With the RX100 VII, Sony has announced a new addition to its range of compact cameras. The most striking innovation in the seventh generation is with the autofocus, which is borrowed from professional system cameras such as the Alpha 9. — Sony/dpa
A comparatively large sensor, a high-speed image processor and an autofocus that matches full-frame DSLRs: With a new compact camera weighing just 300g, Sony is questioning the need to lug around a heavy system camera.
With the RX100 VII, Sony has announced a new addition to its range of compact cameras. The most striking innovation in the seventh generation is with the autofocus, which is borrowed from professional system cameras such as the Alpha 9.
With the help of a whopping 357 phase-detection points and 425 contrast points, it can focus in as little 0.02 seconds, Sony says.
The image processor is also new, with next-gen performance allowing for up to 20 frames per second when continuously shooting – all with full focus tracking. Sony says the autofocus is readjusted up to 60 times per second.
For shooting fast-moving subjects, there's a new single-burst function in which the RX100 VII shoots seven images in fractions of a second, from which you can then select the best one.
In terms of video, the camera offers 4K, HDR and portrait videos, with the latter making the camera's footage handier for use on smartphones and social media.
On the outside, however, you'll find it hard to spot many differences to the predecessor, which shares the same lens with an 8x optical zoom (24-200mm/f2.8-4.5) and an extendable OLED viewfinder (2.36 million pixels).
The resolution of the three-inch touch display, which can be tilted upwards 180° for a kind of selfie mode, has slightly decreased compared to the previous model – from 1.23 to 0.92 million pixels.
The variety of connections – including NFC, n-WLAN, Bluetooth 4.1, USB and HDMI – remains largely unchanged, although you can now connect a microphone with a 3.5 millimetre jack.
The RX100 VII goes on sale in August, at a price of €1,300 (RM5,959) in Europe. – dpa
Did you find this article insightful?
