Q vs Q2 startup/power on time, responsiveness etc

[JC331]

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Hi everyone, a recurring topic for me, camera start up time and responsiveness.  

I'm looking at purchasing a Q or Q2, had a quick demo of the Q2 and it powered on and could take a photo almost instantly, e.g flip the power switch press the shutter and click (very quiet click obviously!).  Seemed very responsive generally.  I've had a good search online and the only thing I can find re the Q is Jono Slack's comments that it's responsive and takes less than a second to start, which sounds favourable, but can anyone tell me how the Q/Q2 two compare in terms of on to first shot time and general speed of use, about the same or is the Q2 an improvement?

[Le Chef]

Just switch the camera on when you leave home and it will be ready to shoot when you are.

[JC331]

hey thanks Le Chef that's very useful advice. But are you able to answer my questions?

[Siriusone59]

I don't know how fast the Q2 responds since I don't own one.  I have the Q and usually leave it off until I'm ready to take photos.  By the time I  turn it on and move the camera to my eye...it's ready.  Of course there is always the possibility that I may move slightly slower than the next person.😉  One thing worth mentioning is that the Q's power switch seems a bit more stiff to turn(compared with m10) and since it has a single and continuous position, I'll sometimes flick it further than intended and find it in continuous mode.

[JC331]

thanks Siriusone59.  That's useful to know re the power switch. I get the impression the Q will be fast enough, but I was quite taken with the Q2 speed/handling, but don't see any great advantage to the increased resolution  for my purposes so a Q seems more sensible, but it would be nice to know if the speed/handling is the same.  When travelling I tend to take photos quickly, wake time/on time from off is always something I try to check before buying.  

[Le Chef]

5 hours ago, JC331 said:

hey thanks Le Chef that's very useful advice. But are you able to answer my questions?

The time differences are irrelevant if you already have the camera switched on.

[mbphotox]

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2 hours ago, Le Chef said:

The time differences are irrelevant if you already have the camera switched on.

he's clearly afraid that the battery will be dead when he wants to take a picture..

I'm the same.. my power switch on the Q gets toggled at least a hundred times a day when travelling.

 

It actually powers on very quickly normally. Fast enough to be ready before you've got your eye at the finder.

If you're "hunting" for photos, then you really want it switched on at all time, though. I'll receive my Q2 in a day or two. Can compare them directly, then.

But my experience with the Q was always very positive with regards to that.
Write times after taking a bunch of pictures?! not so much..
The camera would often take half a minute before it actually switches off again, because it's so slow at writing to the card.
The Q2 will probably be even slower considering the DNGs are twice the size.

[Le Chef]

15 hours ago, mbphotox said:

he's clearly afraid that the battery will be dead when he wants to take a picture..

Carry a second battery. Switch off all the crap you don’t need.

[JC331]

I always carry a spare battery, but less swapping out is obviously better so being able to power off to conserve power and quickly back on is a preference.  Really just interested in knowing if the Q is as fast as the Q2.  Power on, general operation and wake time if left on/in standby.  I hadn't really thought about the slow write time with a Q mbphotox so that's interesting, if you have the time once you've got your Q2 would appreciate any observations you have.

Edited March 26, 2024 by JC331

[mbphotox]

@JC331 Got both the Q and Q2 in front of me right now.

Switched them on and off a dozen times and almost half the time, the Q was just as quick as the Q2. (both using freshly formatted 128GB Sandisk Extreme Pro cards and full batteries)

The other times, it took the Q2 maybe 1 sec and the Q maybe 1.5 seconds..

 

Switching off, the Q2 basically instantly shows the logo and is silent. The Q takes a bit longer than that, about a second or 1.5.

(I didn't videotape this, so take the numbers with a grain of salt.)

 

Suffice it to say, the Q is plenty fast enough.

 

 

And, @Le Chef this is not about not having a spare battery along for the ride. My Q never runs out of battery and I always have a spare with me anyways. It's an irrational fear for it running out of juice, because I'm used to my DSLRs that usually go 1'500 shots on a single charge.

[LocalHero1953]

The usual forum responses to a simple question: "that's the wrong question"; "I don't know the answer to the question, but here's an answer to a different question". In another couple of pages it will be "Can someone tell me [REPEATS THE ORIGINAL QUESTION]?"🙄

I don't have the Q but I have just checked my Q2. First thing in the morning, unused for a couple of days, it took 4-5 secs to wake up*. The next two times, after leaving it off for a few seconds, it took about 2 secs. After that, it took about 1 sec.

Back in the time when this was the subject of big debate for the M240, I found that the time I needed for a camera to wake up/switch on for me to take a quick shot on the street (i.e. the time from seeing something to taking a photo of it) had to be <1.5sec, or it felt too slow. And yes, then there were all the same yada yada arguments about sleep time, how to keep it on and ready, spare batteries etc.

 

* First thing on a Saturday morning, after a night out, I take a lot longer.

Edited March 30, 2024 by LocalHero1953

[JC331]

@mbphotox thanks for checking that and posting that's very useful.  So no issues there with either camera in terms of speed.  Like probably everyone that's trying to decide re these two it's balancing the other differences now (!)  I have a feeling that I'm going to opt for the Q2 for the various improvements but the Q still appeals.  

@LocalHero1953 that's interesting re the variation in start time, thanks for looking at that, hadn't occurred to me although my Sony A7RII is similar in terms of variable start times.  When I tried the Q2 in the shop I switched it off>on>shutter press about 5 times and it was consistently fast, but didn't try waiting between switching it on etc so good to know it does that.