Ricoh CX1 Review
Image Quality
All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 9 megapixel Fine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 3Mb.
The Ricoh CX1 produced images of good quality during the review period. The Ricoh CX1's main drawback in terms of image quality is noise, with ISO 400 showing some noise, blurring of detail and slight colour desauration. The noise and loss of detail get progressively worse as you go from ISO 400 to ISO 800 and finally the fastest 1600 setting. The new Dynamic Range mode works really well, resulting in images that have noticeably more dynamic range that those shot in the Normal mode, and far surpassing most other compact cameras. If you want to shoot images that retain detail in both the highlight and shadow areas, then the Ricoh CX1 is a great choice. There is one main drawback though; the DR images have noticeably less saturated colours than the Normal version, which more accurately matches the scene, which makes the CX1 less successful than the Fujifilm FinePix F200EXR that we recently reviewed. The Ricoh CX1 handled chromatic aberrations very well with limited purple fringing effects appearing only in high contrast situations. The 9 megapixel images were just a little soft straight out of the camera at the default sharpen setting of Normal and either require some further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop, or you should set the in-camera sharpening to Sharp. The night photograph was OK, with the maximum shutter speed of 8 seconds allowing you to capture just enough light for most situations. Macro performance is the stand-out highlight, allowing you to focus as close as 1cm away from the subject, although there is a lot of lens distortion and shadowing at such a close distance. Anti-shake is also a feature that sets this camera apart from its competitors and one that works very well when hand-holding the camera in low-light conditions or when using the telephoto end of the zoom range. The built-in flash worked well indoors, with no red-eye and good overall exposure.
Noise
There are 6 ISO settings available on the Ricoh CX1. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting.
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ISO 80 (100% Crop) |
ISO 100 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 400 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 800 (100% Crop) |
ISO 1600 (100% Crop) |
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Dynamic Range
When the Ricoh CX1 is in DR mode (Dynamic Range double shot) it takes two images with different exposures, and then records a single image that combines the properly exposed parts of each one. You can also choose to take a DR and Normal image at the same time (both are saved to the memory card). Here is an example which was shot with Normal and then the four DR modes (Very Weak, Weak, Medium and Strong), with links to the original full size images and histograms.
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Normal |
Dynamic Range - Very Weak |
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Histogram |
Histogram |
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Dynamic Range - Weak |
Dynamic Range - Medium |
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Histogram |
Histogram |
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Dynamic Range - Strong |
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Histogram |
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Sharpening
Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the camera images are a little soft at the default sharpening setting of Normal. You can change the in-camera sharpening level to one of the preset levels (Sharp, Normal or Soft) if you don't like the default look.
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Original (100% Crop) |
Sharpened (100% Crop) |
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File Quality
The Ricoh CX1 has 2 different image quality settings available, with Fine being the highest quality option. Here are some 100% crops which show the quality of the various options, with the file size shown in brackets.
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9M Fine (3.19Mb) (100% Crop)
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9M Normal (1.84Mb) (100% Crop)
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Chromatic Aberrations
The Ricoh CX1 handled chromatic aberrations excellently during the review, with very limited purple fringing present around the edges of objects in certain high-contrast situations, as shown in the example below.
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Example 1 (100% Crop) |
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Macro
The Ricoh CX1 offers a Macro setting that allows you to focus on a subject that is just 1cm away from the camera when the lens is set to wide-angle. The first image shows how close you can get to the subject (in this case a compact flash card). The second image is a 100% crop.
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Macro Shot |
100% Crop |
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Flash
The flash settings on the Ricoh CX1 are Auto flash, Red-eye Flash, Flash On, Flash Synchro and Flash Off. These shots of a white coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.
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Suppressed Flash - Wide Angle (28mm) |
Forced Flash - Wide Angle (28mm) |
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Suppressed Flash - Telephoto (200mm) |
Forced Flash - Telephoto (200mm) |
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And here are some portrait shots. As you can see, neither the Flash On or the Red-eye Flash settings caused any red-eye.
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Forced Flash |
Forced Flash (100% Crop) |
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Red-eye Reduction Auto |
Red-eye Reduction Auto (100% Crop) |
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Night
The Ricoh CX1's maximum shutter speed is 8 seconds via the Time Exposure main menu option, which is fairly good news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 8 seconds at ISO 80. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like.
