🔗 Sony announced the new RX1R III
I wanted Sony to release this camera so bad, but...
Andrew Liszewski for The Verge:
After nearly a decade, Sony has announced a new version of its fixed-lens compact RX1R camera that was last updated in 2015. The new third generation RX1R III arrives with the same 35mm full-frame Exmor R sensor as its predecessor, but with a bump from 42.4 to 61 megapixels. It also benefits from Sony’s latest Bionz XR and AI image processors to deliver better autofocus that can track the movement of human bodies and more accurately focus on their heads and eyes.
The RX1R III will be available sometime in July for approximately $5,099.99, according to Sony.
I'm deeply entrenched in the Sony ecosystem. I rock a Sony a7c II, a Sony a7 IV and have 6 lenses lying around me. And still, I've been waiting for a successor to the RX1R II for so long.
You can see some of my better pictures here.
I have a sweet spot for cameras with fixed lenses. I owned a Leica Q2 for a time, but ended up selling it to get both Sonys, because a), I prefer 35mm to 28mm by a mile, and b), I needed something with better video capabilities for the YouTubes.
But I still missed having a small compact camera with a fixed lens that would force me to not overthink what lens to bring (my current EDC-camera is the Sony a7c II with a 35mm F1.8, but I sometimes carry a 24-70mm with me instead; also that 35mm is a chonker and has no aperture ring).
One option would have been a Fuji X100VI, but like I said, I'm entrenched in the Sony ecosystem. And I am not buying another Leica anytime soon.
So the RX1R III should be exactly what I've been waiting for. BUT IT'S OVER 5000 USD!!! 4900€, and we don't even have the Trump Tax on this continent. And while it's smaller than my a7C II, it lacks IBIS and has no optical image stabilization.
I gotta admit, I'm a bit disappointed in this camera. Maybe I should just grab this lens instead and call it a day.