REVIEWS COMING: Sony RX1R Mark II and The Leica SL

REVIEWS COMING: Sony RX1R Mark II and The Leica SL

SITE UPDATE: Before the end of this year I will have three major reviews written and published.

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First, the Sony RX1R Mark II which I will be starting on next week. My 1st look video and samples will be up next week Wednesday, the 18th, and a full review to follow 2 weeks later. This will be my last Sony review of the year as almost all of Sony’s new releases have now been reviewed here (A7II Here, A7RII Here, A7SII Here, RX100 IV Here and the RX10 II will be in Jan sometime)

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THEN, I will start getting to work on my Leica SL review which will be a big one. Due to many requests, comparisons to the M 240 and A7RII using a 50 Summilux ASPH for all three will be included. Will be shooting the SL like mad to give it a proper review. I am looking forward to this one 😉 I expect this review to be out mid December after some serous shooting time with it.

There will also be one more review for a still un-announced camera before the year’s end as well. Hmmmmmmm 😉

Stay tuned! New videos coming as well.

 

29 Comments

  1. Well i take that the new, unannounced camera is not a Sony since you’ve said the RX1Rii is the last Sony review for the year… Is it the OMD EM1 Mark II ?

  2. I think the mystery camera will be the new Olympus PEN with integrated viewfinder. That could be a sweet camera and I know Steve liked his PENs before it. I am rather curious about that PEN.

    Cheers!

  3. Looking forward to the SL review! About the size and weight of a D750, wondering about the sensor, user interface, lack of native lenses. Fascinating camera.

  4. Really looking forward to reviews of RX1r2, SL, and mystery new camera. The Sony prompts fantasies of selling everything and going for a Zen like simplicity of just one camera with a fixed lens. The SL prompts fantasies of walking into a biker bar and getting respect for carrying a big black brutally businesslike badass rig. For the mystery camera, I’m ready to have a new body to rekindle interest in using my Olympus lens collection. Just some silly thoughts while waiting for your reviews.

  5. While I’m looking forward to your review of the outstanding Zeiss 35mm with a new and interesting back end, I wish Sony would offer a “basic” model: same body, but the A7’s sensor. 24MP are largely sufficient for me, and the price would be less stratospheric.

  6. Hi Steve: I use my M240 for about 95% of my shooting, Canon about 5%. I’m less interested in a megapixel size comparison between the Leica & Sony. More interested in pro features, durability, PC sockets, dual SD cards, tethering, shoe mount flash compatibility. Most important, compatibility with my M lenses from 15 to 90mm, and R-tele’s. I seldom need zooms but IF I choose Sony, I could still use my Canon zooms in a pinch with the appropriate adapter. Could I do that eventually (If an adapter is released) with the SL? That would ease the pain of building in new optics with either the Leica or Sony. Steve, thanks for all of your hard work building these reviews!

  7. Steve, the RX1rii review can’t come fast enough. I have it on preorder, and I’ve just rented an A7Rii partly to get an idea of what the AF can do. So the comparison I’m most concerned about is whether the RX1rii AF is in the same speed league as the same-sensor A7rii, or if it is slower due to the lens, or other hardware difference. If so, I might want to cancel that order. (I’m also concerned about adequate eye-relief on the EVF, given that I wear glasses.)

    Another thing I think people will want to know: How much of the menus carry over from the A7rii, and how much from the original RX1? One disappointment with the RX1 was the decision to only allow peaking together with magnification (which I hate!) Is that still true of the mk ii?

  8. What I want to know about the SL is, does it work every single time (like a Nikon pro body) or does it have an M style need for occasional reset. Admittedly, this happens seldom with the M240, but it does indeed happen. Never happens with my aging D3 series bodies. Curious to know if Leica has finally sorted that out.

  9. Thanks. Looking forward to your thoughts on the RX1Rii. I’m particularly interested in how much better (or not) the auto-focus is. We already know about the great lens. I’m also pretty interested in the video quality: I don’t think I was very impressed with RX1 video.

    For me the biggest weakness of the RX1 was auto-focus in relatively low light. (Not A7S uber-low light, but just mildly low light.) Too much hunting. I’m expecting lower light AF to be a lot better with this version: but am still curious to hear what the reality is.

  10. Dear Steve,
    Vey keen to hear your thoughts on rx vs q. I have handled the Leica q and am very attracted to it. But he rx1r2 looks so much better on paper. I’m relying on your review before deciding which way to jump.

    • My review will go into the Q vs the RX1RII. Not sure if I can do a direct compare as I can not get a hold of the Q anywhere, even rental houses are out!

  11. Can`t wait to read your reviews. Am glad that you already have the Fuji X-Pro 2 for review. OR might it be the new Pentax FF;).

  12. Just going to guess, #3 ….it’s an Olympus.

    The E-M1ii is pretty much the most anticipated camera for me. Let’s hope it gets released (and reviewed) soon.

  13. Hi Steve,
    Looking forward to your RX1RII review. I have the original RX1 and still consider it to be a fantastic take anywhere camera. The image quality is much better than the A7II, which I also own. I particularly like the quality of the grain on the RX1, even at high ISOs. The A7II just does not compare in that area. I would be very interest to know what you think of the new RX1RII in this regard.

  14. Hmm… last review of Sony – so that rules out the mystery camera as Sony.
    Leica have announced the M Monochrom update earlier year, the Q and more recently the SL, so it’s unlikely to be another Leica camera.
    This leads me to think that said mystery camera review might be an Olympus EM1 mark ii (wishful thinking 🙂 ). What a great camera and system.

  15. Hi Steve – Excellent news – The jury is still out for me – I tend to use 35mm f/l exclusively however it is useful to have the option of using other f/lengths. To be honest – If the A7Rii complete with the Loxia 35mm can produce images as sharp in the corners as the RX1R ii – Then I would go for the A7R ii – Got to love those manual lenses – Like the d of f scale on the lens. Be very interesting to have your views on this Steve. Finally Steve , might I ask – Did you find the 35mm loxia at F8 sharp into the edges / corners of the frame when viewed at 100% – Thanks – Adam.

  16. I was able to play with the RX1R II at PhotoPlus and the AF speed is much improved compared to the original RX1 that I own. I think Sony quoted 30% faster. It still doesn’t feel quite as fast as my E-M1 but definitely much more usable than the old one.

  17. I want to know about that unannounced camera. Any current camera will pale compared to any unannounced camera. It’s always that way, right?

    Thanks, Steve. I look forward to reading your big reviews. I always do.

  18. Steve, I really would like for you to go into some details about the EVF on the Sony RX1R Mark II during your review. This was one of the cameras that I specifically went to check out during the recent PDN Expo in NYC and I wasn’t very impressed with the EVF on it. The mechanics of worked fine, but it was my impression the EVF was not at a par with those of Olympus or Fujifilm. Now, it may have something to do with people messing with it at the Expo floor, but I got the impression that there was some sort of weird magnification effect on it that kind of altered what I was seeing a bit too much. So, I’ll look forward for your take on this one.

  19. I’m really looking forward to your review of the new RX1R!! If you can, please mention the following in your video.
    1. The AF speed/accuracy compared to the original.
    2. The color/rendering compared to the original.
    3. The EVF compared to the A7 series and Leica Q.
    Thanks!!

  20. Oh, I can’t wait for your review of the RX1R II. I’d like to know
    1. The AF speed/accuracy compared to the original
    2. The color/rendering compared to original
    3. The EVF compared to the A7 series and Leica Q
    Thanks!!

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