Also Ricoh will join the large sensor compact camera market!
Image credit: Ricoh GR Digital IV by matsuyuki
PetaPixel just published an info we also got from our sources last week. Ricoh will launch a new GR Digital V camera with large APS-C sensor and fixed lens. The camera is rumored to arrive the second half of this year. I am still not sure about the lens but a source told me it’s definitely one of the two patented 23mm f/2.5 and 27mm f/1.9 designs (Source: RiceHigh).
The high end compact camera marked is the last profitable business on fixed lens cameras. All the low end stuff is being eaten up by smartphones.
Bora
5 months ago |Now that’s a news.
Pete
5 months ago |They are all totally crazy, the only reason to have such a camera ist to impress people around.
The only camera to buy for this reason is a LEICA!!!
Save this money and give it poor people around you, you will enjoy it more!
Bora
5 months ago |They are not crazy. They are doing the right thing. Sony did it, Fuji did it. Then why not Ricoh? Not everyone can afford Leica and also not everyone is happy with manual focus. Think broad.
Crazyman
5 months ago |You are crazy, crazy to think this highend pos will effect market share. No market share, means discontinued products. discontinued products means youll be the one holding on to gear you cant sell and no one wants. Sony dslrs to dslt to whatever..one stupid gimmick after the next, leaving a trail of abandoned crap along the way..while every one who has logic has already left their boat.
casaubon
5 months ago |Inside Japan, Ricoh is known as a high-end brand, and people often buy them to show off.
But their cameras are made to be photographers’ cameras, and they have a well-deserved reputation for that. They don’t rely on gimmicks, nor on pumping out tons of mass-market cameras for Best Buy. They have a targeted niche that they serve well. Their approach is quite comparable to Leica’s in that respect.
Crazyman
5 months ago |Eeerrrrrrr..sure they are. And if i go to Japan i should see alot of pro photogs uing richo, right? ….suuuuureee, whatever you say. Now i rememebr Richos company motto. ” Richo, so higend and good you never see pros using it, even in Japan.”
Crazyman
5 months ago |Wow, i geuss ppl dont buy leica to show them off. Who needs leica to show off when you can have….RICHO!. LOL. Man, some of you folks here onthis site, the way you folks are into fantasy really makes me laugh. Net thing youll tell me is people buy Kodak to show off and their the best cameras. LOL. Oh my god, forgget Canon or nikon, look at the RICHO! LOL
Will
5 months ago |Right you’re probably being sarcastic Crazyman but either way, I live here in Japan and Ricoh is indeed a high-end camera company (at least here), has a very good image here, i’m just about to head to the camera store actually, where Ricoh has a large portion of floor space for their products. And they’re camera’s are everywhere here, unlike the Pentax Q that people say is doing well in Japan???
lorenzino
4 months ago |I have actually seen people using the Pentax Q in Japan. OTOH I have not seen anyone using a Ricoh. This is not to say that people are not into Ricoh here, because judging from the stands in Yodobashi or other camera stores, Ricoh is really doing well. But personally I have not seen anyone being used around (just my personal experience, though, I am not generalizing)
Bora
5 months ago |Ok I am crazy…You crazyman lol
Al
5 months ago |I don’t care about brands, I care about performance. If Ricoh can deliver at a reasonable price, I will jump at it.
I have people think my Olympus EPL-1 is some exotic camera. I’d rather they didn’t.
jack
5 months ago |Yea, make fun of Pontiac… deceased maker of the G8 which features near identical BMW 3 series performance for $25k less… No Ricoh is not Leica, but they do make fantastic cameras that photographers enjoy using. Apart from camera aesthetics, I liked the GXR far better than Leica’s x series, all of Sony’s up until the nex 6, and the x100.
But, I’ll let you go back to your status symbols. BTW, be sure to check out the Great Gatsby when it comes out in theaters. You may learn something if you concentrate really hard.
casaubon
5 months ago |Maybe for you.
For me, Ricoh is the best manufacturer of fixed-lens cameras. Period. They make cameras for photographers.
Bora
5 months ago |Totally agree.
Crazyman
5 months ago |Best manufacture of fied lenses cameras? Where , in Japan? You CANT even GET Richo in N America, and im not sure if Europe even carries Richo. No good if no one knows you make cameras is it?
casaubon
5 months ago |B&H, Adorama, Popflash all carry Ricoh. Need more names?
lorenzino
4 months ago |Yes, sure, Ricoh (not Richo) is being sold and can be bought in Europe
Crazyman
5 months ago |Sorry, my bad, I forgot that most pros and noobs in Japan and the world are carrying Richo around their necks. You sure youre not dyslexi and see Richo when you actually see Canon or nikon? LOL
casaubon
5 months ago |Nowhere did I say that all pros use Ricohs for all purposes. Many pros use Ricohs as primary or secondary cameras, especially if they specialize in street photography.
Per k
5 months ago |I will look out for this camera! They most likely use Pentax sensor technology including without AA-filter. Lens will be HQ. If also performance is OK, then it will really be a (street)photographers camera.
HAROLD GLIT
5 months ago |SECOND half of this year ? are you sure. This seems not only a long time from now but it does not correspond to the RICOH dna which usually has products available soon after press release. Let’ s hope you are wrong and that product will ship this spring
Harold
admin
5 months ago |So I have been told.
pooh
4 months ago |GRDs are usually due between July and September.
Joe B.
5 months ago |By the way, why don’t we have more news about Ricoh here ?
casaubon
5 months ago |Because Ricoh has been slow to release (or leak) any news at all over the past two years.
Al
5 months ago |That could have something to do with the acquisition of Pentax.
