REVIEW: Sony RX100 IV–The Best Point and Shoot Just Got Better

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV Compact Camera

Due to the advances made by cellphones like the latest iPhones and Samsung Galaxy’s, the reality of the the compact market these days that it takes a lot of money and tech wizardry for a compact camera to outperform the best smart phones.

Our expectations demand that cameras like this, especially at this price point, exceed the quality we can get with our phones otherwise what’s the point? In this respect, the RX delivers by offering a Zeiss lens, a pop up flash and electronic view finder (useful for bright sunlight outdoors) that all offer advantages over anything a smart phone offers. This plus features like NFC, WiFi direct (to send photos to your phone or computer automatically), and support for custom third party apps make this a very compelling camera indeed.

The price and features of this camera clearly position it as being for the serious photographer who wants a pocketable alternative to their DSLR or Mirrorless camera.  While other companies have premium compacts, only the Fujifilm X30 offers anything close to the performance of the RX100 series – but in a much larger package. As a result, the RX100 IV enjoys an interesting position in the market of offering a camera that offers the ease of use and features a consumer would expect but at a price and quality level that more squarely targets the Leica D-LUX (Typ 109). 

Compact but still feature packed

Pop Up Flash and Electronic Viewfinder (EVF) Extended

This is one of the very few compact cameras on the market left that still warrant owning even if you have the latest high-end smart phones – even those in the future that will challenge it for image quality and ISO noise performance because nothing they do on a phone can replace the value of features like a pivoting LCD, a better flash, a larger and higher quality zoom lens, and a EVF that allows you to compose your shot better in direct sunlight. What’s more, you have complete control over your camera settings plus the benefits of cool apps that help make up for any built-in shortcomings or advantages you typically find on your phone.

For more thoughts on what I think of this camera body, please be sure to check out my reviews of the previous models at:

• Sony RX100 III
• Sony DSC-RX100 II vs RX100 I

ISO Auto Minimum Shutter Speed Feature

ISO AUTO Min. SS Feature

One of my long-standing complaints of Sony RX series cameras was their love affair with 1/30 or 1/60 sec shutter speeds when using Program and Aperture Priority modes. The RX100 IV features at the bottom of the fourth group of camera settings labeled ISO AUTO Min. SS that address this problem by letting you specify a minimum shutter speed or use the camera defaults.

Simply put, if you are getting blurry pictures due to slow shutter speeds, this is a great setting to change from the default. Personally I like the 1/125 sec option when I’m dealing with kids indoors as kids don’t stay still for long so its rare for kids to do anything that won’t be blurry at shutter speeds below 1/125 sec. Rapid motion will naturally still is best handled using Shutter Priority for the appropriate speed to freeze the action you are shooting, but this helps with general purpose shooting where you are more distracted on the shot than the camera settings.

Real World Samples

The following images come straight from in-camera JPEG’s using the camera default noise reduction settings. Most camera settings are the default with the exception of RAW+JPEG, a desired White Balance (only Shade or AWB), DRO Auto and a desired focus point. I chose to use the Standard Creative Style for most shots featured, but I did use Vivid for some of the floral shots taken in harsh direct sunlight.

Click here for a full gallery of unedited images.

All images are copyright Ron Martinsen – ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. You may not save, print, edit, modify or otherwise use any images featured in this article or the gallery without expressed written permission.

f/1.8 @ 8.8mm for 1/250 sec at ISO 125
Unlike your typical smart phone, you can still separate your subject from the background even when zoomed to the widest angle thanks to high quality Zeiss lens

f/3.5 @ 25.7mm for 1/400 sec at ISO 125
DRO Auto and Multi Metering Mode couldn’t handle this bright flower on the dark background, but advanced users will easily get the shot with some exposure compensation like the –1EV adjustment I did for this shot

f/5.6 @ 20.63mm for 1/320 sec at ISO 125
You won’t get the creamy bokeh with the depth of f/5.6 featured here with your cell phone or a cheap point and shoot

f/2.8 @ 8.8mm for 1/100 sec at ISO 125
The color red is a torture test that separates the good sensor from the cheap one, and even with auto white balance the many shades of red strawberries are faithfully produced against black tapioca pearls (aka Boba)

f/2.8 @ 25.7mm for 1/1250 sec at ISO 320
Unedited 100% Crop (615x615px) of 5472 x 3648px Original
This is a good sensor and lens, but make no mistake
it’s still a 1” sensor that’s no match for a DSLR with a good lens

