Ricoh G700 Review

With much of our recreational time spent outdoors it’s surprising that so few dedicated digicams address this sector.

Ricoh’s entry comes with all the right creds: shock resistance, depth ability, chemical impermeability and password protection.

Cosmetically, it ticks most of the boxes: black outer casing, large, textured control points highlighted in orange and grey. I could only feel that maybe the colour scheme could be reversed, with the overall colour in a light tone with the controls in black… along with an overall textured surface to help glove wearers.

But… there’s a few extra surprises that should attract the corporate world. Sure, this is a mighty unusual camera!

Ricoh G700 Features

Aside from the ‘tough’ specs, the camera is basically a point-and-shooter, with only Program AE exposure and JPEG capture.

The lens is a slowish f3.5 job, with a 5x optical zoom that has a wide end that equates to a 35 SLR figure of 28mm. For underwater use, this will become an effective 40mm… a bit long for serious wet use.

The viewfinder is 7.6cm in size, with a high res count of 920,000 pixels. An optical finder would have been nice…

The maximum image size is 4000×3000 pixels, which leads to a final print size of 34x25mm. Movies are moderately well served: 1280×720 pixels, with no running speed (fps) given; so let’s assume 25 or 30 fps.

However, the tough credentials are why we’re here: the G700 can withstand damage from a two metre drop; when the wide conversion lens is attached, the drop factor shrinks to 1.5 metres; it’s capable of shooting for up to two hours at depths down to five metres; cold resistance applies down to -10?; there’s a level of dust resistance that satisfies the JIS/IEC protection grade 6 standard. Additionally, the camera has added chemical resistance to ethanol and hypochlorous acid, a useful feature in medical and production of food, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, where hygiene management is necessary.

There’s more that indicates the G700 is intended to serve industrial needs: the camera will take SD and SDHC memory cards as well as a new standard — SD WORM, which appears to perform similarly to a CD-R or DVD-R: Write Once, Read Many times. You’ll find more info about this at www.sandisk.com/business-solutions/sd-worm

Additionally, the G700 has security functions, in the form of password-protected camera operation. This prevents access to camera functions: at camera startup you enter a password; if an incorrect password is entered, the camera will shut down. The same restriction is applied to a memory card and the internal memory, all 103 MB of it; I can see this feature as being of enormous value when the camera is used in corporate or government worlds.

More: Windows users can use the bundled EC1 software to detect any image manipulation that was made after the image was shot. This makes it possible to provide digital photographic images with a high degree of reliability as evidence. One and two dimensional (QR codes, etc.) bar codes can also be read with the lens. The data read can then be recorded in a camera memo. I was unable to test the latter two functions.

Power-wise, the G700 will appeal to travelers, occasionally unable to stock up on lithium ion batteries; the camera accepts Li-Ion as well as single use AAA alkalines.

ISO Tests

As it should be: shots taken at ISO 64 and 400 (above) are OK in the noise and definition departments.

The ISO 1600 level is starting to show noise at a near-unacceptable level, but what is more disconcerting is the drop in definition.

ISO 3200? Give it away, unless you like the effect of noise that you could almost scratch your fingernails on! And definition’s out the window!

Startup Time

A little slow, I was able to take my first shot three seconds after power up; following shots came in at about two second intervals.

Distortion

The camera’s lens is well-corrected with no sign of any problems at the wide or tele ends of the zoom.

Comment

Quality: picture quality was about average, IMHO. I found the camera to suffer badly from sunflare; a lens hood or some protection would be essential in bright conditions.

This shot is highly corrected to counter severe sunflare.

Why you’d buy it: robust build; unique security features.
Why you wouldn’t: you may find it is a little large for some pockets. That’s all.

Ricoh G700 Specifications

Image Sensor: 12.0 million effective pixels.
Metering: Multi zone, centre-weighted average; spot.
Sensor Size: 11mm CCD.
Lens: f3.5-5.5/5.0-25mm (28-140mm as 35 SLR equivalent).
Shutter Speed: stills 8 to 1/1500 second; movie 1/30 to 1/10,000 second.
Memory: SD, SDHC, SD WORM plus 103 MB internal memory.
Image Sizes (pixels): 4000×3000 to 640×480. Movies: 1280×720, 640×480, 320×240 fps.
File Formats: JPEG, Motion JPEG.
ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 64 to 3200.
Viewfinder: 7.6cm LCD screen (920,000 pixels).
Interface: USB 2.0, AV.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery, 3AAA alkaline batteries.
Dimensions: 118.8x71x41 WHDmm.
Weight: Approx. 310 g (inc card and battery).
Price: Get a price on the Ricoh G700 at Amazon.