Cyber-shot RX10 - Premium performance and portability

True portability doesn’t have to mean compromising the image quality, creative features and handling you’d expect from a bigger, bulkier camera system. An appealing additional ‘bridge-style’ camera for DSLR enthusiasts, the new Cyber-shot RX10 delivers superb picture quality without the need to pack a camera body plus several lenses for your next photo assignment.

The fixed Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* 24-200mm (35mm equivalent) F2.8 lens offers superb levels of clarity and resolving power you’d expect from your interchangeable lens collection. With a versatile zoom range from wide-angle to telephoto, it’s a natural partner for atmospheric portraits, dramatic landscapes, wildlife, street scenes and naturally-lit interiors. The ability to focus at distances as short as 3cm also makes it ideal for detail-packed Macro close-ups of insects, flowers and more.

A bright F2.8 maximum aperture right across the full zoom range gives extra brightness you’d expect from your collection of interchangeable prime lenses. As well as letting you shoot in low light without increasing ISO settings, it also allows easy creation of smooth, circular background defocus (‘bokeh’) effects, enhanced by the 7-blade iris diaphragm. Optical SteadyShot inside assists clearer, blur-free images when you’re shooting handheld – even at longer focal lengths when hand-shake is a challenge for non-stabilised optics.

Comfortable to hold and generously equipped with manual controls, the Cyber-shot RX10 feels instantly familiar to anyone who’s handled a DSLR camera. Inside, the camera’s fixed-lens design achieves superb imaging performance in harmony with the large, sensitive image sensor and evolved BIONZ X processing engine that now offers approximately 3x improvement in processing speed compared to previous BIONZ processors.

As featured on the acclaimed DSC-RX100 II, the 20.2 effective megapixels (approx.) 1.0-type back-illuminated Exmor R CMOS sensor is around four times bigger than your standard compact camera’s imager. Exquisite resolution and texture depiction is boosted further by the evolved BIONZ X engine that employs new detail reproduction, area-specific noise reduction and diffraction-reducing technologies for cleaner, even more beautiful and finely-detailed images.

Autofocus is speedy and responsive, thanks to the new Direct Drive SSM mechanism that works in conjunction with the Exmor R CMOS sensor and powerful BIONZ X processor. Lock-on AF accurately tracks moving subjects, keeping your target accurately focused even if it disappears momentarily from the frame and then reappears. Newly developed Eye AF ensures crisp portraits with the sitter’s eye always in sharp focus, even if they’re not looking directly at you. In addition, there’s now a choice of three selectable sizes for the spot AF frame. This cuts the risk of accidental focus errors with very small subjects, such as macro close-ups of insects.

Impeccable still shooting is matched by equally impressive capabilities for movie enthusiasts. The powerful new BIONZ X processor offers approximately three times the processing speed of Sony’s previous-generation BIONZ engine. Fully utilising the quality of the wide-aperture lens, it reads data from every one of the large sensor’s pixels to create extremely smooth, highly-detailed Full HD video. Movie footage can be captured at selectable 50p (AVCHD progressive) or cinematic 25p frame rates, with full control over P/A/S/M exposure modes. A ‘clear’ HDMI output allows video to be reviewed on an external monitor or recorded to a separate storage device.

An audio level meter and adjustable levels ensure that movies sound as good as they look. There’s a microphone jack and headphone output for accurate level monitoring. Adding the optional XLR-K1M adapter kit takes you into the world of pro-quality sound recording, allowing the addition of an external microphone via the balanced XLR terminal.

With a high resolution of 1440k dots, the new high-contrast OLED Tru-Finder offers crisp edge-to-edge visibility of your subject plus a wide 33° (approx.) viewing angle. For even more compositional freedom, the clear, bright 3.0-type White Magic LCD tilts up or down for easy framing with the camera held up high or low down.

Underlining its appeal to dedicated enthusiasts, the camera’s light, rigid magnesium alloy body features dust- and moisture-resistant seams and control seals for extra durability on location.

Intuitive, ergonomic operation is enhanced by plentiful controls that offer DSLR-style flexibility for advanced users. It’s possible to freely switch between two operating modes for the aperture ring. Get positive feedback with an audible ‘click’ as aperture is adjusted manually with the ring. Or switch modes for smooth, continuous adjustment without clicks – ideal if you’re shooting movies or don’t want to disturb your subject. There’s also a total of seven customisable buttons, plus a top-mounted LCD for instant confirmation of exposure and other key settings.

High-resolution still images can be displayed directly on a 4K television that offers four times the detail of Full HD. Support for TRILUMINOS Colour delivers a stunning palette of rich, natural colours when viewing movies and photos captured with the Cyber-shot RX10 on a compatible BRAVIA television with TRILUMINOS Display.

On-board Wi-Fi allows easy one-touch connection with your Xperia or NFC-compatible Android smartphone or tablet. Share photos wirelessly on your mobile device, or view them on your HD TV and other home networked devices. Installing PlayMemories Mobile Version 3.0 even lets you use your phone as a handy remote to fire the camera’s shutter.

There’s a range of compatible accessories from Sony to expand your creative options even further. The LCJ-RXE is a premium jacket case that protects the camera from dust and knocks. Attach the ECM-XYST1M Stereo Microphone via the camera’s Multi Interface Shoe for crisp dialogue and ambient sounds while you’re shooting HD video. Or illuminate up your subject with the powerful HVL-F43M flash or battery-powered HVL-LEIR1 Video IR light.

The compact, all-in-one Cyber-shot RX10 digital camera from Sony is available from pre-order now from sony.co.uk on goes on general sale in Europe from mid-November.