f/4 @ 12.64mm for 1/40 sec at ISO 3200
I was very impressed that this handheld shot still didn’t show any serious noise artifacts and was fairly detailed and sharp even on my NEC PA322UHD 4k display

f/1.8 @ 8.8mm for 1/30 sec at ISO 125 – Built-In HDR Mode
The built-in HDR mode was a joke as this small sensor didn’t have the dynamic range to handle the bright and dark extremes here. I do this test a with most cameras that I test and this was a below average result, so HDR fans simply need to do their own bracketed exposures (at > 1EV) and merge them later using something like Photomatix

f/2.8 @ 11.69mm for 1/40 sec at ISO 1600
The AF system with Face Tracking performed well even indoors with this difficult shot of my hyper and uncooperative son Kai. This is a shot that most would miss even with an average DSLR if you didn’t have a single AF point on the face.

f/2.8 @ 8.8mm for 1/640 sec at ISO 125
Any on-camera flash will blast a shower of direct light which creates hot spots, but the flash exposure compensation offered the RX100M4 means you can tone down the power of the light to get the best result possible when diffusion and off-camera flash options aren’t possible

f/2.8 @ 8.8mm for 1/200 sec at ISO 125
Despite harsh direct light, I was pleased with the color and tonal range captured. Some cameras I’ve tested in these conditions end up washing out the subject so bad that negative exposure compensation is necessary but that wasn’t required here

f/2.8 @ 23.34mm for 1/320 sec at ISO 125 Shade WB & Vivid Creative Style
Without the EVF I never could have got this shot, but the Vivid Creative Style was a bit too much when viewed in the sRGB color space such as a web browser

f/2.8 @ 25.70mm for 1/200 sec at ISO 125 Auto White Balance
Auto white balance tends to be on the bluer/colder side

f/2.8 @ 25.70mm for 1/125 sec at ISO 125
Shadow detail was good in this sensor stressing side lit shot

f/2.8 @ 23.73mm for 1/100 sec at ISO 125
Default metering did a good job in this harsh backlit scene of exposing the face well despite some lens flare challenges. Many point and shoots and cell phones would way over expose the face in a shot like this

f/2.8 @ 25.70mm for 1/250 sec at ISO 125
Kai didn’t want to be photographed, so I had to rely on face detection to get the shot when I asked him to turn around. He turned back away quickly but the camera did it’s job of getting a sharp shot with less than a second to work with

f/3.2 @ 25.70mm for 1/800 sec at ISO 125
The 25.70mm maximum optical zoom (70mm in 35mm equivalent) is inadequate in many scenarios so I found myself frustrated and wishing I could zoom more without having to resort to digital zoom

f/2.8 @ 25.70mm for 1/160 sec at ISO 125
Faithful 18% gray metering is readily apparent here in this dress that features a white background. This shot was taken at sunset with perfect light but the meter did what it was supposed with the help of what it could see in the dress

f/4 @ 8.8mm for 1/160 sec at ISO 125
I was impressed with the sharpness of this lens and the level of detail it captured throughout the scene and how well it captured the clouds in the sky on a very bright sunny day

f/4.5 @ 25.70mm for 1/160 sec at ISO 125
Despite being zoomed all the way in, it always felt like I was shooting a wide angle lens so kept wishing I had 2x more reach than what was possible

Click here for a full gallery of unedited images.

Video

SanDisk 64GB Extreme Pro UHS-I SDXC U3 Memory Card (Class 10)

The cool feature here is that you can record 4k video but it requires you to have SDXC cards which are a special type of SD cards that I don’t have. If you look very carefully you’ll probably noticed that even your 95 MB/s cards are often SDHC which is similar but not supported for 4k video recording (it’s fine for taking photos and the default 1080p video mode).  Keep this in mind if you decide to pick up one of these cameras because you’ll definitely want a SDXC card (typically found in 64GB and larger only versions).

Bookshelf Shots

f/2.8 @ 8.8mm for 2.5 sec at ISO 125

For this class of camera, the image quality is excellent with decent noise handling. Check out the full gallery of bookshelf shots starting here, and check out my reviews of the RX100 III, RX100 II, and RX100 to see how it compares to its predecessors.

f/2.8 @ 8.8mm for 1/25 sec at ISO 6400

Conclusion

This is by far the best Sony RX 100 series camera yet because it pretty much addresses almost every complaint I’ve had about the previous versions. While I wish it had a longer optical zoom for more reach for distant subjects, at least the quality of the lens is sharp and the stabilization is good. I also wish it had a touch screen LCD as Canon has proven how handy they can be for things like quickly setting your focus point and reviewing images.

