Ricoh CX3

Critics admit to a sense of déjà-vu when looking at the Ricoh CX3 -- this camera marks the third time since mid-2009 that the company has refreshed its CX line. The CX3 comes in the same silver, black and champagne pink color schemes, and shares the same 3-inch LCD screen, as the CX2. However, there are some notable improvements beneath the casing. Ricoh has added a 10.7x optical zoom and a new 10-megapixel, back-illuminated sensor; the CX3 also takes HD video. The Ricoh CX1 pioneered high dynamic range technology for producing exceptional low-light shots, and reviewers confirm that this remains one of the CX series' strengths, even if the CX3 doesn't improve on it dramatically. Overall image quality is excellent, even in 5 frames per second (fps) burst mode, and noise reduction features work well too. But reviewers lament that, especially considering the price, the Ricoh CX3 lacks advanced features for photography enthusiasts, such as manual controls or the ability to save images as RAW files.

Camera experts at PhotographyBlog.com offer the most in-depth review of the Ricoh CX3, while there are also good, though less technical, evaluations of the camera provided at Britain's TrustedReviews.com and CNET (Australia).