Sony Intros RX10 IV with Faster Autofocus, 24 FPS Burst Shooting & 24-600mm F/2.4-F/4 Zoom Lens

Sony took the wraps off the RX10 IV today, a digital camera with a massive built-in superzoom lens and a frame rate twice as fast as even some of the speediest professional DSLRs. The 20.1MP Sony RX10 IV, which will go on sale in October 2017 for $1,700, boasts a 24-600mm F2.4-F4 zoom lens and can shoot at 24 frames per second continuously with full autofocus/autoexposure tracking.

The RX10 IV (model DSC-RX10M4) also has what Sony is calling the “world’s fastest” autofocus speed and can shoot 4K video with full pixel readout without pixel binning. For a digital camera that can fit in the palm of your hand, those specs are impressive. If it delivers half of what Sony is promising, we could see it attracting sports and wildlife photographers looking for an all-in-one camera solution.

The Sony RX10 IV is the follow-up to the RX10 III, which we reviewed last year. One of the gripes about the RX10 III and previous cameras in this line is that their contrast detection-based autofocus could be woefully slow for capturing action. That should change with the RX10 III’s new hybrid AF system, which combines Phase Detection and Contrast Detection AF.

We got to see the new Sony RX10 IV first hand at a press conference in New York City this morning and have included some images of the camera with this story. And while, yes, the RX10 IV is relatively compact considering what’s packed inside, when the long zoom is fully extended, it does add some significant size, as you can see from the images here.

Later this evening, we’ll have some hands-on shooting time with the RX10 IV and plan to include some of our sample shots in a follow-up story, so stay tuned. Meanwhile, here’s a rundown of the key specs of the new Sony RX10 IV superzoom camera:

• 1.0-type 20.1MP Exmor RS CMOS stacked image sensor with DRAM chip along with a BIONZ X image processor and front-end LSI

• 24-600mm F2.4-F4 Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* lens with built-in Optical SteadyShot image stabilization designed to help to reduce camera shake and image blur

• A minimum focusing distance of 72 cm (2.36 ft) and 0.49x maximum magnification at a fully extended 600mm, allows for detailed tele-macro images

• Up to 24 fps continuous shooting with full AF/AE tracking

• Fast Hybrid AF system combining 315 phase-detection AF points covering approximately 65% of the sensor and contrast-detection AF to produce the "world’s fastest" AF acquisition time of 0.03 seconds

• High-density Tracking AF technology concentrates AF points around a subject to improve tracking and focus accuracy to help capture unpredictable subjects such as fast-moving athletes and birds in flight. (This AF tech had only been previously available in a select few of Sony’s Alpha line of interchangeable lens cameras).

• 4K-movie recording with full pixel readout without pixel binning

3-inch, 1.44M dot, tiltable rear LCD screen with touch Focus and touch Pad function

• Dust and moisture resistant body

• Wi-F, NFC and Bluetooth compatible

Ships in October for $1,700 US and $2,200 CA

You can find more info on the new Sony Cyber-shot RX10 IV here.

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