When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. |
There was quite a bit of Ricoh-related news, so instead of one article for each would annoy Craig (though that sounds like a good reason to split it up, but I digress), I decided to lump it all together.
But First, The Ricoh GR IV
This camera was announced via Development Announcement on May 22nd and was officially released with shipping starting on September 16th. It’s the latest in the line of street shooting, small and excellent APS-C-sized prime lens street shooting cameras that Ricoh has developed. This line is incredibly successful and is less expensive than the other cameras of its kind, the Fujifilm X100 series.
Key Features
- 25.7MP APS-C BSI CMOS Sensor
- New 28mm f/2.8 Lens (Full-Frame Equiv.)
- Improved AF and Low-Light Focusing
- 5-Axis 6-Stop Shake Reduction System
- 3.0″ 1.04m-Dot Touchscreen LCD
- 53GB Built-In Memory & microSD Card Slot
- Full HD 1080/60p Video Recording
- Snap Distance Priority & Focus Limiter
- 35mm and 50mm Focal Length Crop Modes
- GR WORLD App for Updates and Control
Ricoh GR IV
$1496.95
Ricoh Meets Realme
Ricoh and Chinese Smartphone manufacturer Realme have formed a partnership, and Realme is expecting to put Ricoh’s image science in its upcoming smartphones.
And before the ink was dry on that press release, Realme announced the GT 8 Pro. Things move fast these days. The camera model will include mode presets ranging from color positive film, black and white film, and high contrast black and white (I’d like to try this one). These more or less mimic the presets found in Rich’s GR series cameras. The app also has Ricoh’s custom watermarks that can be applied to the images; these watermarks are customizable for your particular logo and branding.
They also decided to have the camera app simulate the 28mm from its equivalent 22mm field of view. As well, there’s a 40mm crop, which again, is cropped from the same 22mm 50MP main sensor. These, of course, mimic the focal lengths of the GR series cameras.
Yes, it’s simply a crop, but if you want to get down to the same field of view quickly, it’s much easier than fiddling with a slider when you are taking a picture. The app also features Ricoh’s snap focus mode, which prefocuses the camera to a specific distance to allow for less lag from pressing the shutter to the camera taking the picture.
It has a novel feature that you can unscrew a few screws and swap out the rear camera housing if you want a round versus a square rear housing. This could, in theory, allow for other accessories to be attached, such as filter threads, macro attachment, etc.
I’m not going to get into the phone that much, because we don’t talk phones, but I will say from the pure specifications part, for a $560 phone, it’s incredibly well specced.
Ricoh GR IV Monochrome
Okay, I’d get this camera. Instead of a Color Bayer filter, Ricoh has done away with that, ala Leica Monochrom. It’s basically the same otherwise as the regular Ricoh GR IV, but the black and white filters will look incredible on this camera. I’m really looking forward to seeing some samples from the production version.
This camera is currently in development and is expected to be released in the spring of 2026.
Ricoh GR IV HDF
This will be similar to the effects on the GR III HDF camera, except it will be based on the Ricoh GR IV instead.
An HDF is a high diffusion filter that essentially softens the incoming light. The filter reduces the overall contrast and blurs whites in bright areas. This gives the image a soft appearance, or I guess, for lack of a better word, more dreamy.
This can be obviously done in post-processing, but I presume the idea here is to be a purist and do it all in the camera.
It seems that if it follows the footsteps of the GR III HDF, the filter can move in and out of the optical path, depending on whether you want the HDF effect. Unlike the Monocrhome version, you can still use this camera as a fully functional, regular color Ricoh GR IV.
Ricoh GR IV Monochrome and HDF Specifications
| Lens | Lens Construction | 7 elements in 5 groups (3 aspherical lens elements) |
|---|---|---|
| Focal Length, Aperture | 18.3mm (Approx. 28mm in 35mm equivalent focal length), F2.8～F16 | |
| Image Capture Unit | Image Sensor | CMOS. Size: 23.3 x 15.5 (mm) GR IV Monochrome: Monochrome GR IV HDF: Primary Color Filter |
| Effective Pixels | Approx. 25.74 megapixels | |
| Sensitivity (Standard output) | ISO160 to ISO 409600: Auto (ISO Auto Lower/Upper Limit and Minimum Shutter Speed can be set), Manual | |
| Image Stabilization | Sensor-shift shake reduction “SR” (5-axis) | |
| AA Filter Simulator | Moiré reduction using SR unit (Off, Low, High) | |
| Dust Removal | Image sensor cleaning using ultrasonic vibrations “DR II” | |
| File Formats | Still Image | File Format: RAW (DNG) 14bit, JPEG (Exif 2.3), DCF2.0 compliant Color Space: sRGB、AdobeRGB Recorded Pixels:【3:2】L(26M:6192×4128), M(16M:4944×3296), S(8.2M:3504×2336), XS(2.5M:1920×1280)【4:3】L(23M:5504×4128), M(15M:4400×3296), S(7.3M:3120×2336), XS(2.8M:1920×1440)【1:1】L(17M:4128×4128), M(11M:3296×3296), S(5.5M:2336×2336), XS(1.6M:1280×1280)【16:9】L(22M:6192×3480), M(14M:4944×2784), S(6.9M:3504×1968), XS(2.1M:1920×1080) |
| Movie | File Format: MPEG4 AVC/H.264 (MOV) Recorded Pixels: Full HD (1920×1080, 60p/30p/24p), Sound: Built-in stereo microphone Recording Time: Up to 25 minutes or 4GB; automatically stops recording if the internal temperature of the camera becomes high. | |
| Storage Medium | Internal Memory (Approx. 53GB), microSD/microSDHC/microSDXC Memory Card (Conforms to UHS-I standards) | |
| Focus | Type | Hybrid AF (Image plane phase-matching and Contrast detection) |
| Focus Mode | Auto-area AF, Zone Select AF, Select AF, Pinpoint AF, Tracking AF, Continuous AF, MF, Snap(0.3m,1m, 1.5m, 2m, 2.5m, 3.5m, 5m,∞), ∞ | |
| Focus Limiter | Near Side, Far Side, OFF | |
| Full Press Snap | Performs shooting by focusing at the Snap distance with a single press of the Shutter Release Button or a touch of the LCD Monitor | |
| Face/Eye Detection | ON, Use only in Auto-area, OFF | |
| Focus Range (From lens face) | Normal: Approx. 0.1m～∞, Macro Mode: Approx. 0.06m～0.15m | |
| Exposure | Exposure Mode | Program AE, Aperture Priority AE, Shutter Priority AE, Snap Distance Priority AE, Manual Exposure |
| Metering Mode | Multi-segment, Center-weighted, Spot, Highlight-weighted | |
| Shutter Speed | 1/4000 sec. – 30 sec. (Limit by aperture setting F2.8: 1/2500 sec, F5.6 or greater: 1/4000 sec.) Timed Exposure (10sec. – 20min.), Bulb, Time | |
| EV Compensation | Still Image: ±5EV, 1/3EV steps, Movie: ±2EV, 1/3EV steps | |
| Drive Mode | Drive | Single Frame Shooting, Continuous Shooting, Bracketing, Multi-exposure, Interval Shooting, Interval Composite |
| Self-timer | 10 sec., 2 sec., OFF | |
| Shooting Functions | Crop | OFF, 35mm, 50mm |
| Image Control | Standard, Solid, Soft, Hi-Contrast, Grainy, HDR Tone, Custom1, Custom2, Custom3 Adjust parameters: High/Low Key Adjustment, Contrast, Contrast (Highlight), Contrast (Shadow), Sharpness, Shading, Clarity, Toning, Grain Effect, HDR Tone Level (Adjust parameter varies depending on the selected image setting) | |
| Dynamic Range Correction | Highlight Correction, Shadow Correction | |
| Noise Reduction | Slow Shutter Speed Noise Reduction, High-ISO Noise Reduction | |
| Horizon Correction | SR On: correction up to 1 degrees, SR Off: correction up to 1.5 degrees | |
| Display | Display magnification (4x, 16x), Grid display (4×4 Grid, 3×3 Grid), Histogram, Bright area warning, Electronic Level | |
| HDF (High Light Diffusion Filter) | On, Off (only for HDF Version) | |
| Playback Functions | Playback View | Single frame, Multi-image (20, 48 frames), Display magnification (up to 16x, 100% view and Quick Zoom view available), Histogram (Y histogram), Grid display (3×3 Grid, 4×4 Grid), Bright area warning, Auto Image Rotation, Folder display, Calendar Filmstrip Display |
| Base Parameter Adjustment | Parameter: Brightness, Toning, Contrast, Sharpness | |
| RAW Development | RAW file select: Select Single Image, Select Multiple Images, Select a folder, Select a shooting date RAW Development Parameter: Aspect Ratio, JPEG Recorded Pixels, Color Space, Image Control, Peripheral Illumination Correction, Sensitivity, High-ISO Noise Reduction, Shadow Correction | |
