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My user icon on EOSHD is a GM1 with a tiny Pentax A110 25mm prime lens on it. Aside from using one of those flat-f8-body-cam-lenses, this was as about as small as I ever got things. Which was pretty small, honestly. 10+ years ago! Ah, those were the days.

I'm wondering what the smallest P&S camera is that shoots real 720p or 1080p (not line-skipped or pixel-binned and then upscaled). If it has a zoom that would be even better. My recent adventures with emulating 16mm film on my GX85 and the fun of shooting on the almost microscopic Kodak Charmera have made me start thinking about what the smallest 720p or 1080p camera (that isn't an action camera) might be, which I suspect will be a P&S. During the P&S arms race I'm sure someone pushed the boundaries... The Super-16 emulations I did with the GX85 made me realise that the DR of a rec709 camera is more than enough and that S16 is far lower than 1080p, and perhaps lower than 720p even. The Charmeras is probably one of the smallest cameras around but isn't a P&S and its real resolution is only 720x540 so not real 720/1080p. The LX10/LX15 comes to mind of course and seems like a great camera but it's still quite pricey and I'd like to go significantly smaller again if I can. Unfortunately camerasize.com isn't exhaustive with the hundreds (thousands?) of P&S cameras that got released, so some brands are missing (and you can't search by size). My initial research shows turned up the below, but maybe there are some hidden gems? It looks like the industry decided that 90-110mm wide and 55-60mm tall was perfectly fine and just pushed to go thinner? Which, if any, of these are worth looking at?

Never tried it but I suspect the FX30 stab would be good enough for my handheld needs which are basically ‘static’. I move more and more however towards the combo of absolutely locked off or floating moving with nothing in between. Lumix are great in this regard because if you have everything dialled up to the max, albeit at the expense of some cropping, these things stay incredibly still. It’s really only if there is any static foreground that you notice any movement so wider establishing shots, I always use a tripod or something.

I bought one and ended up selling it. While the RED NE looks great, it's way to much data for what I shoot and the H265 is terrible, I can't understand how Nikon does not understand the urgency of fixing it.....

@newfoundmass@MrSMWFX30's stabilization is not necessarily bad at all... it requires a proper operator! : P Maybe @kye is serious up there, maybe not ; ) I am :- )

It's more likely that some features are not considered a high priority as many would not necessarily use them at all, and so to get the hardware product (with early firmware that supports the main features) out earlier they do not release all the features they are working on. They can then use the revenue from early camera sales to fund further work on the firmware. 4K240 produces an enormous amount of data and there could be serious challenges in implementing it, including (1) how to compress the data so that it will be possible to write on CFexpress type A cards, (2) how overheating can be avoided, (3) what kind of compression to apply, and (4) what kind of dynamic range is possible given the sensor read time (dual gain output readout) and high frame rate (240 fps). Finally all the aspects of the feature need to be tested thoroughly before releasing the firmware out to the users.

Stabilisation is to mine but not necessarily IBIS… With my S1Rii’s paired with primes, I have the e stab dialed up to the max in addition to the already great IBIS and though this crops considerably, no issue because I’m always working with slightly wider than necessary lenses. These are my ‘great stability speed’ units as in not even faffing with a monopod. The S9 is paired with a gimbal either on or off a lightweight tripod which requires a bit more faffing but gives another, but different type of stability. S5ii on heavyweight (it’s quite light actually) for ultimate stability for the longer stuff.

The FX30s are still really great values. I realistically could get away with three of those and be set for the next half decade at least. The biggest issue I'd have is just the poor IBIS. IBIS is hugely important for my work, even more than auto focus and all the other comforts people wanted over the years. That's what has kept me in the Lumix camp. I plan to switch out one or both of my S5s for a S5II or S5II X here soon. Amazing IBIS and really good auto focus... no real reason to switch.

Couldn't agree more!

It's funny, I'm pretty aligned with your thoughts, just like you, I'm on the back end of my commercial life (went full time in 1993) and have always been pragmatic with gear. I want to splash out once before it's not relevant anymore! I too am shooting on the S1R2 and love the files out of it. And yes if I ever get an SL3P, the first thing is to black out, sorry stealth out the white Logo 🙂

That would not surprise me a bit and although I have not watched a single review other than the CVP one…and even that, not all the way through, I have noticed a while recent bunch of LUMIX converts posted they have one. I imagine a bunch of them at least will shortly be posting a piece regarding why they flopped back to Sony, soon enough… I’d have no problem flipping back to Sony myself, but it would be the FX3A and FX30’s plus A7RV, all used, because all of that kit is more than good enough for me. The A7RV is still the best stills camera I have owned, though my S1Rii’s are better hybrid and as that is my bread & butter… It’s an unlikely scenario though as my LUMIX gear just works and shiny new stuff for the sake of shiny new stuff, is not enough of a draw for me personally. Still, no harm in looking and pondering from time to time!

I have a form you can download! Hankering after either/both the X2D 100c and the new Leica SL3-P, but in regard to the latter, it’s really not more than an S1Rii in a fancier body…at 2.5x the price. And it has massive LEICA lettering on the front that needs a black sharpie pen taking to it. However, I am seriously considering it though as my sole photo camera to see out my career and what will swing it is if Sigma do pop out my desired 45-90mm f1.8 internal zoom lens because that paired with the existing 28-45mm f1.8 is endgame territory for me. The Hassie really just remains in pure fantasy territory because unless I had a pair of the things, the only lens that would really work for me is the 35-100 and it’s a bit big and just it a bit too far over budget.

