Review of compact cameras: lower prices, higher quality

Wood is best hidden in the woods. We often forget this simple truth in the heat of preparing the reviews for the new issue of the magazine. Fascinated by the ultra-modern features of the next top-of-the-line novelty, it’s easy to lose sight of the familiar and usual surroundings. Meanwhile the whole mirror-less camera market has changed dramatically: quietly but purposefully the compact systems have broken through important price levels not only at fifteen, but at ten thousand roubles already.

No, of course the best ones still cost twice as much, and the best professional and premium models cost even more. But, firstly, these are the best representatives, and secondly – yet. And there are already budget models and devices of the last generation on the shelves with price tags of 12-15 thousand Dollars per kit with a lens. And there are several important points.

It means stabilizing and smoothing out the market, which has finally become mass-market. The situation when a technically limited camera and the shaft with mirror, prism and viewfinder, eliminated in mirrorless cameras – objectively complex and expensive system costs noticeably more than a similar SLR, was originally wrong. Now the balance is closer: the prize for compactness remains, but you can’t choose between a talentless compact and a semi-professional DSLR for the same price. Much more interesting though neither experts, nor developers, nor buyers realized it completely is that comparing mirrorless compacts with ordinary compacts has become easier. The latter are now, frankly speaking, not needed.

So, budget cameras, zooms and travel-compact still have a lot to offer to the customer. The latest generation of advanced slim compacts also makes sense, though their cost doesn’t match the quality at all. Others lose to the “system” cameras, not so much in all respects, but in the sum of pros and cons for sure.

Modern Olympus E-PM, Panasonic GF, junior Sony NEX and Nikon J are strikingly different from the first amateur mirrorless cameras. They’re great shots, easy to operate, have state-of-the-art screens and record Full HD video. “Electric” lenses bring them even closer to the pocket-sized format in the new “kit” zooms the mechanical zoom drive has replaced the motor, instead the optics have shrunk considerably in size . And most importantly, they are all drastically superior to compacts in terms of picture quality.

It’s not even a question of how picky you are about noise and detail or what format you print images in. “System” machines are better at handling even the most trivial subjects like group portraits indoors, taking pictures of children and pets. You can also argue about included zooms – perhaps the only advantage of soap cameras. The limited increase in “system” optics is compensated by more detail. Even a digital zoom is acceptable in such a comparison – the final picture quality will still be higher in many cases.

It’s interesting to look at it from another angle. After all, when it comes to necessary and sufficient features, it’s not just right to raise, but also to lower the bar. Having fallen in price, mirror-less cameras have also become a great competitor to amateur DSLRs. The level of optics and the comfort of the ergonomics of the classic systems are undoubtedly higher. But all other things being equal, why not prefer a smaller and lighter camera?

Predicting the distribution of market shares and guessing whether smartphones and system cameras will “eat up” the traditional compacts is not our specialty. And the practical conclusion is simple. When picking out a new camera, focus on the mirrorless category. The usual compacts and “small” DSLRs are a thing of the past. Now also for purely economic reasons.