Alright folks, here we go again.
I’ve bought, shot, and sold the GR III and IIIx. Now, I’ve picked up the Ricoh GR IV, and I have a GR IV Monochrome incoming shortly. After putting the new system through its paces, I have some thoughts.
The images have a character straight out of camera that I just can't find elsewhere. The dust issues are supposedly fixed (we shall see), but for now, this thing is a pocket powerhouse.
As I said in the original post headline - this is probably the best/worst little camera you can buy if you enjoy street documentary photography with gallery level image quality. The AF while improved will occasionally frustrate you, but man is this just the most fun little camera you can get today.
Can't wait to try the monochrome version that I also ordered!
I’ve bought, shot, and sold the GR III and IIIx. Now, I’ve picked up the Ricoh GR IV, and I have a GR IV Monochrome incoming shortly. After putting the new system through its paces, I have some thoughts.
The Good Stuff (and there is a lot)...
Speed Demon: Startup is noticeably faster. Press the button and it is instantly on.
Sharpness: Corner sharpness is improved; the lens feels crisper than the III.
Build Quality: Much better. They ditched the rotary dial (which got loose on my old GR III) for a sturdier setup.
The Files: Natively captures DNG raw with tons of detail, and the new sensor handles high ISO much better.
SOOC Magic: The JPEG profiles ('Positive Film', 'Cinema Green', 'Cinema Yellow' and 'Cinema Green') are untouchable. I've tried building LUTs to replicate this on my Lumix, but I just can't match that GR character. The black and white profiles when you tune the GR can produce the most convincing TriX400 look (if you like that look) that I have seen from a digital camera straight out of camera. Bravo Ricoh!
5-Axis IBIS: A massive improvement over the III. It’s roughly on par with Sony now—still not touching Lumix levels, but reasonably solid.
The Ultimate Street Cam: It looks like an old point-and-shoot. People ignore you, which makes filling the frame with a 28mm lens much less intimidating than hauling my Lumix S5IIX + 35mm.
Battery Life: Noticeably better. I'm squeezing out ~300 shots.
I've made some large 40"x60" gallery size prints from the III and IIIx that folks thought had come from my old Hasselblad V series medium format shooting TriX. My color images at similar sizes are almost indistinguishable from my larger heavier FF equipment in good light. Truthfully, often times the stealthy nature of the Ricoh results in much more interesting images as it allows you to get much closer to your subject in your scene.- General Quality of life Improvements:
- Double-Tap Mode Switch: Love this. Keep it in A mode, double-tap to swap to P mode instantly. Great for handing the camera to a friend to quickly take a grab shot!
- Internal Storage: 56GB built-in memory plus the card slot.
- Flash Support: The new hot shoe powers small external flashes (bought the accessory, great for fill up close but not much else).
- Autofocus: Feels like PDAF is finally here. Much snappier and generally face detect is much more accurate than the III, however that was a very low bar
The "Not So Great"
It's a Spicy Meatball: The price hurts. I paid $1,350 CAD for the original GR III; the IV set me back $1,850 CAD. I think the IQ improvement justifies it, but ouch.
Still Naked: No weather sealing. At this price, why Ricoh?! 
The 28mm Dilemma: I love 28mm for documentary work, but my brain sees in 35mm. This is a "me" problem, but it requires an adjustment period.
The MicroSD Blues: I get it, it saves space, but I hate needing an adapter to transfer to my MacBook.
Mac Connectivity Bug: My MacBook won't mount the camera as a hard drive. It only shows up in Apple Photos via tethering. I've tried every USB/MTP setting. Ricoh, please fix this.
The Plain Bad
Video is a Joke: It’s 2026 and we are still doing 1080p? To be fair, this is a photojournalism tool, not a cinema camera. Video is just a tick-box here; your iPhone will do a significantly better job.
Where is the 'X'? Ricoh released the IV, the HDF, and the Monochrome... but no 40mm 'X' variant yet. I need that 40mm FOV with the new BSI sensor and body!
The images have a character straight out of camera that I just can't find elsewhere. The dust issues are supposedly fixed (we shall see), but for now, this thing is a pocket powerhouse.
As I said in the original post headline - this is probably the best/worst little camera you can buy if you enjoy street documentary photography with gallery level image quality. The AF while improved will occasionally frustrate you, but man is this just the most fun little camera you can get today.
Can't wait to try the monochrome version that I also ordered!