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I've been looking for a compact camera that's usable for a while, mostly meaning has a decent wide angle on it. The GX100 not only does 24-70mm equiv but has a hyperfocal mode and pretty quick shutter lag. Of course, at 5 seconds between shots it's not especially fast, but that is a price I'll happily pay to get a usable camera that I can pocket. About <a href="http://staticice.com.au/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=gx100&start=21&links=20&showadres=1">$700 in Oz</a> so it's steep but worth while if it works, I think.

So, has anyone here played with one?

thanks
Moz

Moz,

Why not look at the Canon PHDs? They're reasonably priced and offer great value for your hard-earned. In the PHD market, they're probably closest to the top of the pile in terms of acceptable compromises.

Look at some of Greg B's shots from his recent trip for some examples of what they're capable of.

gstark wrote:Why not look at the Canon PHDs?

OK, you got me, what's a PHD that I can take photos with? Google denies all knowledge of the field.

OK, specifically why I'm interested in the Ricoh: decent wide angle, short shutter lag (0.1s in hyperfocal mode), manual controls, raw mode. The canon compact cameras I've seen don't do any of those things. I could live without RAW, but I can't live with 38mm "wide" angle (I've owned an S5 and A310), and the whole "push button, wait.... wait for it.... waaaiiiit... click!" experience is overrated in my book. I'd rather keep using my phone than spend $500-odd on another crappy PoS camera.

PHD wrote:(Push Here Dummy mode) Refers to any device that operates by doing nothing more than pushing a button

No offence

got it from google

moz wrote:

gstark wrote:Why not look at the Canon PHDs?

OK, you got me, what's a PHD that I can take photos with?

We're much better than Google.

http://wiki.dslrusers.net/index.php?title=PHD

OK, specifically why I'm interested in the Ricoh: decent wide angle, short shutter lag (0.1s in hyperfocal mode), manual controls, raw mode.
.....

but I can't live with 38mm "wide" angle (I've owned an S5 and A310), and the whole "push button, wait.... wait for it.... waaaiiiit... click!" experience is overrated in my book. I'd rather keep using my phone than spend $500-odd on another crappy PoS camera.

Ok ... be wary of "shutter lag" claims. Shutter lag may, indeed, be 0.1s ... what's the camera's write speed and buffer size?

You'll need to have a play with the cameras and have a good play in burst mode to test their capabilities; I've been in situations where Ive been using high end PHDs that boast low lag times, but you cannot even shoot three frames without wondering (a) when the second one is going to fire, and (b) what will the image be of, becase it sure as hell won't be what you are wanting to get.

And I'm pretty certain that the high-end Canon PHDs (and Nikons too) have full manual controls available.

And they will have better glass than the Ricoh.

What you about the need for a good wide angle though is valid. You can't always step back another five feet.

gstark wrote:Ok ... be wary of "shutter lag" claims. Shutter lag may, indeed, be 0.1s ... what's the camera's write speed and buffer size?

Slow and none It's not that sort of camera. If I want those features I have 5 fps for 12 frames in my backpack. The pocket camera is for the times I don't have the backpack on, and 5 seconds between shots strikes me as an acceptable compromise.

And I'm pretty certain that the high-end Canon PHDs (and Nikons too) have full manual controls available. And they will have better glass than the Ricoh.

The claim from Ricoh is that their glass is as good as anyone's in this case, and certainly once you've added a wide-angle adapter I think the competition is going to be looking kinda fuzzy. Adding the adaptor generally removes the "pocket" nature of the camera too, which defeats the point IMO. Canon don't do raw in compact cameras. Nikon might, but since they never come up in searches for "28mm or wider" I haven't looked.

It just struck me the other day that a lot of the time I'm carrying a lot of stuff for the shots I'm likely to take - even the 350D+18-50/2.8 is quite bulky, let alone 30D+16-35. So just hanging out with the kids I've been using my phone as much as anything, and I want something slightly better.

Hi Moz, I'm looking at getting a small P&S for my g/f as well. In terms of wide-angle lens, check out the Panasonic Lumix series of cameras.