Amid the compact camera craze, there’s one camera category that I’ve been hoping for a revival: the shoot-every-genre-with-one-lens bridge camera. Now, Sony has brought its larger sensor super zoom camera back from the dead. The Sony RX10 V brings back the same sensor and 24-600mm equivalent lens, but borrows the speed and autofocus smarts from the brand’s mirrorless cameras.
Announced on July 9, shortly after a teaser confirmed its existence, the Sony RX10 V is the first time the imaging giant has launched a super zoom since the RX10 IV in 2017. While Sony hasn’t touched its popular super zoom in nearly a decade, the RX10 V arrives with the same 20.1MP one-inch sensor and a 24-600mm equivalent, 25x zoom lens with a maximum f/2.8-4 aperture.
Instead, the new super zoom focuses on bringing the speed and autofocus capabilities that have arrived on Sony’s Alpha series, thanks in part to the new Bionz XR processor with an integrated AI processing unit.
The RX10 V can shoot burst speeds as fast as 30fps with a blackout-free viewfinder – matching the speed of cameras like the A7R VI. Like the A7R VI, the RX10 V also allows photographers to assign a shortcut button to temporarily boost the burst speed, easing the storage demands of such a fast burst speed.
The RX10 V also borrows another key feature that pairs well with the 600mm equivalent lens – subject recognition autofocus. I found the subject detection to work fairly well for birds and bugs – though birds already in flight were sometimes more misses than hits. That autofocus system performs 60 calculations per second, using 575 phase detection points across about 70.6 percent of the frame.
The updated processor also improves noise reduction and colors compared to the 2017 camera, Sony says. The battery life has also been boosted to the tune of about 50 percent at a 630 shot rating.
The bridge camera’s video capabilities also get a boost, as the RX10 V now uses the full width of the sensor to shoot 4K 60p, but can also shoot cropped 4K 120p. The camera also supports S-Cinetone, S-Log3, and LUT imports.
Image credit: Hillary Grigonis / Future
24mm
Image credit: Hillary Grigonis / Future
The same scene at 600mm
The super zoom camera is one that I reccomend often to birders who want to snap photos without the weight or complexity of a mirrorless camera and telephoto lens. But the RX10 V lens can also get in fairly close, falling just under half macro capabilities at .42x at 24mm and .49x at 600mm. That, paired with a lens stretching from 24-600mm, creates a fairly versatile camera, considering its unswappable lens.
Bridge cameras aren’t exactly compact, but the RX10 V’s 1,111g / 39oz weight is a far cry from a kit full of mirrorless lenses that includes 24mm, 600mm, and macro capabilities. That zoom lens retracts into the camera somewhat when off, leaving the RX10 with a depth of about 151.3mm / 5.95 inches.
The RX10’s design is completed with a more Sony Alpha-like grip and a multi-select joystick. The camera design also includes a tilting touchscreen, 3.686 million dot electronic viewfinder, a single UHS-I and UHS-II compatible SD card slot, and a multi-interface hot shoe. The RX10 V is weather-sealed.
Another key change, however, is the camera’s price point. At launch, the earlier RX IV sat at about $1,700 / £1,500 / CA$2,200 / AU$2,599, but after Sony discontinued the previous RX10 IV, the price from reputable used camera dealers approaches the $3K mark for like-new options.
The list price for the new Sony RX10 V sits somewhere between the RX10 IV’s original price and the older models' used price, sitting at $2,299 / CA$2,899. UK and Australia pricing have not yet been announced, but that converts to about £1,716 / AU$3,316. Shipping is expected to begin in early August.
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