Pentax Ricoh has announced a new digital compact camera, called Ricoh HZ15. The Ricoh HZ15 is a 16-megapixel digital compact camera with 15x optical zoom where it gets the name from and a sophisticated SR (Shake Reduction) mechanism.
The Ricoh HZ15 camera also features a 3.0-inch LCD monitor with approximately 230,000 dots. In addition to capturing 16-megapixel still images, the Ricoh HZ15 can also record 720p HD videos and save them on Eye-Fi memory cards.
The new Ricoh HZ15 is offering a 15x optical zoom lens with a 35mm format equivalent of 24-360mm. The lens is covering both the wide-angle and telephoto ranges. The maximum aperture stands between f/3.3 and f/5.9 depending on the selected focal length.
According to Ricoh, that the HZ15 camera release date is for late September. The price of the Ricoh HZ15 and the market availability have not been determined.
Ricoh HZ15 Digital Compact Camera Announced
Ricoh Press Release
RICOH HZ15
A high-magnification digital compact camera, featuring an optical 15X zoom lens with 24mm wide-angle coverage, designed for the easy capture of an extensive range of subjects and scenes
RICOH IMAGING COMPANY LTD. is pleased to announce the launch of the RICOH HZ15 digital compact camera, featuring a compact, lightweight, easy-to-carry body; a high-magnification optical 15-times zoom lens; and a large 3.0-inch LCD monitor.
This new model has a host of outstanding features, including an optical 15-times zoom lens with 24mm ultra-wide-angle coverage, high-resolution image capture with 16 effective megapixels, a large, easy-to-view 3.0-inch LCD monitor, and a sophisticated SR (Shake Reduction) mechanism. In addition, meticulous attention has been paid to every design detail, from the high-grade, glossy black coating to the easy-to-hold grip, enhancing the HZ15’s functional operation and stylish appearance.
Major Features
1. Optical 15-times zoom lens with 24mm wide-angle coverage
Within its compact, lightweight body, the Ricoh HZ15 features a powerful optical 15-times zoom lens covering focal lengths from 24mm wide-angle to 360mm super-telephoto (in the 35mm format). Thanks to this extra-wide zoom range, the HZ15 can capture beautiful images in a wide range of subjects and scenes — from spectacular landscapes to fast-action sports events. It even offers macro photography at a minimum focusing distance of just three centimetres from the subject.
2. State-of-the-art shake reduction mechanism
The HZ15 comes equipped with an innovative CCD-shift-type SR (Shake Reduction) mechanism to deliver sharp, blur-free images even under camera-shake-prone shooting conditions, such as when photographing in the telephoto range, in the dark with only incidental light, or for sunset scenes.
3. Exceptional image quality
With 16 effective megapixels, the HZ15 captures well-defined, high-quality images with extra-fine resolution. It also records beautiful HD-quality movie clips (at 1280 x 720 pixels).
4. Stylish, easy-to-hold body design
Every design detail of the Ricoh HZ15, including the finish and texture of the camera body, has been optimised for comfort, quality and operability. These include a glossy black coating on the body, an easy-to-hold grip, and functionally laid-out control buttons and switches.
5. Large 3.0-inch LCD monitor
The HZ15 features a 3.0-inch LCD monitor with approximately 230,000 dots. This large monitor provides a clear view of images and menus, so the photographer can quickly and efficiently check the captured images and menu settings.
6. 20 Scene modes for easy capture of specific subjects and scenes
The HZ15 provides 20 distinctive Scene modes to automatically optimise all shooting settings for a given scene or subject. With a simple choice of the icon corresponding to the desired Scene mode, this handy feature allows the user to take beautiful images with minimal effort.
7. High-resolution, HD-quality movie recording with push-button start
The Ricoh HZ15 captures beautiful, HD-quality movie clips (1280 x 720 pixels, 16:9 proportions, approx. 30 frames per second).* Thanks to an independent movie recording button on the camera’s top panel, the user can instantly switch to the movie recording mode from any other shooting mode. The user can also take advantage of the sophisticated Movie SR (Shake Reduction) mode to minimise annoying camera shake during movie recording.
* When the HZ15’s AV output terminal is used, movie clips are output as normal image-size data. If the user wishes to play back movie clips at HD resolution (1280 x 720 pixels), the data must be transferred to a personal computer for playback.
8. Other features
- In-body recharging system, for simple, mobile-phone-style battery recharging
- Compatibility with Eye-Fi wireless LAN SD memory cards
- Image viewing, editing and filing software included: MediaImpression 3.6.1 LE (Windows version compatible with Windows 8) and MediaImpression 2.2 LE (Macintosh version compatible with Mac OS X 10.8)
Design and Specifications are subject to change without notice.
Pricing and availability:
RRP: TBA
Available from: end September 2013
