Sony RX100 VII Compact Camera Review

The market for compact cameras is seeing a decline. Thus camera makers are focusing on manufacturing cameras with ever-high picture quality that can be housed in what appears to be ever-smaller packaging.

[Important Notice: The RX100, also known as the DSC-RX100 by specific dealers, has subsequently been succeeded by a total of five other, more recent cameras, the RX100 VI being the most recent of them. However, Sony still maintains all previous models in its line-up of small cameras. Even though the RX100 does not have the most current and cutting-edge technology, it is an excellent bargain for those on a limited budget.

Consumers who purchase specialized image-taking equipment expect that they will get a lot of value for their money and that the device will give them something that their smartphone cannot.

To compete with the Canon S100, Panasonic LX5, Olympus XZ-1, and maybe even specific small system cameras such as the Nikon 1 J1, Sony is moving its attention well and thoroughly towards the high end of the market with the release of the RX100.

Sony DSC-RX100M7G Build Quality

Sony has designed the RX100 to have an immaculate and streamlined appearance, and the overall body size is outstanding compared to the amount of power housed within.

Despite its diminutive size, it has sufficient weight and consistency to give it the impression of excellent quality. The metal chassis also offers the appearance and sense of tolerating the occasional bump and scratch. This is supported by the automated drop detection feature, which causes the camera to protect itself by retracting its lens if it detects an unexpected drop.

The RX100 comes with a lens that has a 3.6x optical zoom capability. When wholly expanded, the zoom seems to be much smaller than it is since it is housed within the compact body of the camera. A switch located at the very top of the camera is used to control the zoom. This has a strong and well-made feel, and the zooming action is swift and smooth.

Sony DSC-RX100M7G Performance

Since Sony has described the RX100 as a camera that would “change the game,” it is evident that the company has great expectations for it. We are ecstatic to share the news that the photographs obtained from it are rather striking.

The colors are bold and vivid without being excessively saturated with intensity. In most instances, colors are also rendered accurately, with the sky looking like they were taken from real life and skin tones looking especially lovely.

The RX100 can create imaginative photos with blurred backgrounds thanks to its bigger sensor and wide aperture lens.

Carl Zeiss manufactures the lens that comes standard with the RX100 and has a T* coating for improved light transmission. Sony is eager to highlight the superior quality of this lens. Even when shooting in bright sunshine, it has an excellent performance, with very little ghosting or flares visible in the captured images.

Sony DSC-RX100M7G Image & Video Quality

The RX100 VII has the same high level of image quality as its predecessor, the RX100 VI, although it has a sensor that reads out information more quickly. Both models utilize the 24-200mm f/2.8-4.5 zoom lens. Images may be captured in either Raw or JPG format at a resolution of 20 megapixels.

The lens has outstanding optical performance. According to Imatest, it is capable of producing crisp results at its widest f-stop from 24mm up to 200mm in focal length. When working at 24mm, the only concern is a possible decrease in resolution at the frame’s borders.

The image quality can be improved by adjusting the aperture to f/5.6 or f/8; however, even at f/2.8, the difference is not noticeable until you zoom in exceptionally closely on a photo in Photoshop or print it very big.

The image quality in low light is comparable to that of other cameras with 1-inch sensors; in fact, Sony sensors are used by competitors Canon and Panasonic in several of their competitive models, such as the G5 X Mark II and the ZS200.

The JPG output maintains a high level of information and has just a tiny amount of discernible noise up to ISO 800, and it’s not that much worse at ISO 1600. Starting at an ISO of 3200, the blurring impact of noise reduction begins to take its toll on the image’s clarity. This effect worsens as the sensitivity level increases, and the sensor can be adjusted to be as light-sensitive as ISO 12800.

You can squeeze a little more detail out of high ISO images if you shoot them in Raw format. Noise correction with post-processing software, such as Adobe Lightroom, does a superior job than the JPG engine in the camera. At ISO 3200 and ISO 6400, the grain in your photographs will be more noticeable, but the level of detail will increase. You may still anticipate rough and grainy pictures at an ISO of 12800.