People who have followed my blog know that I’m a big fan of Fujifilm so the inevitable question comes up, is this camera better than the x30? Without question, I have to say that yes it is far better than the x30 – which I actually love. While I wish the physical buttons and knobs were as easy as the Fujifilm, the flexibility of programming the RX100 IV’s buttons and ring dial means that it’s just a matter of learning new places to put your fingers to get the same results. While Sony’s menus still drive me mad, the net result is that it is a better camera is all of the things that matter the most – unless you just prefer the in-camera process results of the x30 (which I do).

For consumers who wonder if their cell phone is good enough, I can definitely say it is a lot better than a cell phone, but better comes at a price both in terms of physical size and cost. A one inch sensor with all of the limitations in image detail and dynamic range that offers compared to larger sensor cameras, but you get a lot for a compact camera that isn’t a burden to carry.

Where to order

Click here to learn more or order on the B&H web site.

Alternatives

You might also consider the Ricoh GR II, Canon PowerShot G7 X and Leica D-LUX (Typ 109) which I have not had the pleasure of reviewing yet. However, I have used predecessors to all of those models and still prefer the Sony RX 100 IV the most which is why I chose to review it and the x30 instead.

Other articles you may enjoy

If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy these:

• Sony a3000
• Sony a6000 (includes 16-70mm lens)
• Sony a7 (includes Samyang lens)
• Sony a7R
• Sony DSC-RX1 (Full Frame Compact Camera)
• Sony DSC-RX10
• Sony RX100 III (Sony DSC-RX100 II vs RX100 I)
• Canon G16 vs s120 & Fujifilm X20
• Fujifilm X30
• Fujifilm X100s
• Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II with 12-40mm PRO
• Panasonic GF6 & LX1
• Panasonic DMC-G7 (Features 4k Video)
• Ron’s Recommendations 
• Discount Coupon Codes 

Disclosure

If you make a purchase using links found in this article, I may make a commission. It doesn’t cost you a penny more, but it does help to support future articles like this.

REVIEW: Sony DSC-RX10–a7 Alternative or Overpriced a3000?

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 Digital Camera

In looking at my old mail, I requested one of these cameras to review last October when I first learned about it. It took me a few months to actually get one which must be a sign they are selling well, but in all honesty I also had other cameras higher in the queue to review. After spending a month and 585 pictures later, I’ve reached the point where I’m ready to render my verdict on this camera.

Some other bloggers have given this camera high praises, and its specs are very impressive. It’s also very well built and feels worthy of what I would call a modest price for the features it offers. However, the thing I really wanted to know was this the ultimate Sony for the casual user that was being overshadowed by its a7 and a7R siblings, or was it just a fancy a3000 with a bunch of features that do little to improve the overall experience? The RX1 had impressed me in many ways except for its fixed lens, and the RX1R didn’t address that problem, so I figured the RX10 could finally hit the sweet spot.

In my hands, my initial thoughts were “wow, this is a really nice camera”. When I scanned the specs, I even thought this could possibly squeeze in as my 2013 camera of the year winner. I’m a sucker for Zeiss lenses, good build quality and high quality displays so my expectations going in was that I was wielding a very special camera.

Much to my surprise, a funny thing happened while I was testing this camera and looking at its results. I began to forget about all of the other Sony cameras I’ve reviewed except one – the a3000. While on paper the two cameras are miles apart from each other, this camera really started to help me appreciate how good the a3000 really is. This led to a conclusion that why isn’t this camera so good that I’m wanting to compare it to the a7R that I tested at the same time I tested this camera – in similar conditions? The answer is simple, this camera has most of the drawbacks of the a7/a7R yet its only advantage seems to be a big zoom lens. The more I used this camera, I thought – why wouldn’t I just get a a7 with a good lens or save money and get a a3000 that I felt created images that weren’t $1000 worse than this camera? However, each time I thought this I kept saying “but it’s got a Zeiss lens, and it’s well built, and it’s got a better display, and it’s got all this cool stuff (that many people would never use).” This of course begged the question, were all of these things creating images that were a $1000 better than a3000 or would a little more money for an a7 be a better choice?

Read on to see what I came to love and hate about this camera, and my final verdict about how it fairs against its much cheaper and a little more expensive siblings.

