of its bigger sister-models' appearance such as Face Detection, Optical Image Stabilization and HDTV achievement (albeit application an alternative blended video cable or Cyber-shot Station dock). Searching at its blueprint and amount point the H3's is acutely advised to go head-to-head with the accepted - and analogously defined - Panasonic TZ3 and Canon SX100 IS.
In its columnist actual Sony says the Cyber-shot H3 has been alien for "parents searching to abduction and re-live their children’s back-to-school memories." Let's see if the Sony H3 could be an adorable camera advantage for any added demographic groups, starting as accepted with the banderole features:
The Canon Powershot SD1100 IS (IXUS 80 IS in Europe) is as beginning off the Canon engineers' cartoon boards as it can get. It was appear alone a few weeks ago for the PMA barter appearance in Las Vegas and already has fabricated its way into the basement basement which accommodates the dpreview labs.
The camera comes as a backup for the SD1000 (IXUS 70). The key appearance of this ultra bunched aren't annihilation to address home about but the SD1100 promises to be addition solid point and shoot apparatus advancing out of the Canon stables. It combines an 8MP sensor with a 3x zoom (38-114mm equiv, optically stabilized) and lets you appearance images and airheaded on a top resolution 2.5 inch screen.
Although the blueprint area ability not attending anytime absorbing we should acknowledgment that there are a few new functions which Canon alien with the latest additions to its band of bunched cameras. Face Apprehension now aswell optimizes White Balance for the face apprehension anatomy and the new AF Point Zoom allows the user to analysis the focus by accumulative the AF anatomy if the bang button is apprenticed bisected way.
Are these accurate new little appearance abundant to accomplish the SD1100 angle out from the crowd? Let's acquisition out in our review, starting, as ever, with the banderole features:
For abounding years, consumers absent added ascendancy and ambit than a bunched but lower weight and amount than a DSLR accept been able to buy 'bridge' cameras, which attending a lot like DSLRs but do abroad with the bulky, big-ticket mirror accumulation that defines an SLR. They accept commonly had abate sensors which acquiesce continued zoom lenses to be created in a almost abate space.
However, in contempo years, added manufacturers accept started to attempt at the basal end of the DSLR bazaar with slimmed-down offerings at ever-more advancing prices. This has larboard the arch camera in a bound atom - why buy a DSLR-like camera if you can nab the absolute affair for about the aforementioned money? Until recently, it appeared to be a catechism with no answer: a lot of arch cameras shrank from the claiming and began to attending and feel added like compacts with an cool zoom on the front. Fujifilm's fully-featured S9100, launched aback in August 2006 abolished from the bazaar after any assurance of a replacement.
Until the advertisement of the Fujifilm S100FS, that is. And it's an absorbing package: one of the better sensors we've apparent in a non-DSLR for abounding years, a lens accoutrement a 14.3x zoom ambit (that, importantly, starts at a agreeably wide-angle 28mm equivalent), and the eighth bearing of Fujifilm's Super CCD sensor technology. There's some photography-related appearance that accept been added too, such as presets advised to actor the behavior of specific Fuji films and a activating ambit amplification mode.
Sony aboriginal two DSLRs, the A100 and A700 showed bright signs of their Konica Minolta birth - administration a lot of DNA with the Maxxum (Dynax) 5D and 7D respectively. Its latest, the A350, still shows signs of that ancestor but aswell hints at the influences of a aggregation with rather altered intentions.
The afresh alien A200, A300 and A350 represent an advancing advance on the access akin market. All three models are acutely abutting in agreement of amount and appearance (The A300 is a A200 with Live appearance or an A350 with a beneath pixel-dense sensor, depending on how you attending at it). And, with the A300, Sony has alien the aboriginal single-retailer "exclusive" DSLR: a artefact alone awash through a individual outlet, acceptance that banker to advance a stronger akin of access over affairs price.
These babyish Alphas, the 200, 300 and 350, are added agnate than any accumulation of cameras in any added manufacturer's lineup, complicating the bazaar but aswell alms a greater amount of best than ever. Some absolute Sony and Konica Minolta owners accept been agitated by the perceived abridgement in appearance from the A100 but the new Alphas should conceivably be advised the aboriginal absolute Sony products, absorption a altered estimation of how humans accept access akin cameras, rather than the A100's assiduity of the assumptions that underpinned the KM 5D.
The feature changes between the K10D and K20D are subtle but this is mainly because there was little that the K10D needed adding to its pretty formidable features list. The changes that have been made are:
