Image from DPreview showing the absent artifacts on the new 14 Bit RAW file (on the right)

DPreview is the first site having access to Sony’s new 14 Bit uncompressed RAW files. They tested it and those are the benefits they noticed:

1) No Artifacts on high contrast edges: “no longer introduce errors and artefacts around high-contrast edges.”
2) Very small Dynamic range improvement: “There’s possibly a tiny improvement if you try to brighten very deep shadows but the difference is so subtle that we don’t consider it to be photographically significant. But, even without this, the camera’s Raw files are more flexible than they were before.”

The files are twice as big as the previous compressed RAW files. And also very interesting: Sony’s new 14 BIT upgrade offers “uncompressed RAW files” and not “losslessly-compressed Raw”. The reasons are limitations of working with the cameras’ existing processors. But Sony said they will investigate the possibility to add “lossless compression system if there’s sufficient user demand.”

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A7rII store list:
In USA: at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, SonyStore US, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
In Europe at Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Wex UK and ParkCameras.
In Asia at Digitalrev, CameraPro.

The A7sII preorder list:
In USA at Amazon, BHphoto, FocusCamera, Adorama.
In Europe at WexUK.
In Asia soon at Digitalrev.

TheCameraStoreTV team posted their Sony A7R II Hands-On Field Test Part 1 With Kyle Marquardt. And they compared it against the Canon 5DSr and they say the A7rII simply blows the Canon out of the water! With one exception: The Canon still beats the A7rII for sports photography because of the much more accurate autofocusing on moving objects. Something Sony has to improve on the future A9 :)

More A7rII tests:
A7rII Dynamic Range Tests at Luminous Landscape with a video from Michael Tapas who defines the A7rIi as a “very very very game changing camera“!
A7r II and Voigtlander lenses (Mirrorlessons).

A7rII preorder list:
In USA: at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, SonyStore US, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
In Europe at Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Wex UK and ParkCameras.
In Asia at Digitalrev, CameraPro.

A7rII case:
Gariz leather case in [shoplink 39113 ebay]Black (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39108 ebay]Camel (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39110 ebay]Orange (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39111 ebay]Brown (Click here)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 39112 ebay]Red (Click here)[/shoplink]. Also available on Amazon US (Click here).
Gariz Alcantara case in [shoplink 39094 ebay]Black (Click here)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 39095 ebay]Red (Click here)[/shoplink]. Also available on Amazon US (Click here).
Lim’s case in [shoplink 39107 ebay]Black (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39102 ebay]Brown (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39103 ebay]Red (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39104 ebay]Yellow (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39105 ebay]Navy Blue (Click here)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 39106 ebay]Khaki (Click here)[/shoplink]. Also available on Amazon US (Click here).

Image courtesy: Photozone.

According to plenty of reviewers the Zeiss FE 24-70mm lens seems to not be worth of the Zeiss badge. The latest harsh critic is coming via Ken Rockwell whom compared the A6000 vs A7rII and Canon 5Dsr image quality performance. And the real weak spot in his comparison seems to be the Zeiss FE 24-70mm lens:

The reason the Sony A6000 & 16-50mm OSS look about the same as the Sony A7R II and Zeiss FE 24-70mm f/4 OSS is because the Zeiss FE 24-70mm f/4 OSS is pretty soft in the corners, so the better performance of the 16-50mm OSS renders the $598 combination about the same as the $4,300 Sony combo. Ouch, sometimes the truth hurts — sorry Sony.

Lately also Matt Granger shared his very negative opinion about the lens. More lens reviews with the same kind of conclusion can be read at Photozone. and SLRgrear too.

I guess we really need a new 24-70mm f/2.8 FE zoom soon. And please Sony…it should be really good (a Zeiss badge alone doesn’t do it) and it should be NOT more expensive than the [shoplink 40693 ebay]Nikon 24-70mm[/shoplink] and [shoplink 40694 ebay]Canon 24-70mm[/shoplink] lenses!

Reminder: Maybe that “SEL2470 GM” lens registered lately by Sony in Russia will finally be the one 24-70mm lens we were waiting for?

Click the play button on the video on top to hear Kai’s opinion on the new RX10m2.