Hands On Notes

To keep things short, I’m just including a brain dump of my notes below rather than a more narrative discussion:

• I was surprised to discover that if the hood is off, that the popup flash isn’t half bad. In fact, I’d say it’s one of the better pop-up flashes that I’ve tested. Of course doing flash exposure compensation is very cumbersome, but I quickly found myself wishing for this popup flash on the a7R I was testing.
• Like all Sony’s I’ve tested, I had an above average problem with blurry photos due to shutter speed choices by the camera. I also somehow ended up with ISO 3200 as the max ISO in Auto (my review unit could have came that way by accident), so I had dozens of shots ruined by the camera choosing f/4, 1/8 sec @ ISO 3200 in aperture priority mode. I won’t blame the camera for those failures as Auto ISO will support the maximum ISO, but it did seem to have a love affair with 1/30 sec quite often (which if you have moving humans usually means blurry photos).
• One thing that really bugged me was that it was missing a front control wheel compared to the a7/a7R and many cameras I’ve tested. Some could argue that the aperture ring compensates for this, but it just annoyed me as I constantly found myself hunting for it.
• I loved the aperture ring for quick and easy access, and I appreciated the switch underneath that allowed for a silent mode when doing video. While I preferred the tactile feedback, I appreciate the ability to do both.
• While on paper the LCD good, it didn’t wow me in real life. I’d consider it more sufficient than anything else, and its pivoting screen was limited so you can’t do a selfie with your spouse or partner.
• The electronic viewfinder (EVF) had that common Sony unreal feeling like you are watching something with nasty fluorescent lights. There was also latency when panning that I found to be disturbing. I didn’t experience either of these issues in the a7R that I reviewed, so I consider this EVF more of a checkbox feature than something I’d ever want to use.
• During my testing I found that the battery life was adequate, so I have no complaints there.
• I loved the range of the Zeiss zoom lens, but it tries to do so much that it comes at the cost of the image quality. A fixed f/2.8 across 24-200mm (effective) sounds like a dream and too good to be true, and in this case it proves to be just that – an unrealistic dream. This might have been a good lens 5 – 10 years ago, but it’s mediocre – at best – by today’s standards.
• The in-camera noise reduction is unacceptably bad on this camera. I highly recommend shooting with it turned off and/or only shooting RAW then using a quality product like Noiseware to eliminate noise in a less destructive manner.
• Auto White Balance could be very bad indoors, so this is a camera that I’d advise choosing a non-default white balance or using a gray card if you aren’t going to be shooting RAW (i.e., videos, pano, etc…).
• The menu system on this camera is very cumbersome and the default button configuration make things like setting your flexible spot AF point very tedious. As a result, you’ll spend quite a bit of time figuring out how to get everything usable via numerous trips to the web due to a very inadequate printed manual. This is NOT a camera I’d even dream of letting my wife use as it’s too complicated compared to the Fujifilm X10/X20 or Canon G series cameras that she has enjoyed using in the past.
• The autofocus performance and burst mode failed to impress me, and my active 4 year old repeatedly defeated it. Unless I had very good light and he was moving in a predictable pattern, I found the suitability for photographing my toddler to be below average. I would never trust this camera with an important shot of my kids or school sports.
• Like the a7R, the timer drive mode failed to engage about 70% of the time. As a result, I’d have to hold the shutter release button for the entire 10 second countdown and then let go as the shot was taken which defeats the whole purpose! 100% of those shots naturally came out blurry, so I was very frustrated when the camera would do this for my long exposures shots where I had the camera on a tripod.

Bookshelf Test

The following shots are done on a tripod with all camera default settings except I also enable RAW. The full gallery of bookshelf images can be found at here, but I’ve included a few noteworthy images below. Please keep in mind that the images are not crooked – the camera is level, but the bookshelf has sagged over time due to weight so I use camera level instead of adjusting the camera for a level shot of the bookshelf. There’s also lens distortion with this lens at 24mm (effective).

f/5.6 @ 8.8 mm, 10s, ISO 125, No Flash

The result here is competitive with many DSLR’s – especially the entry level models. I found the results to be perfectly acceptable with the minimum native ISO of 125 (others are usually ISO 100 or 200 but not this camera).

f/4 @ 8.8 mm, 1/20, ISO 12800, No Flash

At ISO 12,800 there’s so much damage done to the image by the in-camera noise reduction that tons of detail is lost.

f/4 @ 8.8 mm, 1/20, ISO 12800, No Flash, From RAW via ACR 8.3

If you take the unprocessed RAW (shown above after ACR defaults) you’ll see that it’s got lots of good data with easy to remove noise. The image below is the same file (click for full-size) with Noiseware (Tutorial) default settings. The result is a decent file at a high ISO.

f/4 @ 8.8 mm, 1/20, ISO 12800, No Flash, From Raw with Noiseware Defaults

Be sure to click the above images to really get an appreciation of what’s happening here at full-size. This camera does an okay job, but most will find ISO 6400 to be the preferred upper limit.

