Ricoh CX5 February 2011

The Ricoh CX5 has the same sensor and optics that graced its predecessor, the Ricoh CX4, on which we recently published our full lab-based test results.

There's the same back-illuminated 10Mp CMOS sensor and the same 10.7x optical zoom range. The zoom range begins at 28mm and extends to 300mm, however the 'super resolution' setting will allow you to extend the zoom to 600mm on the CX5, although there will be some loss in picture quality.

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Preset focal lengths

The Ricoh CX5 retains the preset zoom settings that was introduced on the CX4. This allows users to jump straight to any of the following preset focal lengths: 28mm, 25mm, 50mm, 105mm, 200mm and 300mm.

Ricoh claims that the CX5 has a faster auto-focus than the CX4, and there are also a couple of extra scene modes, including cooking, fireworks and continuous golf swing. Beyond these tweaks most of the CX5 and CX4 features are the same, but there has only been around six months between the products launching.

High resolution LCD

The Ricoh CX5 has a 920k dot resolution display, which is high for a camera of this class. It's quite reflective in bright daylight, however, and there isn't a viewfinder.

The CX5 can record 720p HD video and has an HDMI port for video playback on an HD TV - although the cable will need to be bought separately.

For lab-based reviews of hundreds of compact cameras, read our digital camera report

Macro mode

The CX5's macro mode produced some pleasing macro shots in our hands-on test, with some good depth of field. You can get as close as 1cm to the subject when using the macro setting.

The camera lacks manual control of the aperture and shutter speed, but there's an easy to access exposure compensation setting, and you can change the white balance so the colours are more accurate when photographing under different light sources. The ISO can be set to a maximum sensitivity of 3,200.

Like its predecessors, the CX5 is a fast camera that's able to grab up to 5fps, according to Ricoh. In our lab tests, we found that the CX4 was actually a little quicker than Ricoh stated it would be.

Ricoh CX5 sample images

We'll be testing the Ricoh CX5 in our labs over the coming months, but if you want to know what to expect from the camera, then the full Ricoh CX4 review should give you a reasonably good idea.

Related content:

• Ricoh CX4 review - members only
• Ricoh CX4 first look
• Ricoh CX2 first look