Ricoh's GR Digital encore: the 10 megapixel GR Digital II

After a two-year stint, Ricoh is finally rolling out a successor to their GR Digital -- the GR digital II. No really, that's the 10 megapixel GR II up there not their 10 megapixel GX100. The GR II boasts a 1/1.75-inch CCD, ISO 1600 max sensitivity, improved RAW and JPEG recordings, VGA video recordings, SDHC/SD card slot, and option for a Lithium-Ion power plant or pair of AAAs in a pinch. Right, just like the GX100. The GR II, however, is a tad smaller and lighter than the GX100 while offering a slightly larger, auto-rotating 2.7-inch LCD, and the same 28-mm (not 24 to 72-mm wide-angle) lens found on the original GR Digital. Expected in Japan on November 22nd for about ¥80,000 or right around 700 bucks.

[Via Amateur Photographer]

[Stevie Wonder @ Oct 30th 2007 6:36AM]

Looks like someone took a crap, and out came a camera!

[andyo @ Oct 30th 2007 7:17AM]

Man, if you wanna charge $200 over the G9's retail price, which by the way works with Speedlite flashes fully (even wireless), and also want to have a prime lens, you'd better come up with a super fast one. f/2.4 is next to nothing of an advantage over the G9. Give me a 28mm equivalent or so, f/1.4 or f/1.2 lens and we'll talk. Make it a little bigger, who cares, this is not Sony territory.

[breathstealer @ Oct 30th 2007 7:24AM]

It's not like 28/1.4 lenses are common even for SLRs, so one on a compact camera for this kind of price is ludicrous.

[andyo @ Oct 30th 2007 7:42AM]

"equivalent" is the operative word. Anyway, fast wide-angle SLR lenses are harder and more expensive to make because they need more space between the rear element and the sensor, because there's got to be space for the mirror box. That's why wides for rangefinders are simpler and usually higher quality.

And we're talking about a compact here. for the extra $200 and what you save on the nonexistent zoom mechanism. I think it's feasible to have a 5.9mm or so f/1.4 lens that has the image circle to cover this tiny sensor.

[andyo @ Oct 30th 2007 7:50AM]

And by the way, there are some midrange consumer camcorders with f/1.2 max aperture zoom lenses, so this is not ludicrous by any means. Granted for a photo camera you'd need a higher resolution lens, but that's what the great price difference is for (this camera is even more expensive than the camcorder in question, a JVC Everio).

[KultiVator @ Oct 30th 2007 8:16AM]

Hey guys - this is not a pro SLR camera. Neither is it a simple snapshot, point and shoot cheapy either.

The GR range have always been special bits of kit - fantastic for interior shots, landscape and street photography... without the bulk and faffing-about associated with an SLR.

You guys are not the target audience for this device... therefore comparing this to other categories of camera is like comparing a motor-home with both a Ford station wagon and an Audi TT.

So in conclusion, the GR is special - you only have to check out the quality of images it captures to see that.

Check one out in the flesh before you make a judgement based on the size and specs.

[moondawg @ Oct 30th 2007 9:30AM]

Wow. I didn't know there was such thing as a Ricoh Fanboi! Welcome!

[andyo @ Oct 30th 2007 9:48AM]

Yep. It isn't by any means a niche camera, especially since Canon came back with RAW capture in the G9. The only thing that this has that others don't is the prime lens. That lens isn't anything special and doesn't justify the premium price at all.

[Broken Haiku @ Oct 30th 2007 10:13AM]

Oo-er I get nostalgic! It looks like a Bakelite camera from the seventies, complete with a crappy pop-up-flash and lots of openings for sand and dust to crawl in through.

What, it's more than fifteen dollars? Oi!

[Max @ Oct 30th 2007 10:18AM]

I have to agree with andyo on this one. There's nothing about this that warrants a $200 premium over a G9 (which I own).

The prime lens is a plus to me -- yet it looks as though it still needs to be extended to shoot. WTF? I would love to see (and would pay a premium if need be) a small digicam with a prime lens that didn't need to be extended, and which could be left "on" all day like my D70, ready to shoot at a moment's notice.

If I have to switch the camera on, plus wait for a lens to extend, I'll just use my G9.

[Al @ Oct 30th 2007 10:55AM]

The GR-D is an awesome little camera and I love mine. Makes a superb reportage and black and white camera and complements all my pro-Canon gear very well. It's discrete, fast, has brilliant controls and is very well made (most of the body is metal) and the lens is fantastic even if it's not the fastest. The image quality is great and it's noise has an almost film grain look which is why it's used so much for black and white photography.

This is a camera used by photographers and not the general public looking to take snaps and caring how many pixels it has. The main worry from existing owners seems to be that the megapixel bump could be to the detriment of image quality.

The GRD II seems to address some of the issues people had with it, namely RAW write speed. At the end of the day this is a niche camera which some people love.

[nicholas @ Oct 30th 2007 12:22PM]

The G9 is a nice camera, and I’m in the market for something very small, light, and with good optics. The lens on this camera is supposed to be very good, and now that it is 10mp this may be the one I buy.