Real World Sample Images

The following images come from in-camera JPEG’s using the camera default noise reduction settings. Most camera settings are the default with the exception of RAW+JPEG, a desired White Balance, a desired focus point, and occasionally a desired creative style being used.

All images are copyright Ron Martinsen – ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

f/5.6 @ 8.8 mm, 1/30, ISO 640, No Flash, Custom White Balance
This is a camera that will reward you if you get your white balance right in-camera manually

f/5.6 @ 8.81 mm, 1/30, ISO 800, No Flash, Custom White Balance

f/5.6 @ 8.8 mm, 1/30, ISO 2500, No Flash, Auto White Balance
DRO seemed to have some complete failures at time despite being in Auto mode

f/2.8 @ 11.56 mm, 1/40, ISO 500, No Flash
Reds are always a challenge, but cameras with a wider dynamic range can usually avoid the transition to orange shown here

f/8 @ 14.53 mm, 1/40, ISO 640, No Flash, Aperture Priority, –1 EV
The historical method of doing –1EV compensates but I’m finding that better cameras (and even some smart phones) can do this right in-camera without user intervention like this

f/8 @ 31.77 mm, 1/10, ISO 3200, No Flash
The dynamic range isn’t point and shoot bad, but its not RX-1 good

f/8 @ 10.28 mm, 6s, ISO 125, No Flash
Despite using a tripod, it took me 16 tries to get this shot due to problems with the in-camera timer not working

f/5.6 @ 10.49 mm, 1/30, ISO 1000, No Flash
Unless I went full manual, this was about the only shots I could get of my toddler that weren’t blurry

f/5.6 @ 42.73 mm, 1/100, ISO 3200, No Flash, Auto White Balance
I was very unimpressed with skin tones and portraits with auto white balance

f/5.6 @ 39.2 mm, 1/125, ISO 2000, No Flash, Cloudy White Balance
Cloudy was better, but still kinda green and blah

f/5.6 @ 45.37 mm, 1/125, ISO 2000, No Flash, Shade White Balance
Shade just gave a jaundice appearance to skin

f/8 @ 8.8 mm, 1/250, ISO 125, No Flash, In-Camera Pano
On multiple occasions my pano’s would leave a gray block on the right. Regardless of the reason, it seems like the camera should detect and trim this unnecessary block.

f/8 @ 8.8 mm, 1/200, ISO 125, No Flash
Zoom out and you can get a huge field of view

f/8 @ 73.3 mm, 1/250, ISO 200, No Flash
But zooming in all the way on the same scene and you’ve got a spy camera <g>

f/8 @ 8.83 mm, 5s, ISO 125, No Flash, Tripod & Timer
Not bad, but I’ve seen many cameras outperform the results I see here

f/10 @ 10.49 mm, 3.2s, ISO 200, No Flash, Tripod & Timer
This reminded me more of what I’d expect to get from an a3000, not a camera with a Zeiss lens

See the full gallery at http://photos.ronmartblog.com/sony/rx10.

Real World Sample Video

Click here to go to this video on YouTube

Conclusion

To be fair, I could be a little overly harsh on this camera as I was testing the a7R at the same time I was testing this camera. The a7R has incredible image quality, so it has a way of making lesser cameras look inadequate. As a result, this might have skewed my opinion compared to what I might have thought had I tested this camera in isolation. However, I kept coming back to the same thought with this camera – I’d rather have a a7 if I was going to spend this kind of money, and if I was going to save money I’d prefer a NEX-7 or possibly even the super bargain a3000.

The Zeiss lens on this camera really disappointed me, but most super zooms with this much reach generally do. There’s a reason a really good zoom with 200mm spread cost a fortune, so if you cut corners on the glass then everything else looks bad on a fixed lens camera. In the end, I think that is where this camera falters and its also why its a3000 sibling succeeds – because it doesn’t try to overachieve.

This isn’t a bad camera, but I don’t think it’s one that is going to make any active/impatient photographers or parents with kids very happy (unless they only shoot in manual mode in good light). I also think that unless you always process the RAW files, you’ll probably find yourself seriously underwhelmed by the image quality (of the in-camera JPEG’s). Better quality is available by processing the raw images and using Noiseware (Tutorial), but for some that will be an additional unwanted step in their workflow. It’s also rather bulky in these days of camera downsizing, so I can just think of so many better choices on the market than this camera.