Mark Galer tested the RX10m2 and writes:

For photographers who are looking for one camera that will do everything this could well be the one. My only reservation about recommending this camera to anyone would be for those photographers who take pleasure in collecting lenses. As one photographer put it “we date our cameras but marry our lenses”. Wise investment in good glass is never a waste of money and The RX10 II has some seriously good glass attached to it. It is only the permanent ‘attachment’ of the T* glass that one must consider before investing in the RX10 II. I would highly recommend this camera after these considerations have taken place.

Photographyblog also reviewed the camera and writes:

Ultimately, the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 II is a great camera that’ll satisfy photographers of all abilities. It’s also a worthy successor to the original model and offers a much more accomplished shooting experience than typical small-sensor bridge cameras. Our only major gripe is the price hike over the original RX10, which is both significant and tough to justify next to the Panasonic FZ1000, its Leica V-Lux (Typ 114) sister camera, and the Canon PowerShot G3 X, which all pack a 1-inch sensor and more optical zoom for much less money.

New RX cameras store links:
In USA:
RX10m2 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
RX100m4 at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
In Europe at:
RX100m4 at DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
RX10m2 at DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
In Asia at:
RX10m2 at Digitalrev, CameraPro.
RX100m4 at Digitalrev, CameraPro.

Matt Granger shared his impressions on the new A7rII he used on his Bhutan trip. There are also a wish list for the future A7rIII or A9…just watch the video to hear them all!

On the video above Kai compares the Sony A7rII vs the Canon 5DSr. And for him the winner is the A7rII because “Sony is showing the way in terms of new technology” and it’s the “most exciting camera“.

A7rII preorder list:
In USA: at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, SonyStore US, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
In Europe at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
In Asia at Digitalrev, CameraPro.

A7rII case:
Gariz leather case in [shoplink 39113 ebay]Black (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39108 ebay]Camel (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39110 ebay]Orange (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39111 ebay]Brown (Click here)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 39112 ebay]Red (Click here)[/shoplink]. Also available on Amazon US (Click here).
Gariz Alcantara case in [shoplink 39094 ebay]Black (Click here)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 39095 ebay]Red (Click here)[/shoplink]. Also available on Amazon US (Click here).
Lim’s case in [shoplink 39107 ebay]Black (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39102 ebay]Brown (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39103 ebay]Red (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39104 ebay]Yellow (Click here)[/shoplink], [shoplink 39105 ebay]Navy Blue (Click here)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 39106 ebay]Khaki (Click here)[/shoplink]. Also available on Amazon US (Click here).

[shoplink 38429 ebay][/shoplink]

The developer team of the new [shoplink 38429 ebay]Commlite Nikon G to Sony E-mount autofocus adapter[/shoplink] sent me those two new test videos.

They are still improving the performance and fixing the noise issue. The final version should be ready by end of this year and go on sale on [shoplink 38429 ebay]eBay (like their other adapters)[/shoplink]. Price is yet not clear but it should be about the same as their [shoplink 38430 ebay]Canon EF lenses on Sony E-mount autofocus adapter (Click here)[/shoplink].

The A7rII will soon get a firmware update with 14BIT uncompressed RAW and maybe some other additional feature. So most reviewers here below will have to rewrite some piece of their review :)
Anyway, here are the latest A7rII tests:

A7R II and 90mm macro underwater piece (Imaging Resource).
Sony A7RII First Look By Mason Marsh (StuckinCustoms).
Sony a7RII Canon EF Smart Adapter Tests (Brian Smith).
Canon EOS 5DS R Versus Sony Alpha A7R II Comparison (ePhotozine).
α7RII and legacy wide angle lenses (The.me).
Sony A7R II: Other Areas That Need Attention via Firmware Update (Diglloyd).
Sony Alpha A7R II review (Techradar).
Sony a7S II vs a7R II vs a7 II (Digitalrev).
Using the New Sony a7R II at 150 Miles Per Hour (Alphauniverse).
Sony A7R II: la función de vídeo a examen (Quesabesde).

A7rII store links:
In USA: at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, SonyStore US, FocusCamera, Uniquephoto.
In Europe at Sony DE, UK, FR, IT, ES, NL, BE, CH, AT, SE, FI, NO, PT. Wex UK.
In Asia at Digitalrev, CameraPro.