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The only thing I realistically want from a Q3 is better, faster autofocus: eye detection, tracking, etc. I know it's not the intended market / use case but seriously there's not much else to improve.  Higher resolution viewfinder that deals with high-contrast scenes better at 120Hz would be nice too. Tilt LCD screen - but that's not happening. 

For those wanting 35mm or 50mm - those focal lengths are not going to happen...

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10 hours ago, Steven said:

I used my Ricoh gr3 all week and was shocked how much better is the AF on that camera ! 

I had the GR v1 for a few years and super loved it. It's not just a P&S camera; it's a powerful tiny tool. For a few coincidences and for the sake of photography, I did an assignment in Cusco, Peru, in 2016, and I shot for many hours the Corpus Christi... Aperture priority (f/11), auto iso up to 3200, and snap focus (pre-set distance). Wow, I still consider it one of my best (fave) more enjoyable photographic days ever. I was definitely in my element. And the easiness of the Ricoh helped me a lot in the process of shooting, facilitating the shooting workflow. I can't share photos here; it's not Leica gear.


I don't know the Q's, but I know that the GR's have excellent AF, on the average of many DLSR... IMHO, to have a few Ricoh GR specs in the Q would be awesome.

 

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18 hours ago, Steven said:

I used my Ricoh gr3 all week and was shocked how much better is the AF on that camera ! 

 

Low light on the Q2 is a total disaster. 

That’s good to know about GR autofocus - I’m getting one this year to take pics while skiing.

I don’t really use high ISO on my Q2 too often, so I wouldn’t know about low light performance…

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I am a little late to this party, but have enjoyed reading all the comments.  Many are good, but by an large the Q2 is an almost perfect camera.  I have two suggestions.

1.  Switch to a Sony sensor.  The Sony sensors have a much better low light performance with minimal noise.  My Nikon D750 outshines the Q2 at ISO's above 800 by a long shot.

2.  This might seem like blasphemy, but get a better corrected lens.  I know my Q2 is bloody sharp for most things, way sharper than any of my Nikon lenses, but I have tried it for night star photography, and the amount of coma the lens renders the stars with is pretty bad.  I even returned my first Q2 thinking there was something wrong, but my second one does the same thing.  I know there is software correction in the RAW files, but they did not correct for coma, or maybe you cannot correct for that in software.  It disturbs me that my Nikon 28/1.8 performs better in this regard.  In all other regards the Q2 lens is truly amazing.

I love the Q2 and use if now even more than my Nikon for general shooting in the 28-50 range of images.    

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I'm enjoying my Q2 quite a bit, but here is my very short wishlist for the Q3 (in order of importance):

  1. A dedicated ISO dial.
  2. A better sensor (w/ better low light performance)
  3. A metal focusing tab (though, I understand why this is the way it is).
  4. The option to select aspect ratio crops (1:1, 6:7, 16:9) instead of focal length crops (35mm, 50mm, etc)

I don't want a different focal length than 28mm—I like what the Q system offers, and I wouldn't want that to change too much. Really, all I want is an ISO dial. lol.

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2 hours ago, Steven said:

My view of the Ricoh GR3 is that it’s the camera that gives you no excuse, and in that way it’s inspiring. 
The IQ doesn’t get close to a Q2 or an M10, but it destroys everything else if it’s size and it’s the camera that you can’t miss a shot with. You can miss a shot because it’s small and you have it with you all the time. You can’t miss a shot because the AF works well enough that I’ve managed to get shots worth printing while driving my bike at 35km/h and shooting with one hand. 
With that camera, you just have no excuse not to get the shot. 
 

it can’t do it all though. Bad at low light, except if you convert to Bw, and not great for portraits due to the lack of narrow dof. For this reason, i prefer the 28mm version over the 35 and the wide dof bothers me less on that focal length. 
 

But for street life, it might just be the perfect camera. Fast, powerful, conspicuous. 
 

 

Do you use the external viewfinder with the Ricoh GR3?

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Q2 weather sealing, dust resistance, EVF, high MP counts, better videos and way better build quality are what set it apart from Ricoh GR III series.

GR III should have been weathersealed. I understand that retracting lens are not easy to protect. But a solution like Fuji X100V is not bad : body is sealed, but we have to use filter lens adapter to seal the lens. Bulkier this way but at least usable under the rain. 
 

Ricoh’s AF is slow due to lens design. Nothing they can do about it. 
 

Build quality is not good.  Have seen several second hands with unusable dial around the pad. Looks like a common issue. 
 

Video quality is atrocious. A shame. Especially in 2021  

999€ is really expensive. You can almost buy an iPhone 13 Pro. Latest iPhone from 11 to nowadays are not that far in IQ to GR III. 