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Night Shot |
Night Shot (100% Crop) |
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Anti Shake
The Ricoh CX1 has an anti-shake mechanism, which allows you to take sharp photos at slower shutter speeds than other digital cameras. To test this, I took 2 handheld shots of the same subject with the same settings. The first shot was taken with anti shake turned off, the second with it turned on. Here are some 100% crops of the images to show the results. As you can see, with anti shake turned on, the images are much sharper than with anti shake turned off. This feature really does seem to make a difference and could mean capturing a successful, sharp shot or missing the opportunity altogether.
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Shutter Speed / Focal Length |
Anti Shake Off (100% Crop) |
Anti Shake On (100% Crop) |
| 1/45th / 28mm | |
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| 1/26th / 200mm | |
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Sample Images
This is a selection of sample images from the Ricoh CX1 camera, which were all taken using the 9 megapixel Fine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.
Sample Movie & Video
This is a sample movie at the quality setting of 640x480 at 30 frames per second. Please note that this 20 second movie is 29.6Mb in size.
Product Images
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Front of the Camera |
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Front of the Camera / Lens Extended |
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Isometric View |
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Isometric View |
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Rear of the Camera |
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Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed |
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Rear of the Camera / Turned On |
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Rear of the Camera / Main Menu |
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Rear of the Camera / Adjust Menu |
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Top of the Camera |
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Bottom of the Camera |
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Side of the Camera |
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Side of the Camera |
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Front of the Camera |
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Front of the Camera |
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Memory Card Slot |
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Battery Compartment |
Conclusion
Ricoh have taken a big step forward with the CX1 in an area that has always been something of a thorn in their side - namely image quality. We criticized the R10 model for producing noisy images at relatively slow ISO speeds, commenting that we'd "hesitate to use ISO 400, never mind 800, making the Ricoh R10 a camera for sunny, outdoor days only". Thankfully the new 9 megapixel CMOS sensor has improved things here, with a now usable ISO range of 80-800, and even the fastest ISO 1600 setting OK for small prints and web images.
That's not the biggest story though, as Ricoh have also introduced the radical and very effective DR mode. This greatly expands the dynamic range of your images, increasing detail in the shadow and highlight areas so that the picture more accurately reflects what you can see. And unlike the pixel binning system that Fujifilm use on the F200EXR camera, the CX1 preserves its 9 megapixel resolution. There are a couple of notable downsides with the method that Ricoh use though. As the camera takes 2 photos consecutively, there is a risk of them being slightly mis-aligned and therefore appearing soft or out of of focus. In practice this only happened on a couple of occasions, but it's best to use a tripod or other camera support to be on the safe side. More worrying is the colour shift, or desaturation, that often occurs in DR mode - the CX1 may preserve more visible details, but it seems to do so at the expense of colour accuracy, with images having a slightly washed-out look when directly compared to shots taken in the Normal shooting mode.
As well as greatly improving image quality, the CX1 builds on the winning design of the R10 model by including some key new features that add up to make this the best Ricoh point-and-shoot yet. Multi-pattern auto white balance and Multi-target Auto Focusing are effective additions that join the likes of the electronic leveler, ability to change the flash intensity, customisable Function button and Easy mode for beginners in helping to make the CX1 a great camera to use. Even better is the 4fps continuous shooting speed, which is much faster than most compacts in the same price bracket, with even faster rates possible if you're happy to drop the image resolution, and the new high-res LCD screen is simply breath-taking. The 7x zoom lens is still an attraction, but less so now that competitors like the Panasonic DMC-TZ7, Canon PowerShot SX200 IS and Olympus Mju 9000 all offer 10x or even 12x zooms in a similarly sized body, and the CX1's bog-standard 640x480, 30fps video and rudimentary face detection modes are nothing to write home about either, feature that are seemingly becoming more and important in this market. Finally the CX1 is not exactly a bargain at £299 in the UK - it's a lot to ask for what is essentially a point-and-shoot camera.