Leica fantasies and Hasselblad dreams..... where do I sign up? 😂

I kind of expect that something has to follow the FX6 to bring raw recording into that form factor, and that may be the one to wait for. It's true that there are a lot of really good options out there.

That's kind of the thing: today you can get as good of an image now from a sub $2000 camera, and that's not even including the used market. It's not a bad camera at all. It's just, $5000 is a lot right now in this economy. Outside of the Sony hardcores who are constantly upgrading to the latest Sony camera, this is a hard sell I think. Honestly, if I'm already shelling out over $5k, I'd probably go all the way and get the Sony FX6 for the more professional body and features, like internal ND, even if it is missing some of the other things the FX5 has. Plus I think you'll still get hired more having an FX6 than you will having an FX5. I will say, it's funny seeing all the YouTubers who jumped to Lumix with the S1II all the sudden jumping back. Guessing Sony cut a bigger check?

Thanks, interesting site. Seems like YT is the best option right now, but it's a huge time waste since most new videos are AI slop. Parsing for a "human take" on the camera is like searching for a needle in a haystack. I stand by my opinion that the first one to build a site with this specific theme will become gangbusters.

Hey gang, been a while. At first glance this FX5 felt a bit underwhelming but looking closer its a pretty substantial update. On paper the frame rate/resolution bump over FX3 looks small, 4K to 5K isn't a leap that sells itself, and I get why some are skeptical. But I don't think the gains are actually small once you look past resolution. Also want to bring the A7R VI into the conversation, since it was announced just recently and shares the same sensor, and does some clever things of its own. It varies its subsampling by mode: 8K comes from an 8.2K region (1.22x crop), while 4K is read from the full sensor width but subsampled from a 5K portion, roughly 2:1 binning, and rolling shutter scales almost exactly with that ratio between modes. That's actually smart sensor use for a hybrid body, flexible readout depending on what you need, high-res stills and video modes both on tap from one chip without a fixed binning scheme. Arguably a more versatile use of this sensor than the FX5's fixed video-only binning, if you need both stills and video from a single body. But for video-only work, FX5 still pulls ahead in what actually matters day to day. The RAW is the real story, 16-bit X-OCN, same bit depth as Burano/Venice 2, and the C1/C2 compression tiers are genuinely efficient, undercutting even the FX3's own compressed 10-bit codec at 4K24p. Triple base ISO and the selective dual-gain shadow cleanup add up to real, usable gains, albeit slower readout speeds a la S5ii. Oh and open gate, Sony finally caught up. On price, worth noting Sony's being smart splitting the handle and EVF out separately rather than bundling, it softens the sticker shock even though fully kitted you're still at a whopping €6,800 here, FX6 money for a mirrorless body with no NDs, SDI etc. That's the one thing hard to swallow. Went Canon with the C50 myself a couple months back, still very happy with it, dual OS is best of both worlds and the various crop modes and digi zoom punch-in flexibility over the 7K spec I rarely touch. For about 3K with the awesome XLR top handle included, it fit my wallet and needs, no regrets. Bottom line: For Sony hybrid users that need stills over RAW, do take a look at the A7R VI, smart camera with impressive specs. For video only, no real flaws on the FX5 and some serious upgrades: RAW, open gate, triple ISO, dual gain, tilt EVF option..all genuinely exciting if you can swing the price. Personally I wish they would have left a stills option (even 16MP e-shutter mode) but I have no doubts the FX5 will become industry standard for years to come. But I also don't think FX3 is going obsolete anytime soon either.

Sony FX5 has the same or slightly modified sensor from Sony A7R VI. Interesting. FX5 would be a tempting proposition if you buy a new camera for commercial work from a local shop. Difference with FX3A is about 1000 $/E. As others already mentioned same FX3 sensor is available in the form of A7S III and Sony ZV-E1 for much less in the second hand market. Difference in picture quality between the FX3 sensor and FX5 one in real world shoots will be minimal. Not to mention that I can monitor and control current Sony cameras from a quality monitor like Portkey LH5P or a smartphone or use cheap external EVF and have all the tools for comfortable and quality work. Thanks but no thanks, not for me at this price.

I'm already shooting 2x anamorphic open-gate on my $30 Charmera keychain camera, so nothing new for me here. Nice to see that Sony has finally caught up though!

This could eventually become what you’re looking for, if users started leaving more reviews. Other than that, I think you’re kind of stuck sifting through “Don’t sleep on this camera!” and “This old digital camera shoots like film” hype videos on YouTube.

Great camera, $5k these days is a lot though. Like big picture it's not, but these days there's so many options out there in every price range new and used that it's hard to justify dropping that much money. Happy with my Lumix set up.

I'm sure it's a great camera, but what the REAL difference between it and the FX3 or A7S line, other than AF algos? Can anyone notice the 2.3% better highlight control at midday with no ND? Camera and videomakers have entered the "bore zone".

*Bump*

Not at all! Love my FX30, a bargain to say it simple ;- )