The perfect compact camera? Does it exist? :/

I need help finding the perfect compact camera for me, or the closest one to it.

Been checking out almost everything I could find, and there seems to be no good camera for me? That's why I need your help, fellow dpreviewers.

I need:
A compact camera without a big "lens cylinder" sticking out and making it un-pocketable.
(If only the Lumix LX100 was flatter - it would be perfect for me) Those lenses make it just as big as a small mirrorless system camera. Which I already have!

With a viewfinder, preferably a good one! optical or digital...

Would like it to have good manual controls for shutter speed etc.

A reasonable sensor with not too many megapixels...10-15?, 1" inch would be adequate or even smaller if I have to...

I prefer 4:3 "TV-format" over 3:2 but it's not a must. or even a square sensor!

It doesnt have to have zoom. I kinda prefer fixed lenses anyway. And hopefully that makes it smaller!...equiv. focal length anywhere from 28 mm to 45 mm? 35 mm would be great!

It seems no camera can accomplish all of this?

The Ricoh GR doesn't have a viewfinder.... among other otherwise good candidates.
Lumix LX100 and countless other "compacts" are not very compact.
The Sony rx100 seems to lack mechanical controls? and too many megapixels...and the lens sticks out a bit although not as bad as the lx100....

please help me! maybe my answer before my dream camera is launched in 2 years(??) would be some OBSCURE compact camera from 2010? or even earlier? it doesnt have to perform super well in ISO over 1600 or even 800. I have steady hands....

It seems to me that what you should be looking for is a top of the line smartphone.

The reason that the sort of camera that you are looking for doesn't exist is that smartphones have destroyed that part of the camera market.

If you don't want to use a smartphone then just get one of the Sony RX100 models or look for a used Panasonic GM5 with a 20mm f/1.7 lens and live with any disadvantages.

--
Chris R

yeah i see your point and have been checking out smartphones that are more camera than phone. but that doesn't seem to exist? although I thought they would. you have any specific tips on phones like that?

I like the more ergonomic way you hold a camera with a proper shutter button and most of all, a VIEWFINDER to block out everything you see EXCEPT for the picture

yeah I had a GM1 I think it was some years ago. but it still didn't really fit into my pocket I think. and read GM5?? had a crappy viewfinder? if im thinking of the right one...

shouldnt there be older cameras like this? even with smaller sensor? I could live with that...just dont know where to start looking....

You can build your own mini compact out of something like an Olympus Pen body with the 20mm pancake lens or (very slightly larger) ,the Fuji X-M1 with the 27mm pancake. The latter is my smallest camera and it punches way, way above its weight with a 16mpx crop sensor.

The Oly Pen F, which does have a viewfinder, is approximately the same size as the X-M1. I think one of those with the 17mm or 20mm small primes is as small as you can get with a viewfinder.

Joakim Stenudd said:

yeah i see your point and have been checking out smartphones that are more camera than phone. but that doesn't seem to exist? although I thought they would. you have any specific tips on phones like that?

I like the more ergonomic way you hold a camera with a proper shutter button and most of all, a VIEWFINDER to block out everything you see EXCEPT for the picture

yeah I had a GM1 I think it was some years ago. but it still didn't really fit into my pocket I think. and read GM5?? had a crappy viewfinder? if im thinking of the right one...

shouldnt there be older cameras like this? even with smaller sensor? I could live with that...just dont know where to start looking....

Click to expand...

Canon and Nikon both had "enthusiasts" compact cameras, e.g. the ones in this comparison , but there weren't small compared with the RX100 series and would probably be outclassed by a later model RX100 or LX100, especially in terms of speed of operation, AF and high ISO noise.

Just ditch the viewfinder requirement, then there are a number of nice compacts.

Kelly

i see your point, thanks for the comparison link! had almost forgot about the canon g series...you dont happen to know which of the canon G:s have the best viewfinder do u? or is it a basically crappy viewfinder? :/ do you know?

ah thanks for the tip....i owned a lumix GM1 with the smallest pancake. but i still felt i didnt have that "take up with one hand take a shot and back in pocket"- thing that I like about compact cameras. you had to take off the lens cover etc and the lens still sticks out too much to just put in your pocket...i guess its the same with the pen,,,still system camera with manual lens covering....