I remember how Steve Huff loved his Ricoh GRD3. I saw a GRD 4 some time back. It looked like a no BS camera. The owner couldn’t speak English but gave the camera two thumbs up.
Just because a camera doesn’t have a big following in the US doesn’t mean it isn’t a worthy camera.
John Maverick
5 months ago |Everyone already makes APS-C mirrorless now. Leica x1/x2, Canon EOS-M, Fuji x100s/xpro, Sony NEX, Samsung NX, Pentax K01. That’s a lot of competition.
casaubon
5 months ago |And none of the fixed-lens APS-C cameras are up to Ricoh’s standards of build quality and UI design.
Crazyman
5 months ago |Richo may be a bigger name in aprts of Sia such as Japan but in the west, ask anyone what Richo means to them, and if they can even think of anything, they will surely say” maker of cheap electronic goods”. I cant even rememebr any richo products here except the low end crap ps film cameras of the 90′s. and ive even seen more leica m9′s on the poor streets of western countries more than Ive seen a Richo gr whatever..in fact I never evebn seen ONE Richo gr gx whatever camera here. Releasing so called higend stuff aint gonna do diddly when you havent got clout or a name ppl know of.
Per k
5 months ago |Many, if not you know that Ricoh has a great tradition in “edel-compacts” as the Germans say. Lens quality, build quality, UI and IQ – all excellent. They also made a film RF camera with a couple of lenses.
Many pro and art photographers have Ricoh GRD as second camera.
Crazyman
5 months ago |delusional # 2. Also needs to check his head.
james70094
5 months ago |Ricoh means high quality optics and cameras to me and many others here in the USA. I had several digicams that used Ricoh lenses and gldaly pid more for them because of those high quality lenses. Ricoh is one of the top imaging companies and top camera companies. I would chose Ricoh over Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Sigma, etc. Anyone that thinks Ricoh is just cheap inferior products is uninformed.
Crazyman
5 months ago |delusional, you need a shrink.
Al
5 months ago |Are you a Troll?
lorenzino
4 months ago |Of course he is. It’s more than enough to compare the way he thinks and answers to other otherwise kind people with the way he writes.
So, either his nick is appropriate, or he is a troll.
Crazyman
4 months ago |Are you a deluisonal Richo fanboy?
Crazyman
4 months ago |you mean like you and your two identities, al lorenzino? LOL
EnPassant
5 months ago |This is what I wrote Ricoh should have done already with the GR Digital IV which at the time of introduction was already outdated:
http://photorumors.com/2011/09/13/ricoh-gr-digital-3-vs-ricoh-gr-digital-4/
Ricoh-Pentax i late to the party again.
Lain
5 months ago |Meh.. Another APS-C. Can’t someone jump over to FF already?
I’d buy the Leica system, but I’d have to sell my car first. ;/
simon
5 months ago |oh nice same size as the film GR or a bit smaller, no viewfinder (maybe clip on option, I don’t care), sony sensor (with high dr) and the 27/1.9 I’d be very very tempted.
pooh
4 months ago |The patents talk about a 19/2.5 for a aps-c camera. In reality, both the depth field of a large sensor and the boost in high ISO performance will surely eclipse this one stop loss in lens speed.
The body will definitely be larger than both film and digital GRs, just hope it has a retractable lens unlike the GXR A12 28/2.5 module, and is reasonable in speed.
Never hope too much as the disappointment usually follows.
simon
4 months ago |it has to be considerably smaller than a nex 5r plus 20/2.8 otherwise why buy it? I still think film gr size should be doable. but maybe not for ricoh?
casaubon
5 months ago |Trolls aside, this is news I’ve been waiting for for a long time. Very, very exciting.
casaubon
5 months ago |Is your spelling “Ricoh” as “Richo” part of the act, or…?
Crazyman
4 months ago |Is your fanboysim part of your act…?
JT
4 months ago |Wow, you’re easily the biggest moron I’ve ever met.
What a complete tool.
J.R.
4 months ago |Can’t wait for this camera. I love using my GXR and GR IV.
jack
5 months ago |Admin, please remove Crazyman as he is either a troll or utterly incompetent. He brings nothing to the discussion.
admin
5 months ago |Removed! Thanks for focusing the attention on him!
Crazyman
4 months ago |Admin, please remove jack , he is a fanboy troll and there is no sense in people who believe in fantasies here. We need ppl of logic and common sesne, not fantasy driven fanboys who troll on this site and spread bs and propaganda.
stanis riccadonna zolczynski
4 months ago |Two things I hope Ricoh will present in the new GRD. Should it be APS-c sensor then it must be compared to GXR A12 28 combination. Using 23mm or 27mm (EQV 35 FF ) would be mistake. Stick to excellent 18mm 2,5. Put a ring around lens on the body which should act as a power on-of, lens telescoping device. The same ring could have manual distance function with clic stops. Say inf, 5m, 3m,2m,1,5m,1m,0,7m,0,5m, 0,3m. Put exposure compensation dial on top of body Fuji style. Articulated LCD screen, weatherproofing, wireless remote control. Anyway I wonder how much smaller they can a camera with GXR A12 28 specifications. The best succesor of GRD IV would be near same size body with 1″ sensor with improved high ISO, articulated LCD screen, weatherproofing, wireless remote control and of course excellent 28mm FF EQV. lens
RICOHFANBOYLULZ
4 months ago |You mad bro?
“The brand MUST not be crappy, purely becuase I don’t see it NEAR WHERE I AM. FACT”
This camera is a street photography camera that you dont see.
unless you shoot like this—>
http://xcb.xanga.com/caa8514b51150281034520/z148076853.jpg
Ant
3 months ago |Should have just expand their GXR A units.