Olympus Zuiko Digital 25mm f2.8 Lens

8.5 Rating

An ultra-compact prime lens that covers a field of view close to that of the human eye and is ideal for everyday snapshots.Released concurrently with the E-420 camera, the new Olympus Zuiko Digital 25mm f2.8 standard lens is a fast prime lens with ‘pancake’ styling. Less than 24mm thick, it makes a great companion to the E-420, providing a camera-plus-lens package that rivals many high-end digicams in size and weight. The 50mm effective focal length provides a near-natural visual field that is ideal for everyday photography.

Sony NEX-C3

8.5 Rating

A smaller, lighter replacement for the NEX-3 with a higher-resolution sensor plus new Picture Effects.Just over a year after entering the mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera market, Sony has added another model to its line-up. The NEX-C3, which replaces the NEX-3, is smaller and 14 grams lighter than its predecessor. It also comes with a 16.2-megapixel sensor, offering higher resolution than either the NEX-3 or NEX-5, both of which were 14.2-megapixel cameras.

Sony Alpha NEX-7

8.6 Rating

A mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera with a high-resolution APS-C sized sensor, sophisticated controls and both 3D and Full HD video recording.Sony has taken the 23.5 x 15.6 mm 24.3-megapixel Exmor sensor it used in the Alpha SLT-A77 and installed it in a compact camera body to produce the NEX 7. It has also built a high-resolution, 1.3 cm XGA OLED electronic viewfinder into the new camera body, along with a proprietary hot shoe that accepts Sony’s flash guns. Further adjustments have been made to allow the NEX 7 to match (or exceed) the capabilities of many DSLR cameras while retaining a small, almost pocketable camera body.

Sony Alpha NEX-5

8.5 Rating

A distinctively-styled, ultra-compact, interchangeable-lens camera that can record Full HD video clips with stereo soundtracks.Although Sony claims its new NEX-5 as the world’s smallest and lightest interchangeable-lens camera, this can only apply to the camera body itself, which is similar in size and shape to Sony’s H-series digicams. Attach the low-profile E 16mm f/2.8 (SEL16F28) ‘pancake’ lens and the camera remains just pocketable; fit the E 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 (SEL1855) zoom lens and you’d be hard pressed to get the camera into a jacket pocket.

Sony Alpha NEX-3

8.5 Rating

A sister model to Sony’s NEX-5 interchangeable-lens camera with the ability to record 720p HD video clips with stereo soundtracks.The main difference between Sony’s NEX-3 and the more expensive NEX-5 model we reviewed in June lies in the video recording system. Whereas the NEX-5 uses the AVCHD format and can record Dolby Digital soundtracks, the NEX-3 uses the less efficient MP4 compression system for video and MPEG-4 AAC-LC for audio. The NEX-5 is also Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) compliant while top video resolution for the NEX-3 is 1280 x 720 pixels.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2

8.5 Rating

A mirrorless camera with SLR-like styling, touch-screen controls and sophisticated video recording capabilities.Although it was announced at Photokina 2010, we only received a review unit for the Panasonic GH2 at the end of January, which is a pity as this camera has plenty to offer to Photo Review readers. Replacing the DMC-GH1, it offers higher resolution and an extended ISO range as well as adopting popular features from the DMC-G2including the touch-screen monitor and re-designed control layout.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1

9 Rating

A compact, rangefinder-styled Micro Four Thirds System camera that accepts interchangeable lenses.In the GF1, Panasonic has challenged Olympus with a similar, rangefinder-like model that tackles some of the deficiencies of the E-P1 and exploits the not insignificant potential of the Micro Four Thirds (M4/3) sensor format. In addition, by providing HD video recording – using the AVCHD Lite format offered in the company’s digicams, the GF1 also confronts the main criticism levelled at the G1: the lack of video capture.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2

8.5 Rating

An update to the popular G1 Lumix camera with a new touch-screen interface plus easier video recording.On its release this month, Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-G2 will be the world’s first system camera with touch-control shooting and playback. Offered in black, blue and red, the new model retains many of the features of its predecessor, including the 12.1-megapixel (effective) Live MOS sensor and 1,440,000-dot Live View Finder. However, it’s quite a bit cheaper and, unlike the G1, it can be used for video capture, where it offers a top resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G10

9 Rating

Most of the features of the DMC-G2 in a lighter, more affordable camera body.Attach the LCD monitor to the back panel, remove the touch screen overlay, reduce the viewfinder resolution to 202,000 dots and disable the stereo sound recording capability and you’ve converted the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 into the DMC-G10. You’ve also saved $300 in the process. In this review, we’ll focus on the differences between the two cameras, as shown in the table below.

Olympus PEN Mini E-PM1

9 Rating

A pocketable PEN camera that comes in six fashionable colours and supports some creative shooting modes plus Full HD video recording.The PEN Mini E-PM1 is the smallest, lightest and simplest of the three interchangeable-lens mirrorless cameras announced by Olympus in June 2011. Designed for snapshooters looking for a very compact camera that’s easy to use but delivers above-average image quality, it offers most of the sophisticated functions provided by its up-market siblings.