This impressive beauty replaced the R4

Product Overview

Ricoh Caplio R5

Pros:

  • Great lens, Image stabilisation, High ISO

Cons:

  • Pedestrian design, Image noise at high ISO, No viewfinder

Product:

Ricoh Caplio R5 Review

Manufacturer:

Price as reviewed:

£280.00

Ricoh consistently produces interesting and innovative cameras. The Caplio R5 replaces the R4, and offers not only a long zoom but a wide and useful starting length.

Features
The 7MP sensor is a new addition as is the improved processor offering better image rendition and colour. The Caplio R5 also has optical image stabilisation and an impressive ISO range.

Design
About the size of a pack of cards, the R5 may be slightly larger than some of the superslim lifestyles, but when you consider that it has to retract a 28-200mm lens into the body, the small size seems more impressive. A decent 2.5in LCD is on the back.

Performance
With reasonable start-up and little shutter lag, the R5 is as good as most of its competitors. The IS system is needed though, especially at maximum focal length since there’s no viewfinder to add natural stabilisation.

Image Quality
Images are sharp throughout the focal range and plenty of detail is captured. There’s some noise in the images as the gain is raised, especially at ISO 1600, but that’s expected.

Value For Money
Though quite expensive, this offers plenty of scope, especially when compared to most compacts with much shorter lenses, lower resolution and lower ISO.

Verdict

Good things can come in small packages. Ricoh continually offers something different from the rest of the pack, without compromising much in the way of quality.