Ricoh’s CX series of compacts have received several updates over the past few years, with each new model offering slight tweaks on performance without breaking a great deal of new ground. While it hasn’t ever hampered the impressive performance and image quality, it has hardly set the world alight. Is the latest model, the CX5 which has arrived shortly after the CX4, a worthy upgrade or has it simply once again added a small amount of features?

Ricoh CX5 review – Features

As was the case with the CX4 in relation to its predecessor, the CX3, the CX5 offers very few changes to the CX4. The sensor remains the same, being the 10MP CMOS backlit variety that’s now two generations old. The compact has also retained the same HD movie capture added on the CX4, although this is in keeping with many of the compacts on the market.

The CX5 also retains the 10.7x optical zoom  seen in the history of the CX models, offering a focal range covering 28-300mm in 35mm equivalent terms. The lens also retains improved image stabilisation system initiated in the previous, of the sensor-shift variety, that was completely reworked on the previous generation and offers approximately three times the stabilisation of the CX3..

The LCD screen of the CX5 measures 3in and has a resolution of some 920k-dot, as was the case with the CX4, although the fact that this hasn’t improved is no great loss as it is one of the well specified on the market. However, an area that hasn’t been improved, and that has for several generations now been missing, is both the implication of Raw capture and full manual controls. The CX5 has, instead, added to the ‘creative’ shooting modes seen on the previous CX4.

Ricoh CX5 review – Design

Once again, the design of the CX
series has changed very little with regards to design, although the
model has always boasted an almost retro design since day one. The top
plate is pleasingly sparsely populated, with just a mode dial, shutter
released and power button present. One the rear of the camera sit four
operation buttons in a row, a playback button and a control / adjustment
dial which takes the form a small joystick. The camera itself sits
comfortably in the hand, with a small rubber grip on the rear of the
camera placed perfectly in position for the thumbs natural resting
place.