| Edit | Delete, Protect, Image Rotation, Image Copy, File Transfer, Resize, Cropping (Aspect ratio and Slant adjustment available), Levels Adjustment, Movie Edit (Cut), Movie Edit (Divide), Save Movie Frame as Image | |
| LCD Monitor | Type | 3.0 inch TFT color LCD (aspect ratio 3:2)、Approx. 1037K dots, Wide viewing angle, Air-gapless tempered glass |
| Touch Screen | Capacitive sensing method | |
| Adjustments | Brightness, Saturation, Blue/Amber, Green/Magenta, Outdoor View Setting: Auto, Manual(±2 Steps) | |
| Wireless LAN | Standards | 2.4GHz : IEEE802.11 b/g/n/ax 5.2GHz : IEEE802.11 a/n/ac/ax (Not supported in some regions) 5.8GHz : IEEE802.11 a/n/ac/ax (Not supported in some regions) |
| Operating frequency band range | 2.4GHz : 2400MHz – 2483.5MHz 5.2GHz : 5150MHz – 5250MHz (Not supported in some regions) 5.8GHz : 5725MHz – 5850MHz (Not supported in some regions) | |
| Communication bandwidth | 2.4GHz : 20MHz 5.2GHz : 20/40/80MHz 5.8GHz : 20/40/80MHz | |
| Security | Authentication: WPA2™, WPA3™ / Encryption: AES | |
| Interfaces | USB Type-C | Battery Recharge/Power Supply (Optional AC Adapter required), Data Transfer: MTP, Video output: DisplayPort over USB-C (DisplayPort Alternative Mode) |
| Hotshoe | Compatible with dedicated flash Flash Mode: Flash On, Flash On+Red-eye, Slow-speed Sync, Slow Sync+Red-eye Flash Output: AUTO, 1/1, 1/4 | |
| Lens adapter pin | Available | |
| Power Supply | Battery Type | Dedicated rechargeable battery |
| AC Adapter | AC adapter compatible with USB Power Delivery, AC adapter (D-AC166; optional) * The camera is compatible with USB Power Delivery, but is not certified with the USB Implementers Forum logo. | |
| Battery Life | To be finalized | |
| Dimensions and Weight | Dimensions | Approx.. 109.4(W)×61.1(H)×32.7(D)mm (excluding protrusions) Lens part：31.3(D)mm Body part：24.5(D)mm |
| Weight | To be finalized | |
| Included Accessories | Dedicated rechargeable battery, USB Cable, Handstrap | |
Note: The designs and specifications are identical to those first announced publicly about the camera’s development, and are subject to change without notice.
Press Releases
Below for your reading pleasure are the press releases associated from Realme and Ricoh.
RealMe Partnership
Realme and RICOH IMAGING to Announce Official Strategic Partnership on Smartphone Imaging, Teasing the Industry’s Deepest Imaging Collaboration in Street Photography
- realme and RICOH Imaging to announce long-term strategic partnership in smartphone imaging.
- Four years in the making, this imaging collaboration will debut with the GT 8 Pro series and boasts deep customization to enhance every shutter press for users and co-promote street photography culture.
Shenzhen, CHINA – October 10, 2025 – realme, the world’s fastest-growing smartphone brand, today announced a strategic partnership with RICOH IMAGING COMPANY LTD., set to officially launch on October 14 in Beijing, China.
After four years of preparation, this collaboration is positioned as one of the industry’s most profound imaging partnerships. To celebrate, the two companies released the “4 Years in One Snap” video, highlighting four years of co-engineering and teasing features of their first co-created product, designed specifically for the realme GT 8 Pro.
A Joint Journey Starting from Mobile User Pain Points
In the video, realme Vice President and CMO Chase Xu discussed with Kazunobu Saiki, General Manager of Camera Business Division at RICOH IMAGING COMPANY LTD., the elements that brought two brands together, which grounded on a shared understanding of user demands. realme saw that young people struggled with two main pain points in mobile photography: increasingly similar hardware and over-processed algorithms that stripped photos of authenticity. “People are getting tired of the same ‘perfect style’ photos. More and more, everyone wants to show their own style, instead of copying the same look.” Chase Xu explained.
The RICOH GR series has been known as a “street photography hero” because of its sharp quality, portability, and quick response. “That’s exactly what we value,” Xu said. Saiki echoed this: “RICOH Imaging and realme share a base of young, creative users. Our collaboration is not only about innovation in products, but also about culture to inspire a new generation to enjoy street photography and discover the beauty of everyday life.”
