Ricoh GXR

Ricoh GXR: body, A12 macro lens, and P10 28-300 mm equivalent lens

The Ricoh GXR is a compact digital camera first announced by Ricoh Company, Ltd, Tokyo on November 10, 2009.^[1] Unlike conventional cameras which either have a fixed lens and sensor or interchangeable lens and a fixed sensor, the GXR takes interchangeable units, each housing a lens, sensor and image processing engine. This allows each unit to have these features optimised to one another and a specific task, whereas with conventional interchangeable lens cameras, each different lens must use the same sensor and engine. The sealed units also prevent dust from reaching the sensor, which can be a problem with other cameras where the sensor is exposed whilst a lens is being changed. A significant disadvantage of this system is the extra cost involved in having to buy a whole new sensor with every new lens.

The body holds a built-in pop-up flash as well as a hot shoe on top for an external flash unit. Alternatively, Ricoh's 'VF-2', an external electronic viewfinder, can be attached to the hot shoe which, offers 920,000 pixels and 100% field of view.^[2] The separate units slide onto the body via a stainless steel rail and lock into place. They can then be released by a lever on the camera's body. Both the body and lens unit use magnesium alloy exterior.^[3][4] Each lens unit has its own unique specifications relating to its sensor and optics, meaning that different lens units will change the features, behavior and performance of the camera body to varying degrees when attached.

Units

Camera units

RICOH LENS P10 28-300mm F3.5-5.6 VC^[5]

• 10.6 megapixel, 1/2.3" CMOS sensor
• 28–300 mm (expressed as 35 mm equivalent) f/3.5-5.6 VC lens
• GR engine "Smooth Imaging Engine IV"
• Manual and auto focus
• Movie mode up to 1280 x 720 at 30 frames per second

GR LENS A12 50mm F2.5 MACRO

• 12.30 megapixel, APS-C sized (23.6×15.7 mm) CMOS sensor
• 50 mm (expressed as 35 mm equivalent) f/2.5 GR lens
• GR engine III
• Manual and auto focus

RICOH LENS S10 24-72mm F2.5-4.4 VC

• 10 megapixel, 1/1.7" CCD Sensor
• 24–72 mm (expressed as 35 mm equivalent) f/2.5-4.4, 3× Ricoh zoom lens
• Smooth Imaging engine IV

GR LENS A12 28mm F2.5

• 12.30 megapixel, APS-C sized (23.6×15.7 mm) CMOS sensor
• 28 mm (expressed as 35 mm equivalent) f/2.5 GR lens
• GR engine III
• Manual and auto focus

GR LENS A16 24-85mm F3.5-5.5

• 11 elements in 9 groups (3 aspherical lens elements with 6 surfaces)
• 55mm filter thread
• 16.20 megapixel, APS-C sized (23.6×15.7 mm) CMOS sensor
• Smooth Imaging engine IV
• Manual and auto focus

Lens mount units

GR MOUNT A12

• Leica M mount
• 12.30 megapixel, APS-C sized (23.6×15.7 mm) CMOS sensor

See also

• Minolta Dimage EX
• Sony SmartShot

References

1. "Ricoh announces the GXR interchangeable unit camera system" (Press release). Ricoh Company, Ltd. 2009-11-10. Retrieved 2010-03-07. Tokyo, Japan, November 10, 2009—Ricoh Co., Ltd. (president and CEO: Shiro Kondo) today announced the development and release of the GXR interchangeable unit camera system
2. http://www.ricoh.com/r_dc/gxr/option.html
3. Products & Solution / GXR | Ricoh Global http://www.ricoh.com/r_dc/gxr/features.html
4. http://forums.dpreview.com/maint/print.asp?type=reviews&content=ricohgxrp10&page=1
5. "Ricoh Lens P10" (Press release). Ricoh Company, Ltd. Retrieved 2010-05-07.

External links

• http://www.ricoh.com/r_dc/gxr/
• http://ricoh-gxr.blogspot.com/ (samples photos)
• http://ricoh-28mm.blogspot.com/ (review - full size samples)