Ricoh GR Digital II 16.2 MP Compact Digital Camera – 1080p – Black

Ricoh describes its GR II compact digital camera as “a perfect balance of quality + portability.” Is this an empty tagline, or is it accurate? Because companies are unlikely to use unflattering words for their products, it can be hard to decipher the sincere from the sensational, we’ve examined the Rico GR II to give you a non-biased take on this camera.

(Spoiler Alert: The Ricoh GR II 16.2 MP Compact Digital Camera—1080 p—Black is undoubtedly the perfect balance of quality and portability. If you need a small, light camera that takes sharp, stunning photos and videos, the Ricoh GR II could be everything you’re looking for.)

Before we look at a snapshot of the camera itself, we should capture the essence of this little powerhouse just the way it captures the essence of pretty much everything it shoots.

GRII looks a bit like the word GRIT. Grit is a blend of perseverance and resilience. The GR II has an abundance of grit. It perseveres, accompanying you anywhere and persistently taking great photos. It’s resilient, too, durable and able to withstand the bouncing and banging that can happen during transport.

Grit also involves passion. Ricoh’s GR II compact digital camera lets you pursue your passions. This camera is meant to use and enjoy effortlessly. What is that makes this small camera so gigantically good? Read on to find out.

Overview of the Ricoh GR Digital II 16.2 MP Compact Digital Camera - 1080p - Black

The Ricoh GR Digital II 16.2 is a non-DSLR camera. DSLR’s are digital single lens reflex cameras that use internal mirrors to reflect light within the camera, whereas a non-DSLR (or mirrorless) camera does not.  (If you’re interested in learning more about the differences between DSLR and non-DSLR cameras, check out DSLR vs. Mirrorless Cameras.

Light enters the lens of the Ricoh GR II 16.2 MP Compact Digital Camera 1080 p Black, and the image you’re looking at appears on the screen; therefore, so you don’t have to look through a viewfinder. Instead, you see your subject on the LED display, vividly and in full color. And because it doesn’t reflect light, you can even see the screen in bright conditions—an asset on sunny days.

This pocket-sized camera is both high-performance and high-resolution. It performs responsively and instantly. The near-zero lag time means that the camera shoots what you want to capture rather than the tail end of it.

Whatever you are capturing will look fantastic. The high-resolution camera creates sharp, crystal-clear, vibrant images with depth of color, texture, and detail. Whether your photos are for private use or for sharing, when your camera is the Ricoh GR II, your images will make you beam with pride.

Because of its grit, this camera will accompany you anywhere you want to go. It’s great on hiking trails, travel close to home or across the globe, on city streets, children’s soccer fields, and more. You follow your passion, and Ricoh’s GR will follow you.

Let’s look at some of the features and specifications that make this camera so amazing.

Features

The GR II compact digital camera is full of features that allow it to do its job so incredibly well.

Image quality

If you want great-looking pictures that are a true representation of the essence of your subject, you might want to consider Ricoh's GR II. Its photographs are sharp from edge to edge, top to bottom and side to side. The quality is reliable, so having a beautifully crisp, colorful image is the rule rather than the exception.

Camera features that produce quality results include:

• A high-performance wide-angle lens
• A 16.2-megapixel APS-C size image sensor

Connectivity

Your camera doesn’t have to work alone. You can pair it with your smartphone or tablet to improve both your experience and results.

GR remote is an app that allows you to control your camera remotely with your electronic device. Use the image sync app to transfer your pictures to your device for easy viewing and instant sharing.

The connectivity features of the GR II that allow these activities to happen are

• Built-in WI-FI
• Near Field Communication (NFC) functions

Photo Customization

The GR II lets you play with your creative side. While the pictures you take will be gorgeous as they are, with not a single enhancement, thanks to the camera's image quality, you might want to get creative and do some designing. Add effects on the spot. Capture something great and make it uniquely yours.