Still, if image quality is of prime importance, then the Ricoh CX1 is well worth a look. It produces very good out-of-the-camera JPEG images, with excellent dynamic range as promised in the DR mode and improved noise performance. If you don't mind the lack of manual controls, the CX1 makes a great pocket camera for the keen photographer, although I'm sure we'll see the same technology appear in a future GR or GX model...
| Ratings (out of 5) | |
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| Design | 4.5 |
| Features | 4.5 |
| Ease-of-use | 4.5 |
| Image quality | 4.5 |
| Value for money | 4 |
Review Roundup
Reviews of the Ricoh CX1 from around the web.
steves-digicams.com »
For 2009, Ricoh has upgraded the R10 from last year with the all new CX1. Sharing many of the same features, the CX1 has been updated with a 9-megapixel CMOS image sensor, Dynamic Range Double Shot mode, increased burst speeds, a new 3.0-inch LCD with 920,000 dots, and it now offers ~88MB of internal memory. Features that have been carried over include a 7.1x wide angle optical zoom lens (28mm-200mm), sensor-shift image stabilization, electronic leveling meter, VGA sized movie mode (640x480) at 30fps, USB 2.0 connectivity, 80 - 1600 ISO range, DB-70 Li-ion battery pack, etc.
Read the full review »
whatdigitalcamera.com »
The Ricoh CX1 follows a recent trend, albeit a low-key one, for high-speed shooting to feature in compact cameras. It’s less common to see this joined by a high-resolution LCD screen, a solidly-built body and a claimed dynamic range of 12EV stops, yet somehow Ricoh’s CX1 seems to pull all this off and more - the What Digital Camera Ricoh CX1 review investigates...
Read the full review »
Specifications
| No. of Effective Pixels (Camera) | Approximately 9.29 million pixels | |
| Image Sensor | 1/2.3-inch CMOS (total pixels: approx. 10.29 million pixels) | |
| Lens | Focal length | f=4.95-35.4 mm (equivalent to 28-200 mm for 35 mm film cameras. With Step Zoom set, option of seven fixed lengths: 28 mm, 35 mm, 50 mm, 85 mm, 105 mm, 135 mm, and 200 mm) |
| F-aperture | F3.3 (Wide) - F5.2 (Telephoto) | |
| Shooting Distance |
Normal shooting: Approx. 30 cm - infinity (Wide), approx. 1.0 m - infinity (Telephoto) (from the front of the lens) Macro: Approx. 1 cm - infinity (Wide), approx. 25 cm - infinity (Telephoto), approx. 1 cm - infinity (Zoom Macro) (from the front of the lens) |
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| Lens Construction | 10 elements in 7 groups (aspheric lens: 4 elements and 5 surfaces) | |
| Zoom Magnification | Optical: 7.1x zoom (equivalent to 28-200 mm focal length for 35 mm cameras) Digital: 4.8x up to 34.1x (equivalent to 960 mm) when used with optical zoom Auto Resize: 5.4x*1 up to 38.6x*1 (equivalent to 1080 mm) when used with optical zoom |
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| Focus Mode | Multi AF (contrast AF method) / Spot AF (contrast AF method) / Multi-Target AF / Manual Focus / Fixed Focus (Snap) / Infinity (AF auxiliary light) | |
| Motion Blur Reduction | Image sensor shift method image stabilizer | |
| Shutter Speed*2 | Still image | 8, 4, 2, 1 - 1/2000 sec. |
| Movie | 1/30 - 1/2000 sec. | |
| Continuous Shooting | Continuous shooting speed*3 | approx. 4 frames/sec. (F3456, F3:2, F1:1 shooting time; shooting speed after 60 pictures is approx. 3 frames/sec.) |
| Continuous shooting capacity | 999 pictures | |
| Exposure Control | Exposure Metering Mode |
Multi (256 segments), Center Weighted Light Metering, Spot Metering Exposure Mode |
