Amin
Hall of Famer
Lots of exciting things happening in the compact camera market right now. The Sony RX100 is groundbreaking and despite a high price should find its way into a lot of hands. However, shortly after learning about the new Sony, my thoughts turned to Ricoh.
Those of us who have used the GR Digital III and/or IV know that there is little to be improved about those cameras. They are as mature as compact digital cameras can get. Just about the only substantive improvement I can think of for the GRD series is to move to a larger format, and this new Sony 1-inch sensor is pointing the way.
It has long been the case that Sony will sell their sensors to anyone who is buying. I'm pretty sure that the current GRD sensor was made by Sony, and I highly doubt that Sony would refuse to sell the new 1-inch sensor to Ricoh for a new GRD. It's just a matter of designing a new GR lens worthy of the name and fitting it all together.
I'm confident that this is going to happen, and I can't wait.
One more thing: If Ricoh has to make the GRD V body a bit larger to incorporate the larger sensor while maintaining the lens speed, it might make a lot of sense to somehow get a small but bright optical viewfinder in there.
Those of us who have used the GR Digital III and/or IV know that there is little to be improved about those cameras. They are as mature as compact digital cameras can get. Just about the only substantive improvement I can think of for the GRD series is to move to a larger format, and this new Sony 1-inch sensor is pointing the way.
It has long been the case that Sony will sell their sensors to anyone who is buying. I'm pretty sure that the current GRD sensor was made by Sony, and I highly doubt that Sony would refuse to sell the new 1-inch sensor to Ricoh for a new GRD. It's just a matter of designing a new GR lens worthy of the name and fitting it all together.
I'm confident that this is going to happen, and I can't wait.
One more thing: If Ricoh has to make the GRD V body a bit larger to incorporate the larger sensor while maintaining the lens speed, it might make a lot of sense to somehow get a small but bright optical viewfinder in there.