Yesterday, during an express return trip to London, we had the opportunity to take in hand a definitive version of the Sony RX100 V, the fifth iteration of the Japanese manufacturer's best-selling expert compacts. We mainly focused on the "HFR" function dedicated to accelerated shooting (1 fps in Full HD), since many of you noted this rare video ability when the camera was announced.
Sony RX100 V Launch price 1199 €
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554,99
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Amazon Marketplace occasion
698,03
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Amazon
749,00
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Boulanger.com 749,00
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Amazon Marketplace
799,00
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Digit-photo.com
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Phox
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Fnac.com marketplace
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Darty Marketplace 831,49
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Miss Digital 899,90
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eBay
879,00
-
reBuy
554,99
-
Amazon Marketplace occasion
698,03
-
Amazon
749,00
-
Boulanger.com 749,00
-
Amazon Marketplace
799,00
-
Digit-photo.com
799,00
-
Phox
804,90
-
Fnac.com marketplace
809,00
-
Darty Marketplace 831,49
-
Miss Digital 899,90
-
eBay
879,00
The complete RX100 family.
It takes lynx eyes to distinguish the Mark V from the Mark IV. Moreover, several members of Sony themselves were mistaken. A tip: the front border separating the body from the cover is, on the 5th generation, slightly thinner and reflective depending on the direction of the lighting. We grant it to you, it is very subtle. For the rest, in terms of ergonomics, nothing new: from the screen to the viewfinder (which you have to finish deploying with your fingertip, since there is no place to put a spring), from the trigger at the rear wheel, everything is the same. Which, by the way, is quite a feat given the surplus of on-board technology. This continuity in design has at least one advantage: the 40 m underwater housing MPK-URX100A, sold for €360, is perfectly compatible with all generations of RX100. Kudos to Sony for thinking about this backwards compatibility!
From the back, nothing new.
From above, nothing different.
From the front, note the more subtle border of the RX100 V (behind).
There was a change that we were hoping for, but which, unfortunately, did not turn out to be effective: the integration of the new menus of the Alpha 99. After all, the RX100 V already borrows its coprocessor from it, so why not its software interface? It is therefore the old menus, in which photo and video are not separated, which are the wand. Sony justifies itself by explaining that "the timing was too tight to apply the new menus" while reserving the possibility of "making this modification later, by simply updating the firmware*, if this modification is validated by our software engineers* *.*" We are excited ! Note however that the Alpha 6500 benefits from these new menus, but that we cannot show you images produced with them since the boxes handled were not final versions.
Let's go back to the HFR (High Frame Rate) functions introduced on the Sony RX100 IV and RX10 II. These very high frame rates are made possible by the adoption of sensors with a specific design: the Exmor RS. They are distinguished by the electronic tracks separated from the photodiodes (the electronics below, the photodiodes above), as well as by the presence of a DRAM memory integrated directly into the sensor. These two differences are enough to drastically increase the sensor's recording speed, further aided by the "front-end LSI" added on the RX100 V (but absent on the RX100 IV). The HFR is selected directly on the dial, but you have to go to the menus to choose the desired frame rate. The recording is done in HD XAVC-S, on 1 x 920 px, at 1, 080 or 250 images per second in PAL, (500/1/000 in NTSC). The box then directly generates an MP240 file, in Full HD, in 480p.
You have two ways to use the HFR. You can trigger directly using the "video" button (on the right), at the start of the shot; the camera then records the next 6 seconds (unless you cut the recording before). Another possibility is to use the "Standby" mode: the camera records the action continuously in the buffer then, when you press the video trigger, it only takes into account the last 6 seconds filmed.
Note that the HFR already existed on the RX100 IV, but the recording was limited to 3 seconds. In the examples below, the noise comes from the fact that our tests took place indoors and that, to compensate for the lack of light (the shutter works between 1/1 s and 000/1 s depending situations!), we had to increase sensitivity: we were therefore, in all three cases, at 2 ISO. To try again, therefore, outdoors, on a day of full sun.