GR II’s customization features include

• 17 modes for special effects
• The ability to capture both JPG and open-standard DNG RAW images.
• Multiple computer-free image processing functions

Shooting Capabilities

• Internal flash
• Can support an external flash (not included)
• High-speed (approximately four pictures/second) AF Continuous Shooting function so your action shots will record the energy and intensity of the moment – and the correct subject (your own child rather than some kid on the other team chasing your child)
• Both action- and still shots will be high quality, with a clear focus and defined colors and contrast
• Autofocus that works even with movement; the camera will continuously focus the subjects in the center of its field of view
• Capture full HD video in widescreen 1080p resolution

Portability

• One of the smallest cameras in its class (yet doesn’t sacrifice function)
• Tough: rigid magnesium exterior is durable, protective, able to withstand the travel and locations you put it through

The camera is more than the sum of its parts. Here we looked at various components and functions separately. Each feature on its own is impressive, and combined into one unit, the Ricoh GR II 16.2 MP Compact Digital Camera 1080 p Black, they create a professional-quality camera for any photographer.

The technical specs make this quality possible.

Technical Specifications

You can find the following specs for the GR II on Ricoh’s website under the “specifications” tab.

Focus

• Type: TTL contrast detection autofocus system
• Focus Point Adjustment: Auto, User-Selectable, Center
• AF Assist: Yes
• Focus range: Normal : 0.3m – infinity; Macro : 0.1m – infinity
• Focus modes: Multi AF, Spot AF, Subject-tracking AF, MF, Snap, Infinity, Face detection priority AF, Continuous AF, Full Press Snap
• Focus Lock: Yes

Pixels

• Type: APS-C CMOS Sensor
• Effective Pixels: 16.2 megapixels
• Recording Pixels: Still: 16M (4928 x 3264), (4352 x 3264), (3264 x 3264), 10M (3936 x 2608), (3488 x 2608), (2608 x 2608), 5M (2912 x 1936), (2592 x 1936), (1936 x 1936), 1M (1280 x 864), (1152 x 864), (864 x 864)
• Recording Pixels: Movie resolution (FPS): 1920 x 1080p (30/25/24), 1280 x 720p (60/50/30/25/24), 640 x 480p
• Total Pixels: 16.9 megapixels
• Quality Levels, Still: RAW, RAW+, L (Large), M (Medium), S (Small), XS (Xtra Small)
• Quality Levels, Movie: Fixed

Lens

• Aperture: f/2.8 – f/16
• Type/Construction: Ricoh GR lens, 7 elements n 5 groups (2 aspheric elements), 9 diaphragm blades
• Focal length (equiv.): 18.3mm (28mm)
• Filter Diameter: 49mm (when using GH-3 Hood & Adapter – sold separately)

Exposure

• Type: TTL metering in multi, center-weighted, and spot modes with auto exposure lock
• Exposure Compensation: ±4 EV (1/3 steps)
• Exposure Bracketing: ±2 EV (3 frames, 1/2 or 1/3 steps, individual image exposure adjustable)

ISO Sensitivity

• AUTO, AUTO-HI (Maximum Iso/Minimum ISO selectable), Manual ISO 100-25600

Modes

• Auto, Multi-P AUTO, Outdoors, Shade, Cloudy, Incandescent 1, Incandescent 2, Daylight FL, Neutral White FL, Cool White FL, Warm White FL, CTE, CT, Manual Manual mode(s): Yes WB fine adjustment: ± 8 steps B-A axis or G-M axis WB bracketing: Yes

Shutter

• Type: Mechanical and electronic shutter mechanism
• Shutter speed: 1/4000 – 300 sec., Bulb, Time

Shooting

• Mode selection: Continuous shooting, Self-timer, Interval shooting, Effect bracketing, Dynamic range bracketing, Contrast bracketing, Color space setting, FA/Move Target, Dynamic range compensation, Multiple exposure shooting, Interval composite, Noise reduction, Histog
• Continuous FPS Approx. 4 fps (RAW or JPEG)

Mode Selection

• Auto shooting mode, Program shift mode, Aperture-Priority mode, Shutter-Priority mode, Shutter/Aperture priority mode, Manual exposure mode, Bulb mode, Time mode, Movie, My Settings Mode.

