My co-worker Jess recently noted the announcement of the new Olympus Evolt E420 digital SLR.
The E420 looks sweet indeed. However, I’m not sure about it being “the smallest camera with the highest photo quality”.
Let’s compare it with a few other cameras:
| Sensor Size | Megapixels | Dimensions | Weight | Lens | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olympus E420 | 4/3″ (17.3 x 13mm) | 10 | 5.1″ x 3.6″ x 2.1″ (38.5 cubic inches) (not including protrusions) | 550 grams with battery and lens | Olympus 25mm Zuiko fixed (50mm equivalent, interchangeable) | $700 |
| Leica M8 | 27 x 18 mm | 10.3 | 5.5″ x 3.2″ x 1.5″ (26.4 cubic inches) | 761 grams with battery and lens | Leica fixed 50mm f/2.8 ELMAR-M manual focus (66.5mm equivalent, interchangeable) | $6,590 |
| Ricoh GR Digital II | 7.38 x 5.54 mm | 10 | 4.2″ x 1″ x 2.3″ (9.66 cubic inches) | 200 grams with battery (lens built-in) | 5.8mm fixed built-in (28mm equivalent, not interchangeable, conversion adapters available) | $700 |
| Sigma DP1 | 20.7mm x 13.8mm | 14.1 | 4.3″ x 2.4″ x 1.2″ (12.38 cubic inches) | 270 grams with battery and built-in lens | 16.6mm fixed built-in (28mm equivalent, not interchangeable) | $800 |
The M8 has a larger sensor and is smaller than the E420, while the GR Digital II is super-small and super-light, but has a small sensor. If money’s no object, the M8 looks like it might have the best shot at “the highest photo quality” out of this lot. However, it’s quite pricey, and a rangefinder (which is manual-focus only) isn’t for everyone. In that case, the GR Digital II may not achieve quite the absolute quality of the E420, but people have been getting some great results out of it, and it is quite a bit smaller.
BTW, Jess, in case you don’t know, our fellow Arc90-er Alex has the GR Digital II, and I get the impression that he’s pretty happy with it. You might want to ask him if you can play with it, if you’re interested.
Update: Added Sigma DP-1 as suggested by David. Looks like a strong option – although I have to say I don’t know much about Sigma’s cameras; I haven’t read much by people who use them, or even seen many samples.
Update 2: Clarified specs of GR Digital II lens.
For the comparison, I think you might miss the brand new sigma DP-1. How’s your opinion with this little gadget?
Good question David! As I was writing the table the DP1 did come to mind for a moment, but I wasn’t sure if it even had an on-sale date yet, so left it out. According to Amazon, it’ll be shipping on the 25th of this month, so I guess it’s real after all. I’ve added it to the table, and specs-wise it looks strong. However, I know very little about Sigma’s cameras, and haven’t read many reviews of them, so I don’t really have an opinion to share.
As I look at this table, I’m struck by the excellent options now available for high-quality pocket cameras. It reminded me of Mike Jonhston’s article ‘DMD’: The Digital Camera I’d Like to Own. I wonder whether Mike has taken a look lately at what’s available, and I wonder if he would be encouraged.