Ricoh Caplio GX

...as other cameras from the Ricoh brand, I took a stab in the dark to see if this camera was for me. So after months of saving I finally received the camera after parting with £350. I am aim in this review to show you my findings and hope that you will take my opinion on board if you are considering buying this camera. This camera generated a lot of interest upon its release and with good reason to.

Overview
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...my knowledge is the first Ricoh camera to do so. One of the reasons I chose this camera above other similar models was because of its high pixel count. I feel this is important as higher pixels can bring out more of an image. I was also very impressed with the amount of image types that this camera is capable of. Of course you can take the usual choice of your Fine and your Normal JPEGs the same as always. But this camera has one major difference ... more

Introduction
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I would like to start of this review by stating why I came to buy this camera instead of the many other high quality cameras that were available to me on the market. Being an amateur photographer with little money to spend on new equipment I had to save up for quite a while to be to afford such a high quality camera. Having search through many opinions on this camera as well as other cameras from the Ricoh brand, I took a stab in the dark to see if this camera was for me. So after months of saving I finally received the camera after parting with £350. I am aim in this review to show you my findings and hope that you will take my opinion on board if you are considering buying this camera. This camera generated a lot of interest upon its release and with good reason to.

Overview
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This Ricoh model is about as compact as a camera of this sophistication can get. It will fit in the palm of an average persons hand with ease and weighs only around 220g. This weight may seem a little heavier than a usual camera of this type but the added weight helps you reach a firm grip upon this camera and helps more with the general flowing movement when taking your pictures. This camera is extremely well built with an aluminum alloy body that will last for years to come. It has an all-black appearance that in my eyes is much understated. Rubberized handgrips add even more to the ease of use to this camera and also there's a small area made of the same material on the rear body to act as a thumb rest. There is also a very professional looking, all metal tripod stand included.

The zoom capabilities of this device are top notch with a 24-72mm, f2.5(W)-4.4(T) and 3 wide-angle optical zoom lenses. The GX100 bright 24mm focal length really opens up the possibilities for subjects like landscapes and urban areas to really shine. The cameras 72mm telephoto length however still has the capability to handle all your portrait and head shots however. The true wide angle setting on this device is great for photographers like me to take still street and landscape photos.

The GX100 features a 10 megapixel sensor and to my knowledge is the first Ricoh camera to do so. One of the reasons I chose this camera above other similar models was because of its high pixel count. I feel this is important as higher pixels can bring out more of an image. I was also very impressed with the amount of image types that this camera is capable of. Of course you can take the usual choice of your Fine and your Normal JPEGs the same as always. But this camera has one major difference that makes it lead the rest in terms of image types. This Ricoh camera unlike any other now features a RAW mode setting. This means that the camera can be set to Adobe's DNG format and your images can be opened instantly in any RAW software that supports DNG. I have yet to find a program that I use that does not support this format. I feel this feature makes this camera have once again a cut above the rest.

The zooming of the GX100 is done by an up/down rocker switch on the backside of the camera which will put you in full control of the 24-72mm lens. To choose what shooting mode you wish to use with ease there is, what the manual calls, the Up-down dial. Also featured on the back is the Adj. button. These controls allow you to choose which shooting mode you want to use, you can choose from full auto, program shift, aperture-priority, shutter-priority and fully manual. Most of the time I like to be in total control so fully manual was the obvious choice for me. Also if you press the Adj. button this will allow you to quickly adjust 3 settings that are commonly used - Exposure Compensation, ISO Speed, and White Balance. This is a very handy feature and I found myself grateful for this quick press option on many occasions. There are 17 controls on the camera itself in total, leaving enough room for a 2.5 inch LCD screen on the back. There is also an option to use the Camera Shake Correction feature that will use a clever system for compromise any shakes that may occur.

Disadvantages
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There were two major flaws with this camera that I feel are worth a mention here. The first of which being that when I set the camera to one of it highest ISO setting, I found that there was a lot of unwanted noise on images that I took. This is something that I wouldn’t expect from such a sophisticated camera such as this however the noise rate was very noticeable indeed especially when I printed the images. However I could see past this flaw and settled for keeping the ISO rating lower. Even at a lower setting it was the highest ISO rate I have even worked with.

The second flaw I came across was the price. Even though I am extremely happy with my purchase I feel that for the amount I paid for this I did not perhaps get moneys worth. The look and feel of the camera is great however this camera I now find is more expensive than a full 6 megapixel camera in some cases let alone the compact ten megapixels that we see here. For what the camera is I feel that I have in a way been ripped of. For an amateur photographer such as me it was probably not my best buying decision. However even for your more professional camera user I feel the price of this is still far too expensive for what this camera can do.

Specification
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10-megapixel CCD for high image quality
Wide 24 to 72mm* zoom lens
3x optical zoom,
F2.5 ~ F9.1 (Wide-angle) to F4.4 ~ F15.8 Telephoto
* 35mm film equivalent
Program shift
Aperture priority modes
LCD viewfinder (removable) for SLR-style shooting
CCD-shift-type vibration correction
Optional 19mm ultra-wide conversion lens

Included
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Battery Charger (Ricoh BJ-6)
Lens Cap
Rechargeable Battery (Ricoh DB-60)
USB Cable
Hand strap
AV Cable

Conclusion
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This was defiantly not the best camera choice for me but that certainly does not mean that you will not like this product. If there was one reason to defiantly get this product though it would be for the RAW feature that I feel is a great addition to the camera world. IF you can live without this feature however I would suggest either looking for a different model or waiting for Ricoh's next release. This camera has set the bar for other cameras but still does have a few flaws that stop it from becoming the perfect camera.

Verdict
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8 Out of Ten 

...less