 

 

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1 hour ago, nicci78 said:

Q2 weather sealing, dust resistance, EVF, high MP counts, better videos and way better build quality are what set it apart from Ricoh GR III series.

GR III should have been weathersealed. I understand that retracting lens are not easy to protect. But a solution like Fuji X100V is not bad : body is sealed, but we have to use filter lens adapter to seal the lens. Bulkier this way but at least usable under the rain. 
 

Ricoh’s AF is slow due to lens design. Nothing they can do about it. 
 

Build quality is not good.  Have seen several second hands with unusable dial around the pad. Looks like a common issue. 
 

Video quality is atrocious. A shame. Especially in 2021  

999€ is really expensive. You can almost buy an iPhone 13 Pro. Latest iPhone from 11 to nowadays are not that far in IQ to GR III. 

the size is what sets the Ricoh GRIII apart. I can fit the GRIII in my jeans pockets. I cannot do that with the Q2

If I want to go out with a Q2 I have to keep it in a bag or around my neck, and that is a more conscious decision. The GRIII is a set and forget camera. You know it's always there in your pocket for when you need it, and that's my reasoning for getting one.

I don't think the GRIII is aimed at videographers at all, their target market is the street shooter and they are very clear about that I reckon. The addition of video is just an afterthought. Nice to have, but not essential. There are better tools if video is what you want, just not in that size.

The X100V is an excellent contender, you are right, but you sacrifice the size and it won't fit in a pocket. Same issue as the Q2. You can't have it all, you either have it small and pocketable or you start adding everything else and it's not pocketable anymore. Clearly Ricoh took the other direction as a way to distinguish themselves from the competition and for them it's paying off, but of course sacrifices have to be made and you cannot please everybody.

Both the X100V / Q2 and the Ricoh are very good cameras, you just have to choose between smaller, extreme portability vs bukier, better build etc.

Smartphones are not really contenders. Their sensor is smaller and image quality is ok but not that great, too much overcooking and "digital" look that I don't find very pleasing. Besides, they are slower to operate than a GRIII set to snap focus, which would be my use case 90% of the time.

My only concern is the dust issue reported by various users. Hopefully Ricoh will be able to add better gaskets in the future. 

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I used to have a GRD4 (i.e. pre-APSC) and the two things that set it apart were genuine pocketability and snap focus. Most smart phones have an equivalent 'shoot now' mode, but because of the thin form factor it has probably slipped out of your fingers by the time you get it ready. I have no experience of the current Ricoh, but the GRD4 build quality was good - nothing went wrong.

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3 hours ago, LocalHero1953 said:

Most smart phones have an equivalent 'shoot now' mode, but because of the thin form factor it has probably slipped out of your fingers by the time you get it ready.

This. I missed many "decisive moment" shots by sliding up to invoke the camera quick mode and failing at that. Slippery fingers, wet screen, unresponsive smartphone or just plain clumsiness :(

In winter with gloves it's even worse.

Nothing beats the speed of a physical shutter button and a pre-focused camera 

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The 'shoot now' mode on my Huawei P10 is 'double press the down volume button while the screen is off'. Assuming I can actually remember this in the heat of the moment, the screen goes live simply by lifting the phone up, necessitating at least two more taps to activate the camera app and then take a shot. Just daft.

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This year I bought the Q, wonderful camera. After that a M8 followed. Wonderful as well. 

To me, both cameras are two handed cameras: when photographing I need two hands. 
To me, both cameras are for creating images.

I just ordered the latest GR: 40mm is perfect and the GR is a super camera for one hand and taking snaps.

To me the difference is in creating images and taking snaps. Both are important, both are desired, and each camera has its role in it.

perfect Q would be 35-45mm and flipscreen for low angles as I am getting older…

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The functionality of the Q2 is fine, but the interface is horrible compared to the Q.

Put the video button back on top of the camera instead of the ridiculous photo & video "modes" in the menus.  I often switch quickly between photo & video. With the Q this was easy, just move the finger and press a different button. With the Q2 its a pain as I have to change menu options - with my eyesight this requires fumbling around with glasses. 

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Future Q, should definitely improve in Low light performance. Current Q2 have max roof on 1600 iso in my perspective, above that is totally out of discussion. I don’t mind little grain, but horizontal banding in deep shadows are visible.

So outside I wouldn’t change anything just inside need bit overthinking. When you got fully manual lens with autofocus why the heck no proper back button lock?

Sometimes i like use crop modes in raw files but i wish they give us possibilities to choose frame lines or direct zoom to chosen crop(full screen) 

I shot 99% raw and in some scenarios would be nice to have in camera processing. That would save my time by computer. 
 

Apart of that i love my Q2 and is my daily camera.

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