Memory

• Internal Memory: Approx. 54 MB
• Removable Memory: SD, SDHC, SDXC, Eye-Fi (X2 Series, Mobi)

Ports

• Types: USB 2.0 hi-speed, AV/USB out, HDMI (Micro, Type D)
• Video out: NTSC, PAL, HD (HDMI supports HD Auto, 1080p, 720p, 480p)
• Microphone: Built-in monaural

Files/properties

• Still: RAW (DNG), RAW +, JPG (EXIF 2.3), DCF 2.0 compliant, DPOF, PIM III
• Movie: MPEG－4 AVC/H.264 Sound: WAV (PCM), Monaural

Languages

• English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Greek, Russian, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese

Screen/View

• LCD: 3.0
• Viewfinder: Yes via hot shoe mounted external optical viewfinder (GV-1, GV-2 - sold separately)

Flash

• Type: Built-in series control auto flash
• Modes: Auto, Flash ON, Slow-Sync, Manual, AUTO Red-Eye Flash, Flash ON Red-Eye, Slow-Sync Red-Eye, Wireless
• Effective range: Approx. 0.2m - 3m (ISO Auto)
• Guide Number: 5.4 (100 ISO equivalent)
• Flash Exposure Compensation: ±2 EV (1/3 steps)
• External Flash: Type: Hot shoe TTL-A (TTL w/ pre-flash) Synchronization speed: 1/400 sec. Wireless Flash Function: PENTAX AF360FGZII, PENTAX AF540FGZII, PENTAX AF540FGZ, PENTAX AF360FGZ

Movie

• Mode selection: Auto Rotate, Highlight Alert, Thumbnail View, Enlarged Display (up to 16×), Slideshow, Protect, Resize, Skew Correction, Level Compensation, White Balance Compensation, Trim, DPOF Setting, Color Moiré Correction, RAW Development, Clip Movie File, Save sti
• Movie edit: Clip Movie File, Save still image from movie

Computer System Requirements

• Windows: Windows 8.1 (32bit/64bit)/ Windows 8 (32bit/64bit)/ Windows 7 (32bit/64bit) / Windows Vista (32bit/64bit)
• Mac: MacOS X 10.10 / 10.9 / 10.8 / 10.7

Wireless

• Wireless Standards: IEEE 802.11b/g/n (standard wireless LAN protocol)
• Wireless Frequency: 2412MHz～2462MHz (1ch～11ch)
• Wireless Security Authentication: WPA2, Encryption: AES
• NFC Standards: ISO/IEC14443 Type A, ISO/IEC14443 Type B, JIS X 6319-4 (Auto selected）
• NFC Frequency 13.56MHz

Physical Properties:

• Dimensions: 117 x 62.8 x 34.7 mm (W x H x D)
• Weight:  Without battery or removable memory: 221g Loaded and ready: 251g
• Operating temperature 32-104⁰F/ 0-40°C

Miscellaneous

• Power source: Rechargeable Li-Ion battery DB-65
• Recordable images: Approx 320* (DB-65)
• Playback time: Approx 190 Min.** (DB-65)
• Movie recording time: 25 min. maximum time per clip
• AC adapter available: Yes (optional). * Recording capacity above shows approximate number of shots recorded during CIPA-compliant testing. Actual performance may vary depending on operating conditions. ** According to the result of Ricoh Imaging in-house testing.

Pros and Cons

This is one awe-inspiring camera. While we have found its strengths and advantages to far outweigh its weaknesses and disadvantages, like everything in life, it does have both pros and cons.

Perception of Ricoh’s GR II: Do people Like It?

In reading countless online reviews, we were able to discern without a doubt that people love the Rico GR Digital II 16.2 MP Compact Digital Camera 1080p Black camera. In sum, users appreciate:

• A genuinely compact size (smaller than similar cameras)
• High quality despite its diminutive size
• Its transportability (pocket-sized and light)
• Quick and easy to use

The most consistent disappointment that GR II users expressed was with the screen. Some photographers have found that it cracks too easily. The conditions under which the screens broke are unknown, so we can't say with certainty if this is a risk.

Our Take

The GR II produces outstanding photos. The quality would be amazing in any camera, and the fact that Rico’s GR II is so small and can still rival large DSLRs is nothing short of incredible.

Some of our favorite features are of course its portability and the almost unbelievable image quality. Beyond the obvious, though, we also became attached to all of the special effects that allow us to unleash our inner creativity. The ability to run this camera with our smart devices is pretty amazing, too.

The big picture? The GR II compact digital camera by Ricoh is nearly picture perfect.