| Metering Exposure Mode | Program AE | |
| Exposure Compensation |
Manual Exposure Compensation +/-2.0EV (1/3EV Steps), Auto Bracket Function (-0.5EV, ±0, +0.5EV) | |
| ISO Sensitivity (Standard Output Sensitivity) | AUTO, AUTO-HI, ISO80 / ISO100 / ISO200 / ISO400 / ISO800 / ISO1600 | |
| White Balance Mode | AUTO / Multi-Pattern AUTO / Outdoors / Cloudy / Incandescent / Incandescent 2 / Fluorescent / Manual, White Balance Bracket Function | |
| Flash | Built-in flash mode | Auto (during low light and when the subject is backlit), Red-eye-Reduction, Flash On, Slow Synchro, Flash Off |
| Built-in flash range | Approx. 20 cm - 3.0 m (Wide), approx. 25 cm - 2.0 m (Telephoto) (ISO Auto/ISO 400, from the front of the lens) | |
| Flash compensation | +/-2.0EV (1/3EV Steps) | |
| Monitor | 3.0-inch Transparent LCD (approx. 920,000 dots) | |
| Shooting Mode | Auto Shooting Mode / Easy Shooting Mode / Dynamic Range Double Shot Mode / Continuous Shooting Modes (Continuous, M-Continuous Plus, Ultra-High-Speed Continuous) / Scene Modes (Portrait / Face / Sports / Night Portrait / Landscape / Nightscape / High Sensitivity / Zoom Macro / Skew Correction / Text) / My Setting Mode / Movie Mode | |
| Picture Quality Mode*4 | F(Fine) / N(Normal) | |
| No. of Pixels Recorded | Still image/multi-picture | [4:3] 3456x2592, 3072x2304, 2592x1944, 2048x1536, 1728x1296 (M-Cont Plus), 1280x960, 640x480 / [3:2] 3456x2304 / [1:1] 2592x2592 |
| Movie | 640x480, 320x240 | |
| Text | 3456 x 2592, 2048 x1536 | |
| Recording Media | SD memory card (32, 64, 128, 256, 512 MB, 1GB, 2GB), SDHC memory card (4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB), Internal memory (approx. 88MB) | |
| Storage Capacity (Pictures/ Time):*5 (internal memory 88MB) | Still image/multi-picture | 3456x2592 (F: 24, N: 43) / 3456x2304 (F: 28) / 2592x2592 (F: 33) / 3072x2304 (N: 53) / 2592x1944 (N: 73) / 2048x1536 (N: 109) / 1728x1296 (N: 143)(M-Cont Plus) / 1280x960 (N: 181) / 640x480 (N: 705) |
| Movie*6 | 640x480: 15 frames/sec. (1 min. 42 sec.), 320x240: 15 frames/sec. (4 min. 19 sec.) / 640x480: 30 frames/sec. (51 sec.), 320x240: 30 frames/sec. (2 min. 12 sec.) | |
| Recording File Format | Still Image | JPEG(Exif ver.2.21)*7 |
| Multi-picture | CIPA DC-X007-2009 Multi-Picture Format draft compliant | |
| Movie | AVI (Open DML Motion JPEG Format compliant) | |
| Compression method | JPEG Baseline method compliant | |
| Other Major Shooting Functions | Continuous, Self-Timer (operation time: approx. 10 sec. / approx. 2 sec. / custom self-timer), Interval Timer (Shooting interval: 5 sec. - 1 hour (5 sec. steps)*8, Color Bracket function, Focus Bracket function, Fix Min. Aperture, AE/AF Target Shift, Histogram, Grid Guide, Electronic Level | |
| Other Major Playback Functions | Grid View, Enlarged Display (maximum 16x), Resize, Level Compensation, White Balance Compensation, Trim, Flag, Slideshow, DPOF Setting | |
| Interface | USB 2.0 (High-Speed USB) Mini-B, Mass storage compatible*9 / AV Out 1.0Vp-p (75Ω) | |
| Video Signal Format | NTSC, PAL switchable | |
| Power Supply | Rechargeable Battery: DB-70 x1, AC adapter (AC-4g optional) | |
| Battery Consumption*10 | Based on CIPA Standard: Using the DB-70, approx. 270 pictures (when LCD Dim is on)*11 | |
| External Dimensions | 101.5 mm (W) x 58.3 mm (H) x 27.9 mm (D) (excluding projecting parts) | |
| Weight | Approx. 180 g (excluding battery, SD memory card, strap), Accessories approx. 23 g (battery, strap) | |
| Operating Temperature Range | 0°C - 40°C | |
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