Ricoh, Leica, Olympus. There are pro level compact alternatives. Ricoh’s are almost as small than a smartphone while being more ergonomic to use and better featured. The reason there needs to be such technologies as LOFIC for tiny sensors is precisely to compensate the size and achieve what larger sensors already achieved decades ago by shear force of being larger. But you don’t need to go that much larger, just a micro four thirds camera with mediocre glass from a decade ago already blows away anything that big tech put last year on flagship phone cameras.
Well each has its quirks. Leica is hilariously expensive. Ricoh is fixed lens, fixed focal length. I nearly got an OM-3 myself, but honestly it is big, and M43 lenses and sensors are starting to show their age.
I’d probably point the average person to an L10, an X-E5, an S9, or the A6700 with a pancake lens if they can swallow the price.
I think the S9 in particular is a glorious “smartphone replacement.” Its a full frame ILC, its connectivity app is fantastic, yet with a pancake lens it is no bigger than an OM or Leica.
Ricoh, Leica, Olympus. There are pro level compact alternatives. Ricoh’s are almost as small than a smartphone while being more ergonomic to use and better featured. The reason there needs to be such technologies as LOFIC for tiny sensors is precisely to compensate the size and achieve what larger sensors already achieved decades ago by shear force of being larger. But you don’t need to go that much larger, just a micro four thirds camera with mediocre glass from a decade ago already blows away anything that big tech put last year on flagship phone cameras.
Well each has its quirks. Leica is hilariously expensive. Ricoh is fixed lens, fixed focal length. I nearly got an OM-3 myself, but honestly it is big, and M43 lenses and sensors are starting to show their age.
I’d probably point the average person to an L10, an X-E5, an S9, or the A6700 with a pancake lens if they can swallow the price.
I think the S9 in particular is a glorious “smartphone replacement.” Its a full frame ILC, its connectivity app is fantastic, yet with a pancake lens it is no bigger than an OM or Leica.