Like many Sony cameras, I find myself commending Sony for trying to meet a market need yet I find myself struggling to find enough reasons to recommend this camera. In the end, I can’t due to its unimpressive lens performance and below average usability. For as many things as this camera does right, I feel this would be a camera that offered much buyers remorse. I quickly found that I could trust it for travel photography or important family events, so I’d often reach for my smart phone as a backup to make sure I got the shot. With that being the case, why would I bother carrying this bulky camera with me?

My advice is that if you must stick with Sony then consider the a7 or NEX-7 instead. If you are willing to branch out then consider the Fujifilm X-E2, Canon 70D, or Nikon D7100 (at the time this was written). If quality trumps price then I’d consider the 5D Mark III, Nikon D610, or Canon 6D as alternatives (in that order).

Where to order

Click here to learn more or order on the B&H web site. My friends at Amazon have it available here.

Other articles you may enjoy

If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy these:

• Which camera should I buy?
• Sony a3000
• Sony a7R
• Sony DSC-RX1 (Full Frame Compact Camera)
• Sony DSC-RX100 II vs RX100 I
• Sony NEX-7
• Canon 5D Mark III First Look (For Parents Version)
• Canon 6D (vs Canon 5DM3 & D600)
• Canon 70D (Part II)
• Fujifilm X20 (My personal P&S camera)
• Fujifilm X-E2
• Nikon D610
• Nikon D7100
• Noiseware Tutorial – Get rid of noise easily without destroying detail

Disclosure

If you make a purchase using links found in this article, I may make a commission. It doesn’t cost you a penny more, but it does help to support future articles like this. B&H provided me with this loaner camera, but it was returned to them shortly after this review was published.

REVIEW: Sony DSC-RX100M2 vs RX100 with Real World Sample Photos (Review Part 2 of 2)

We took the Sony RX100 II for a trip to New Orleans to give it a real family vacation test
f/5.6 @ 25.32 mm, 1/640, ISO 160, No Flash, In-Camera JPEG, Vivid Mode (no edits)

In the first part of my review (click here), I just shared some pics. In this review I dig a little deeper in my thoughts about living with the RX100 II, and compare it to the RX100.  If you serious about purchasing this camera you should probably start with my RX100 review that I did in January of this year as this review will focus mostly on improvements that I discovered in this model.

The Same but Different

All of the things I liked and disliked about the RX100M1 carry over to this model, but there’s also some nice improvements that make it worth the upgrade. First and foremost improvements in its backlit sensor results in a noticeable improvement in image quality. In fact, I’d call this the best image quality I’ve ever tested in a camera this small.

NOTE: This camera does have a optical low pass filter.

Sony has a great web page discussing the features of this camera, but sadly they don’t do a good job of showing what’s new. Essentially what you get with this model are features to help it catch up (and surpass) the competition in the areas of WiFi, remote control from the phone (see below), and better video support.

This camera also supports NFC which really means a subset of Android based phones (Windows Mobile not supported), but I was unable to test it. It’s cool that it does it, but most won’t really get a chance to enjoy this feature. Click here to see a PDF with more info about this and other WiFi integration features.

This camera boasts 10 fps continuous shooting, but in real life at full resolution it’s no Canon 1D X that’s for sure. In fact, I’d go so far as saying don’t bother with continuous shooting with this camera unless you are in full manual mode as it does a pretty bad job out of the box (i.e., you’ll have mostly blurry shots nearly all of the time from what I saw in my real world testing).

Remote Control / WiFi Features

Join the RX100 II's private WiFi network from your phone
which is easily published using the Ctrl with Smartphone menu option

Install & Use the Play Memories App on your phone
It features real-time preview and remote zoom and shoot

Once you do this, the camera is locked and may only be controlled remotely as shown here:

You can not operate the camera while connected remotely,
but photos can get saved automatically on your phone!

Click here to iterate through some more of the screen captures I did from my phone when I was using this feature. The controls are very basic so advanced users will quickly find it frustrating, but having this ability can be handy for group photos where you want to include yourself in the shot. Sadly it doesn’t support bulb mode or any custom mode, so it appears to default to an auto mode when using this feature.

The only modes are Photo and Movie, but both work okay with some latency that can be a little problematic sometimes.

