Personal Review on Ricoh Wg-4 Gps

So I decided to buy a new digital camera that could help me (of course) capture good pictures especially when I travel. I went to a camera store and the salesman patiently listened to my concerns about cameras. I told him about my bad experiences before with other digital cameras for him to clearly understand the type of camera I really need. So after our not so long chitchat, he recommended me this digital camera named Ricoh Wg-4 Gps. (You can also buy one without Gps function. A unit with Gps has a clock, please refer on the second picture).

I'm quite impressed by it's look because the design is not like any other typical digital cameras. It looked like a sports car to me. 

Well, of course the design is not my top priority. So, "Why I like this camera?"

Because:

• It's waterproof. I can use it under water up to a depth of 45 feet.
• It's crushproof up to 100 kilograms force.
• It's shockproof for drops up to 6.5 feet (only) but it's alright for me. I don't want to drop it anyway!
• It's coldproof up to -10 Celsius.
• It can record 1080p full HD video.
• It can capture sharp photos. I can take macro photos as close as 1cm.
• It captures frames for slow motion and fast motion playback.
• It has a sensitivity mode. I can capture fast-moving objects sharply but I guess it depends on the setting or where you are (inner/outdoor). You can just adjust the shutter speed.
• I can take a photo from a recorded video easily.
• I can crop photos easily.

To use the 1 cm macro, they have provided a macro ring/ stand to maintain the distance of focusing. It looks like this:

Also, to help brighten up macro photos, I use the macro light.

A picture using a macro function:

As you can see below, the flowers are super small.

Using 1cm macro function:

I used a pillow for this test. I was really amazed! It can even capture fibers!

Using high sensitivity/ anti-blur function. I was opening and closing my hand fast.

Using moving pets function/mode. My doggy Won-won!

Indoor with flash. The place was totally dark.

Using an auto function.

I was moving downwards.

1920 x 1080 video.I hurriedly went out the garden for a video test. I'm sorry about this, I watched the whole video and it was a crap maybe because I uploaded it straight here on my blog. I saw several video test using this camera. This might help : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFXQgFzgnp4

                                     

I haven't tried using this underwater but I guess the quality is near as the above pictures. So let's get to "Why I don't like this camera?"

Because:

• It doesn't have a Wifi. Unlike other digital cameras, I cannot connect to my smartphone for a fast transfer and upload but it's compatible to eye-fi which is a latest SD card that could actually function the same thing as the built-in Wifi. Sadly, I have no eye-fi SD card at the moment but I'm looking forward to have one.
• It can only zoom up to 4x only. My previous Canon digital camera has optical zoom up to 30x!
• It's really not that good to use indoors without a flash or maybe because I haven't explored more of it's functions yet. But if you are an expert in selecting the best shutter speed and all that, you can get a nice photo. 

So basically that's it! Overall, I like this camera and I have no regrets buying it. I recommend this camera for all adventurers out there like me! I hope my simple personal review helps! If you have questions, please feel free to comment! :)