Meet the new RX100 III!

Sony Philippines has officially unveiled to the local market the RX100 III. While its size puts it squarely in the point-and-shoot category, its probably not fair to call the RX100 III (and really, the entire RX100 series) just a point-and-shoot – it has a lot of added functionality that makes it worth buying even in this post point-and-shoot world.

First off, the RX100 III uses a Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T 24-70mm F1.8-2.8 lens that gives you more bokeh and better low light performance when you need it. That’s paired with a 1-inch, 20.1-megapixel Exmor R BSI-CMOS sensor. The RX100 III has full manual control, allowing enthusiasts to tweak the camera’s settings to their heart’s content. The RX 100 III also has a 3-inch, full tilt LCD on the back.

One of the biggest features of the RX100 series is the retractable OLED electronic viewfinder that allows you to frame your photos the traditional way. It’s small, extremely useful and folds completely out of the way when you don’t need it, though the RX100 III loses the traditional hot shoe on the top that was present in the previous model (with Sony replacing it with a retractable flash instead), though most won’t mind.

So how much will this thing cost you? Well, if you want one of the best point-and-shoots in the market today, you’ll have to pay top dollar – the RX100 III costs a whopping 44,999. That’s easily the price of decent DSLR, though it can be argued that the RX100 III delivers roughly the same functionality of similarly priced DSLRS, although obviously without the ability to swap lenses. We’ll find out if its worth it when we get our review unit.