I got a lumix GM80? if thats what its called? its not pocketable but still great camera I keep around my neck. I love the M43 system i just think they could make something REALLY small like a lighter, smaller version of LX100 or something without zoom with fixed 35 mm. that would really be my thing!

thanks! which one would you suggest? i guess I could use an optical viewfinder as long as there's a hot shoe....which there probably isnt ...but I see your point even if I get a viewfinder with a really small camera, it will still be a really crappy viewfinder am I right?

so you have a very very good point! which camera do you suggest that would suit my description?

Check out the Lumix zs200. I recently picked one up on sale for just over $600 and am pretty happy with it. I've been running a series of test shots with it, comparing it to my GX85 with the 14-140. The GX85 is superior, but not by much and I was surprised to see that in many cases I might actually prefer the shots I get with the zs200. The zs200 probably does not compare well to the AF in the sony RX100vi in shooting stills, but it does fine for shooting video. And it costs about half as much as the RX100.

Joakim Stenudd said:

thanks! which one would you suggest? i guess I could use an optical viewfinder as long as there's a hot shoe....which there probably isnt ...but I see your point even if I get a viewfinder with a really small camera, it will still be a really crappy viewfinder am I right?

so you have a very very good point! which camera do you suggest that would suit my description?

Click to expand...

I'm quite happy with M4/3, so I have not looked into compacts very closely. To me the obvious contenders would be the Canon G7 X#, Panasonic LX10/15, and Sony RX100ii.

Kelly

Joakim Stenudd said:

i see your point, thanks for the comparison link! had almost forgot about the canon g series...you dont happen to know which of the canon G:s have the best viewfinder do u? or is it a basically crappy viewfinder? :/ do you know?

Click to expand...

The G series had optical tunnel viewfinders with the issues that go with them - parallax errors and the lens is visible in the viewfinder at wider angles. One reason that the G series was relatively expensive was the complex viewfinder mechanics that were required to maintain the correct field of view throughout the 5x zoom range.

The Fujifilm X-100 range seems like it might be perfect for you, as long as it is small enough for your requirements.

Great viewfinder, great old school ergonomics, great (fast!) fixed 35mm lens that doesn't protrude much...and great image quality!

--
'Photography is not art. It's pressing buttons. People take it up because they can't draw.' Lord Snowdon

haha.... thats kinda ironic now with EVF:s being so standard thanks for the tip though, sometimes I think that parallax error is charming, like shooting on a leica rangefinder. but maybe its a really small image with the canon G:s ? do you know? i think my dad had one 10 years ago but those things went by me back then....

aha! why the rx100 mark 2 ? why not the mark 6 or 5 ?

cause i've been considering the rx100...i owned the mark I for a year but sold it. it didnt have a viewfinder....but I think that models after do all have EVF right?

Do you know which of them has the best viewfinder? or which is best value or something? I'm sure to find all of them on ebay for varying prices.

In short: which of the RX100 mark:S do you recommend? its kinda hard to compare them all....

in a way its the most serious contender for me....so would be great to know this without having to do tedious research...if someone else, like you, already have

hmm thanks havent really considered it! why the hell havent I? I now ask myself?

thanks for the tip my friend will check it out now!

Joakim Stenudd said:

hmm thanks havent really considered it! why the hell havent I? I now ask myself?

thanks for the tip my friend will check it out now!

Click to expand...

The Fuji X100F is a great camera but it's not all that small and wouldn't fit in most pockets.

I'm pretty sure the Sony RX1 series cameras are smaller but I don't think they're worth the asking price.

Naturally, that's just a personal opinion.

I have an X100T and love it. I rejected it as a solution to your problem as it is not shirt pocket sized. It is larger than the X-M1/27mm, for example, which you thought was too large.

yeah i noticed when i checked that the fuji x100 is quite big...i remember now checking it out in a camera store a few years ago...and the size was what made me not buy it....

i see why people love it. but yeah as u say. i found it's too large....