Photo taken with my cell phone as the remote control using a GTI light box for lighting

You can also wirelessly connect to the camera from your computer better than any device I’ve used to date. Here’s a shot of the bundled Play Memories software for the PC while it’s automatically importing photos over WiFi using the Send to Computer feature:

If you have a WPS capable router at home, you simply need to press the WPS menu item on your camera and do the same on your router and pairing happens automatically with no typing. If you have to do it manually it’s a bit more cumbersome, but it works as expected.

Unlike some cameras where these features are more gimmicks, I was very satisfied with what I could do with this Sony camera. In fact, I wish my Canon DSLR’s and Fujifilm cameras had this level of WiFi integration!

Video

Using my GTI lightbox to light up my face, I took a little video using the remote control phone app and was very impressed with the high quality of the video of this camera:

In fact, it’s so good I wish I would have shaved my face and fixed my hair before doing the video!

Bookshelf Pics

f/2.8 @ 10.4 mm, 3.2s, ISO 160, No Flash

f/2.8 @ 10.4 mm, 1/15, ISO 6400, No Flash

f/2.8 @ 10.4 mm, 1/30, ISO 12800, No Flash

f/11 @ 10.4 mm, 30s, ISO 160, No Flash

f/4.9 @ 37.1 mm, 6s, ISO 160, No Flash

If your only criteria for deciding which camera to buy is image quality, then the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC RX100 II should rank very high on your list of cameras to buy. The image quality and color is excellent, especially when I compare it to its predecessor. Much of the improvement in image quality comes from improvements to its backlit sensor. This modification results in jaw dropping great image quality when you stabilize the camera or ensure that its using an appropriate shutter speed to freeze subject movement.

As usual, all bookshelf shots are done on a tripod using camera default settings with image stabilization (aka Steady Shot) and DRO turned OFF. I also set auto white balance and set noise reduction to LOW for this test as I felt the default noise reduction was aggressive.

I have RAW’s available upon request, but only upload in-camera JPEG to the web.

See part 2 of my RX100 review (click here) to see sample bookshelf images from the RX100 II’s predecessor.

The Wife Verdict

Nothing really changes from my previous review. My wife loved the size of this camera, but this camera’s love affair with 1/30 sec in aperture priority and 1/250 sec in full automatic (on very sunny days) resulted in a majority of the photos being blurry in real world use (even with Steady Shot on). The reason for this was often due the camera choosing the incorrect shutter speed (as previously mentioned) even in the auto modes, and its quick to jump to f/1.8. At such a shallow depth of field, even on this small sensor camera, incorrect auto AF selections put faces slightly out of focus.

If I wanted a sharp shot, I had to switch to manual which was a no-go for my wife. What’s worse is that manual doesn’t support Auto ISO, so manual is really old school manual which isn’t very family friendly. These are non issues for people who will use this camera like a manual DSLR, but cell phone point and shoot mom’s are not going to like this camera.

Given the fact that this camera is $100 more than its predecessor ($748 at the time of this writing), it’s price isn’t very family friendly either. As a result, it gets a “oh hell no” verdict from my wife who says she’ll stick with our Fujifilm X20. 

More Real World Sample Images

Starting with this image, all of the photos in the gallery (excluding the bookshelf images) used the Vivid mode with Medium noise reduction (the default). Many shots were done using the Auto modes because most were taken by my wife on our vacation. A few of my contributions to the gallery (like the cathedral interior shots) were done using manual mode settings.

All images below also had DRO (Dynamic Range Optimizer) set to Auto.

Click these images to view their original in-camera jpeg’s with only filename and metadata changes from their in-camera originals.

f/5.6 @10.4 mm, 1/500, ISO 160
It took pretty harsh sun like I had here for this camera
to jump out of its f/1.8 @ 1/30 or 1/200 sec comfort zone

f/8 @ 37.1 mm,1/200, ISO 160
Out of hundreds of gator shots during our tour,
we had only a handful come out that were not blurry - despite the blistering sun

f/4 @ 10.4 mm, 1/250, ISO 160, No Flash
Steady Shot worked properly here and extreme sun allowed for a good shutter speed

f/2 @ 10.4 mm, 1/200, ISO 160
The swamp pics turned out nice, but when compared to a 5D Mark III equivalents
I was glad that I didn’t ‘t leave the DSLR at home!

