As higher-end priced DLSR cameras with non-interchangeable lenses go, Sony’s RX10 II is a lot like Vincent Vega’s top-shelf choice of heroin in PULP FICTION: one shot, and you will know where that extra money went.
Oh, yes. One tour of duty with this fascinatingly versatile consumer-tailored beauty capturing 1,000fps video or 1/32,000-second stills with professional-standard extras ranging beyond even the 4K video resolution, Carl Zeiss lens with perpetual f/2.8 aperture no matter the zoom range, heartbeat-quick autofocus and super-sized high-resolution electronic viewfinder, and you’ll feel every worthwhile cent. Even the comparably more affordably priced Sony RX100 IV’s evenly matched-up features won’t offer much of a temptation.
Point-blank, there are professionals out there who would sacrifice pinky fingers to Beelzebub to harness a 20.1MP sensor’s massive memory and never give buffering image data a second thought again, even if video images lose some luster in High Frame Rate mode. The 4K video delivered without a single rolling shutter hitch of note at 25fps is simply perfect, especially HFR captures played back in immaculate 50fps slow-motion. Even the still-image capture defies most cameras’ wildest dreams of speeds, as quick as 1/32000 of a second.
The pairing of these outstanding features with the RX10 II’s wide ISO range and large sensor defies pretty much any environmental noise, blur, lens-flare or other incidental quick that could ruin your video or still. Reviewers have so far aimed the RX10 II almost directly into a back-lighting sun and still come away with little more than minor flare. This is a camera made to take perfect photos at the command of imperfect photographers, time after time.