This shared spirit is why the two brands came together: to give young people tools that allow for authentic capture and personal expression, carrying the tradition of conventional camera into mobile photography.
The GT 8 Pro Brings GR Heritage to Young People’s Pocket
Through extensive customizations between realme and RICOH GR’s R&D teams, the GT 8 Pro offers an unprecedented imaging experience, achieving groundbreaking innovations in optical capabilities, color algorithms, imaging tones, and a tailor-made UI design that mimics the feel of a RICOH GR camera.
This device seamlessly blends nearly 30 years of RICOH GR heritage, including its iconic film-like aesthetic and five classic image tones, with realme’s strengths in mobile imaging and profound insights into the preferences of current generations, creating a unique synergy that advances street photography culture through joint development and co-engineering. More than just a competition of specifications or uniform filters, it infuses mood and emotional warmth into every photo, encouraging young users to document their daily lives with authenticity.
“Snap By No Rules”
This partnership isn’t just about a product, it’s about extending street photography culture into the mobile era. 4 Years in One Snap marks a milestone, encouraging young people to freely record and express their lives. “It’s a fresh, young way to take photos. You don’t wait or try to make the perfect shot but just press the button and capture the moment — Snap by No Rules,” said Xu.
“Through this collaboration, we hope that even those who don’t usually use dedicated camera would experience snapshot photography with the GT 8 Pro,” Saiki noted.
The journey now heads toward October 14, when realme and Ricoh GR’s partnership will make its official debut, ushering in a new era of mobile street photography.
About realme
realme is a global consumer technology company disrupting the smartphone market by making cutting-edge technologies more accessible. It provides a range of smartphones and lifestyle technology devices with premium specs, quality, and trend-setting designs to young consumers. Established by Sky Li in 2018, realme has become one of the top 5 smartphone players in 30 markets globally in just three years, and realme has entered multiple markets worldwide, including China and Southeast Asia, South Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa, and has a global user base of over 300 million. 2024 is the year of rebranding for realme with its new slogan, “Make it real.” Under the new brand spirit, realme will focus more on young users than before and bring real, clear, and tangible benefits to their lives. For more information, please visit www.realme.com.
Ricoh GV IV Monochrome Press Release
TOKYO, October 21, 2025 — RICOH IMAGING COMPANY, LTD. is pleased to announce the development of the RICOH GR IV Monochrome. It is the first model in the high-end GR compact digital camera series designed specifically for black and white photography.
The RICOH GR IV Monochrome, which is currently in development, is based on the latest model, the RICOH GR IV, which was released in September 2025. It is equipped with a new, dedicated monochrome image sensor and Image Control options specialized for black and white photography to deliver the expressiveness and depth unique to monochromatic images.
It has been nearly 30 years since the RICOH GR1 film camera, the first in the GR series, was released in 1996, and exactly 20 years on October 21 since the GR DIGITAL was launched in 2005.
Over the history of this series, our commitment to the essential camera values of high image quality, quick response and portability has always remained the same. Hinging on these basic concepts, the GR series has continued to evolve to meet the needs of the times. We hope you are excited about the RICOH GR IV Monochrome and this new foray into black and white territory.
Ricoh GR IV HDF Press Release
TOKYO, October 21, 2025 — RICOH IMAGING COMPANY, LTD. is pleased to announce the development of the RICOH GR IV HDF. This new model, based on the high-end RICOH GR IV compact digital camera, is equipped with the company’s proprietary HDF (Highlight Diffusion Filter).
The RICOH GR IV HDF, which is currently in development, is based on the latest GR series model, the RICOH GR IV. In addition to the existing sharp depiction performance, we have added our proprietary HDF (Highlight Diffusion Filter) which diffuses highlights and delivers soft photographic effects with the touch of a single button as a built-in feature. The conventional sharp expressiveness of the GR series and soft effects when the new HDF is activated provide an even greater range of snapshots that match the subject and the photographer’s intentions.
It has been nearly 30 years since the RICOH GR1 film camera, the first in the GR series, was released in 1996, and exactly 20 years on October 21 since the GR DIGITAL was launched in 2005.
Over the history of this series, our commitment to the essential camera values of high image quality, quick response and portability has always remained the same.
Hinging on these basic concepts, the GR series has continued to evolve to meet the needs of the times. Launching in 2024, the RICOH GR III HDF and RICOH GR IIIx HDF were the first models to include HDF. This new feature added the ability to capture emotional photos to the existing sharp expressiveness, making them popular among many users since their release. We hope you are excited about the versatile expressive possibilities that the RICOH GR IV HDF has in store.
0 comments