The g9 is more equivalent 35mm-wise to something like a Konica Hexar which was very nice. I’m looking for a Yahica T4 or a Minox GT, with a good/great lens, but pocketable. The Ricoh Gs are not high-volume cameras, and the digital versions have a lot of noise for consumer tastes.

This is an older review, but highlights the lens quality of this series: http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/pocket_35.shtml

[MeDammit @ Oct 30th 2007 2:57PM]

The first incarnation sucked and so will this. You simply CANNOT get clean IQ out of a 10+ MP sensor the size of a penny. Physics at its best.

[Vaughn @ Nov 2nd 2007 7:16AM]

This isn't even in the same ballpark as the Canon G9. The lens alone is worth the price for this camera. For serious photography, and real, creative work, this camera is what you want. For a more "jack of all trades", you want the G9. It does have a zoom after all, and is quite a bit cheaper. The author of this article keeps referencing the GX100 as well... This isn't that camera. It's not all about specs. The way the original Ricoh GR Digital took pictures, the way the images look, even @ high ISO (a complaint from most reviewers of the camera) is just fantastic. It looks like film, the grain, the texture, edge contrast, etc... This is so much more than just "10MP 2.4 24mm" camera. At higher ISO's, the images look just the way high ISO film looks. There isn't that weird chromatic graining you have with digital cameras, it simply looks like noise. That can be a very hard effect to accurately duplicate in post-processing, and the camera does it in a way that is extremely pleasing (I know, most of you SLR owners are wondering what in the hell I'm on about, but if you are looking for raw, gritty, urban, addition of film grain can help your cause. This camera does it awesomely convincing straight out of the box).
I hope the performance is better on this one, as it is quite slow. 13-15 seconds for RAW write is too slow. The lens is second to none in this class, so comparing it to anything else is apples and oranges. The noise level, which everyone keeps mentioning, isn't for everyone. I personally like having that as an effect switch, which can add texture and feel, whereas the majority (read:all) pocket digital cameras higher ISO noise characteristics are horrid, and do no favors to any type of photography. The noise characteristics of the Ricoh GR simply mimic film, and even photographers who use film have had a very hard time telling that I used a digital camera (try that with an ISO 400 shot with the G9). 21mm wide angle add-on, and you've got the camera you wish you would have taken with you to Europe. 38mm starting point for the G9 automatically pushes it to my 'utility box' category. I'll probably get one for the ease of use, performance, and price point, but I'll stick with my GR for when I need serious shots that I'll be using later.

[Andyo_Is_A_Dumbass @ Nov 9th 2007 7:01PM]

You're a fucking retard Andyo.

You're just a prosumer fucktard who doesn't know anything about fine lenses. Specs and lens speed is all you care about, just like the tards at photo.net who blabber on about the unimportant details.

Respect the GR lens. It's on par with Zeiss, Leica, and the Mamiya 7II lenses.

[Roberto @ Nov 12th 2007 8:51AM]

38mm on the G9 is a non-starter. The extra bulk is a nonstarter. It may be a good digicam for the mainstream, but for streetshooting, I'll take the GRD anytime. Daido Moriyama uses GR cameras (including GRD) to take exhibition-quality shots; name one photog icon who uses a G series camera for art shoots? (Heck, even the Oly P&S has a Magnum champion).

I dunno about Ricoh fanbois. But I do know there are tonnes of GR fanbois around. So like the other guy says, respect the lens, yo.

[poorkid @ Nov 12th 2007 11:03PM]

I was hoping to get release dates on this item and came upon this site...a recent winner of gadget blogs. congratulations to that but most gadget fans here are not photo savvy and I concur with all the comments regarding the quality of the ricoh gr line. its going to be a sad sad day when the new generation of snappers dont even know what a c-print looks like.
GRDs have an engine that at least nurture a creative eye...

[Amin Sabet @ Dec 3rd 2007 10:27PM]

The GRD and G9 are very different cameras. Both are high quality and offer RAW. However, the GRD II offers several things the G9 doesn't. First, it has a 28mm lens. The G9 doesn't go nearly this wide. Second, it is *far* smaller and lighter than a G9. Third, the lens is nearly free of barrel distortion, unlike a G9 at its wide end. Handling and controls are very different on the two cameras. Choices made by each company greatly affect the look of both JPEGs and native RAW files. Ricoh goes out on a limb to make a unique camera for a relatively small target group. Of course the result of this is that they must charge a premium. My only complaint about this camera is that there is no built-in optical viewfinder. Ricoh makes excuses for this and offers an external one, but I want one built in.

[aaton @ Jan 6th 2008 11:48AM]

I think that many of the detractors of the Ricoh GR-D design have probably not ever picked up and used this camera in any real-world photographic application. Specs aside, the GR-D is intuitive in its functionality and design, rugged and pocketable, and powerful enough to address the photographic needs of advanced amateurs and professionals alike. Ricoh knew what and for whom this camera was designed for and, as a result, the GR-D inspires creativity rather than hinders.

The camera is only a tool. The eye behind the camera is the real artist/storyteller. Any design that enhances the artist/storyteller's ability to create should be embraced. Let's not lose sight of this with unrealistic expectations about technology. Get out there and take pictures!

[splitsecond @ Jan 12th 2008 3:55PM]

yay