The lens’ f-stop is the primary component that dictates how well one can operate in meager light without the assistance of a flash. Instead of the shorter 24-70mm zoom that was utilized by prior versions, such as the RX100 VA, Sony decided to use a more powerful 24-200mm zoom for this model. When set to its widest angle, the lens on the VA has an aperture of f/1.8, which allows it to gather more than twice as much light as the zoom lens on the VII, which has an aperture of f/2.8.

With a 24-120mm f/1.8-2.8 zoom, the Canon G5 X Mark II is a fair compromise. Still, with the latest night photography capabilities in the Google Pixel and Apple iPhones, you may discover that you prefer using them for casual low-light shots.

Sony DSC-RX100M7G Specs

• Sensor
  • NUMBER OF PIXELS (EFFECTIVE)Approx. 20.1 Megapixels
• Lens
  • LENS TYPEZEISS Vario-Sonnar T* Lens, 15 elements in 12 groups (8 aspheric elements including AA lens)
  • CLEAR IMAGE ZOOM (MOVIE)4K: Approx. 12x / HD: Approx. 16x
  • OPTICAL ZOOM8.0x
  • ANGLE OF VIEW (35MM FORMAT EQUIVALENT)84deg.-12deg.30min.(24-200mm)
  • FOCAL LENGTHf=9.0-72mm
  • DIGITAL ZOOM (STILL IMAGE)20M Approx. 32x / 10M Approx. 44x / 5.0M Approx. 64x / VGA Approx. 121x ¹
• Screen
  • SCREEN TYPE7.5cm(3.0type)(4:3) / 921,600 dots / Xtra Fine / TFT LCD
  • TOUCH PANELYes
  • MS ASSIST MAGNIFICATION5.3x, 10.7x
• Viewfinder
  • FIELD COVERAGE100%
  • MAGNIFICATIONApprox. 0.59x with 50mm lens at infinity, -1m^-1(diopter) (35mm equiv.)
  • DIOPTRE ADJUSTMENT-4.0 to +3.0m^-1
• Camera
  • CONTINUOUS SHOOTING SPEED (MAXIMUM) (WITH MAX. RECORDING PIXELS)[AUTO/Electronic Shutter] Continuous Shooting Hi: approx. 20 fps, Continuous Shooting Mid: approx. 10 fps, Continuous Shooting Low: approx. 5.0 fps, Single Burst Shooting Hi: approx. 90fps ⁴, Single Burst Shooting Mid: approx. 60fps ⁴, Single Burst Shooting Low: approx. 30fps ⁴ [Mechanical Shutter] Continuous Shooting Hi: -, Continuous Shooting Mid: approx. 10 fps, Continuous Shooting Low: approx. 3.0 fps ^5 6 7
  • OBJECT TRACKINGYes (Tracking)
  • NUMBER OF RECOGNISED SCENES[Still Image]:Superior Auto: 44 / iAuto: 33, [Movie]:44
  • FOCUS AREAWide (357 points (phase-detection AF), 425 points(contrast-detection AF)), Zone, Center, Flexible Spot (S/M/L), Expanded Flexible Spot, Tracking (Wide/Zone/Center/Flexible Spot(S/M/L)/Expanded Flexible Spot)
  • SHOOTING MODEAUTO(Intelligent Auto/Superior Auto), Program Auto, Aperture Priority, Shutter Speed Priority, Manual Exposure, MR(Memory Recall) [body 3 sets / memory card 4 sets], Movie Mode(Program Auto, Aperture Priority, Shutter Speed Priority, Manual Exposure), HFR Mode(Program Auto, Aperture Priority, Shutter Speed Priority, Manual Exposure), Panorama, Scene Selection
  • STEADYSHOT (STILL IMAGE)Optical