f/1.8 @ 10.4 mm, 1/200, ISO 200
This is here just to annoy my son for not listening to me about poking his nose,
but I was impressed with how well the quality of this image was right out of the camera

f/1.8 @ 10.4 mm, 1/125, ISO 3200, No Flash
User error here led to the wrong aperture and excessive shutter speed,
but I was very satisfied with the in-camera color and result

f/2 @ 10.4 mm, 1/30, ISO 160, No Flash
DRO did its job properly here

f/1.8 @ 10.4 mm, 1/30, ISO 500, No Flash
DRO still is no substitute for HDR when dealing with wide range lighting conditions,
but it does a good job with backlit scenarios

f/2.5 @ 10.4 mm, 1/30, ISO 640
This was one of the few shots that reminded me that this wasn’t a wide dynamic range DSLR,
but it was easy to forgive its shortcomings when seeing how well it exposed the rest of the scene

f/5.6 @ 26.57 mm, 1/200, ISO 160
The geek in me got pretty excited at the detail in this shot that my wife took.
There is zero post-processing and zero additional sharpening here – WOW!

f/2.5 @ 10.4 mm, 1/30, ISO 250
If your subject is static, then the slow default shutter speeds are
easily overcome by Steady Shot stabilization to give you an amazingly sharp result

f/4 @ 10.4 mm, 1/4, ISO 160, No Flash
This shot required stabilizing the camera with a stack of unsteady books
and holding very still. It took a few shots before I got one, but I was
really wishing I had a tripod about now!

f/2.5 @ 10.4 mm, 1/30, ISO 200
DRO worked very well here to produce one of the best auto exposed shot
I’ve ever seen of stained glass. Typically this requires an HDR shot.

12416x1856 pixels pano at f/8 @ 10.4 mm, 1/500, ISO 160
Despite moving water, the stitching was excellent but the shot was more grainy
and had more chromatic aberrations than I’d expect under these conditions
with these camera default settings.

f/2.8 @ 10.4 mm, 1/30, ISO 160, No Flash,
Image quality was great, but I did struggle with white balance sometimes

f/9 @ 20.64 mm, 1/250, ISO 160
My railing acting as a tripod ended up being crooked so my horizon was off – sorry!
There was plenty of detail in this shot

Conclusion

The RX100 is still on sale these days for much less, but the improved image quality and new features make this camera worth the upgrade.In fact, the WiFi and wireless features had me calling this camera a phone about a dozen times in this article because it felt so phone like!

While the wonderfully compact design of this camera and its fantastic image quality suggests that it is a brilliant point and shoot, personally I found it to be horrible at that task. This camera demands the photographers attention and manual intervention in all situations except outdoors on sunny days. If you give this camera that attention (i.e., shoot manual) you’ll be rewarded with fantastic results from this tiny camera, but this simply is not a point and shoot for the non-geek photographer.

I love so many things about this camera, but alas I’ll have to send it back to B&H because it failed its job as a point and shoot just as bad as its predecessor. If you are the patient type who has a different camera as your point and shoot, then using this camera in manual mode will delight you with the gorgeous images its sensor captures. For this reason, I love this camera and so desperately hope that Sony will make it a better point and shoot in the next iteration. If they do that, I’ll buy one for sure – despite its obnoxious price. It really is that good!

If you do decide to pick one up and treat it as a point and shoot, just set your expectations low about the number of blurry images you’ll get (typically not discovered until you get them on your computer at home). If you do, you’ll probably love this camera – especially when it does occasionally nail a shot (typically because the subject can handle the f/1.8 at 1/30 sec camera default settings).

Click here to see the Sony support page with more information about this camera.

Where to order

Click here to order the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 II Digital Camera from B&H.

I had significant scratching to the LCD that occurred during my review, even before I took it outside of my home. As a result I HIGHLY recommend a protective product like Expert Shield - THE Screen Protector for the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-RX100 II. I prefer these over the ones offered by B&H.

BlackRapid SnapR 10 Camera Bag + Sling Strap is a great camera bag to consider for this camera as well!

Other articles you may enjoy

If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy these:

• REVIEW: Sony Cyber-Shot RX100 II with Real World Sample Photos (Part 1 of 2)
• Sony DSC-RX100 (First Generation)
• Sony NEX-7
• Sony DSC-RX1 (Full Frame Compact Camera)
• Which camera should I buy?
• Canon G15 vs s110 vs G12
• COMPARISON: Fujifilm X-E1, X100s, X20 & X10
• Fujifilm XPro-1
• Olympus OM-D E-M5
• BlackRapid SnapR Camera Bag + Sling Strap

Disclosure

If you make a purchase using links found in this article, I may make a commission. It doesn’t cost you a penny more, but it does help to support future articles like this.