  • STEADYSHOT (MOVIE)Yes (Intelligent Active Mode, Optical type with electronic compensation, Anti Rolling type)
  • CREATIVE STYLEStandard, Vivid, Neutral, Clear, Deep, Light, Portrait, Landscape, Sunset, Night Scene, Autumn Leaves, Black & White, Sepia, Style Box
  • FOCUS MODESingle-shot AF, Automatic AF, Continuous AF, DMF, Manual Focus
  • WB MICRO ADJUSTMENTYes(G7 to M7,57-step)(A7 to B7,29-step)
  • ISO SENSITIVITY (MOVIE)Auto:(ISO100Level-ISO12800Level, selectable with upper / lower limit), 100/125/160/200/250/320/400/500/640/800/1000/1250/1600/2000/2500/3200/4000/5000/6400/8000/10000/12800
  • ELECTRONIC SHUTTER[Single Shooting] iAuto (4″ – 1/32000) / Program Auto(30″ – 1/32000) / Manual(30″ – 1/32000) / Aperture Priority(30″ – 1/32000) / Shutter Priority(30″ – 1/32000);, [Continuous Shooting/Single Burst Shooting] 1/8 – 1/32000
  • DRIVE MODESSingle, Continuous shooting, Single Burst Shooting, Self-timer, Self-timer(cont.), Cont.-bracketing ⁸, Single-bracketing ⁸, White balance bracketing ⁸, DRO bracketing ⁸
  • FOCUS TYPEFast Hybrid AF(phase-detection AF/contrast-detection AF)
  • SHUTTER SPEEDiAuto(4″ – 1/2000) / Program Auto(30″ – 1/2000) / Manual(Bulb, 30″ – 1/2000) / Aperture Priority(30″ – 1/2000) / Shutter Priority(30″ – 1/2000) ⁹
  • SCENE SELECTIONPortrait, Sports Action, Macro, Landscape, Sunset, Night Scene, Handheld Twilight, Night Portrait, Anti Motion Blur, Pet Mode, Gourmet, Fireworks, High Sensitivity
• Flash
  • FLASH TYPEBuilt-in, manual pop-up
  • BRACKETINGYes
  • FLASH RANGEISO Auto: Approx.0.4m to 5.9m (1.31 ft. to 19.35 ft.) (W) / Approx. 1.0m to 3.1m (3.28 ft. to 10.17 ft.) (T), ISO12800: up to Approx. 12.4m (40.68 ft.) (W) / Approx. 7.0m (22.96 ft.) (T)
• Recording
  • COLOUR SPACE (STILL)sRGB, Adobe RGB
  • PROXY RECORDINGYes(1280 x 720(Approx.9Mbps))
  • STILL IMAGE NUMBER OF RECORDED PIXELS (IMAGE SIZE)3:2mode:20M(5,472×3,648) / 10M(3,888×2,592) / 5M(2,736×1,824), 4:3mode:18M(4,864×3,648) / 10M(3,648×2,736) / 5M(2,592×1,944) / VGA, 16:9mode:17M(5,472×3,080) / 7.5M(3,648×2,056) / 4.2M(2,720×1,528), 1:1mode:13M(3,648×3,648) / 6.5M(2,544×2,544) / 3.7M(1,920×1,920) , Sweep Panorama:Wide(12,416×1,856/5,536×2,160), Standard(8,192×1,856/3,872×2,160)
  • RECORDING FORMAT[Still Image]:JPEG(DCF Ver.2.0,Exif Ver.2.31,MPF Baseline compliant), RAW(Sony ARW 2.3 format), [Movie]:XAVC S, AVCHD format Ver.2.0 compatible
  • COMPATIBLE RECORDING MEDIA[XAVC S(100Mbps)] SDXC/SDHC Memory Card (UHS-I U3 or higher); [XAVC S(60Mbps/50Mbps)] SDXC/SDHC Memory Card (Class 10 or higher); [AVCHD/Still image] Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick PRO Duo, Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo, Memory Stick Micro ¹², Memory Stick Micro(Mark2) ¹², SDXC/SDHC/SD Memory Card (Class 4 or higher), micro SDXC/SDHC/SD Memory Card (Class 4 or higher) ¹²
  • HFRRecording: NTSC/PAL Selector: [PAL] mode XAVC S HD:50p 50M(1,920×1,080/250fps), 50p 50M(1,920×1,080/500fps), 50p 50M(1,920×1,080/1000fps) / 25p 50M(1,920×1,080/250fps), 25p 50M(1,920×1,080/500fps), 25p 50M(1,920×1,080/1000fps), NTSC/PAL Selector: [NTSC] mode XAVC S HD:60p 50M(1,920×1,080/240fps), 60p 50M(1,920×1,080/480fps), 60p 50M(1,920×1,080/960fps) / 30p 50M(1,920×1,080/240fps), 30p 50M(1,920×1,080/480fps), 30p 50M(1,920×1,080/960fps) / 24p 50M(1,920×1,080/240fps), 24p 50M(1,920×1,080/480fps), 24p 50M(1,920×1,080/960fps) Sensor Readout Number of effective pixels: Quality Priority:240fps/250fps(1,824×1,026),480fps/500fps(1,824×616),960fps/1000fps(1,244×420)/Shoot Time Priority:240fps/250fps(1,824×616),480fps/500fps(1,292×436),960fps/1000fps(912×308)
• Interface
  • NFCNFC forum Type 3 Tag compatible, One-touch remote, One-touch sharing
  • WI-FIYes(IEEE802.11b/g/n(2.4GHz band))
• Power
  • POWER SOURCEDC3.6V(supplied battery) / DC5.0V(supplied AC Adaptor)
  • BATTERY LIFE(STILL IMAGES)(CIPA) Monitor:Approx. 260 / Approx. 130min., Monitor (When Auto Monitor off is set to 2sec):Approx. 310 / Approx. 155min., ViewFinder:Approx. 240 / Approx. 120min. ¹⁴
  • BATTERY LIFE(MOVIES ACTUAL SHOOTING)(CIPA) Monitor:Approx. 40min., ViewFinder:Approx. 40min. ^15 16 17
  • USB CHARGE/USB POWER SUPPLYYes (Shooting, Playback)
• Others
  • PLAYBACK FUNCTIONSBRAVIA Sync(Control for HDMI), 9/25-frame index view, Auto Orientation, Slide Show, Forward/Rewind (Movie), Delete, Protect, Motion Shot Video, Beauty Effect, Photo Capture, Rating, Automatic Image Rotation
  • SHOOTING FUNCTIONSFace Detection, Face Registration, Still Image Recording (during movie recording), Smile shutter, Grid Line, Quick Navi, Digital Level Gauge (pitch and roll), WB Bracket, DRO Bracketing, MF Assist, Peaking (Display: Off/On) (Level: High/Mid/Low) (Color: Red/Yellow/Blue/White), Zebra, Marker Display, Audio Rec Level, Audio Level Display, Step Zoom / Quick Zoom, Self-portrait timer, TC/UB, Copyright Info, ISO Auto Minimum Shutter Speed, PC Remote Control, Gamma Disp. Assist, [Mov]AF Tracking Sensitivity, [Mov]AF Drive Speed, Set File Name, Touch Shutter/Touch Focus/Touch Tracking, TouchPad, My Menu, My Dial
  • TRILUMINOS COLORYes ¹⁸
• Size & Weight
  • DIMENSIONS (W X H X D) (APPROX.)101.6 x 58.1 x 42.8 mm(4 in. x 2 3/8 in. x 1 11/16 in.)

Sony DSC-RX100M7G Verdict

Sony has built an excellent camera that should also appeal to anyone seeking to trade up a mobile phone or affordable compact camera. This camera is designed for people searching for a backup camera for when the DSLR is too cumbersome or inconvenient, and Sony has produced it.