Last year, Adobe’s Nextcam team launched Project Indigo, an experimental camera app for iPhones that offered full manual controls and promised a more natural look from smartphone photos. Now, the team has announced AI Playground, an experimental generative AI tool inside of Project Indigo.

In its announcement, Adobe explains that text-based editing (e.g., asking an AI chatbot to make changes to a photo for you) is still clunky, both in its results and usability. This new tool aims to improve that experience by keeping more of the process – both capture and edit – in one app. It says that AI Playground aims to “explore how generative AI can assist mobile photographers at the point of capture.”

AI Playground offers a handful of buttons that, when tapped, trigger specific generative AI prompts engineered by Adobe. These include options for removing distractions, creating a shallow depth of field, applying certain styles, changing lighting and critiquing photos. There’s also a Custom Edit button where users can input their own prompts, either via typing or dictation. For now, Adobe says it is using Google’s Nano Banana model, but that is subject to change, and may even change on a per-button basis.

Adobe

The “Styles” button allows users to apply a range of preset styles, turning photos into drawings or paintings or changing the lighting. Adobe says the available options “represent techniques we have found to be most successful when applied to everyday snapshots,” so it isn’t an endless list. It also clarifies that it trained the model to identify and highlight the main subject to keep focus on the most important parts of the photo.

Adobe

Object Editing offers tools familiar to editing apps, but Adobe says it is “exploring whether simple editing operations can be performed in the camera app using a generative model.” There are buttons for removing distractions and creating a shallow depth of field. If those specific tools don’t cover what you are looking to do, the Custom Edits button lets you change almost anything, similar to standalone generative AI tools. That includes completely swapping out backgrounds and specifying different styles. Adobe also showed off the ability to turn a drawing into a photo-like image, or change a sculpture into a “real” person.

Adobe

Adobe also highlighted the feedback section, which looks to be a more robust version of Google’s “Camera Coach,” albeit one that critiques photos after the fact, rather than giving you suggestions as you’re composing. It says that it is aimed at helping users learn or advance their photography by providing critique. The tool can provide both reshooting suggestions since it operates within a camera app, along with editing suggestions. Adobe says it is “working on customizing these prompts to reflect individual phone models and lenses, each of which has unique capabilities,” so that users get suggestions specific to what their phone is capable of.

There are some caveats with the AI Playground. First, while it’s free (for now) and doesn’t require sign-in, Adobe is only rolling this out to a small percentage of Project Indigo users. It says that if AI Playground is successful, there will be a paid version. Adobe also makes it clear that this is an experiment inside of an experimental app, so things are subject to change. You need to be connected to the internet to use AI Playground, and to save transmission and generation time, images are 2K pixels on a side.

Adobe

The Nextcam team also explains that it has had to create a workaround for HDR images, as image-generation models only output SDR images at this point. So, if you use Nano Banana to edit an HDR photo (even one taken with Project Indigo), it will produce an SDR image. To address this, Adobe says it built a custom ML model to post-process the SDR image and boost it back to HDR, but warns that it isn’t always accurate.

The announcement also briefly addresses ethics as well. Adobe says it is “working to attach metadata to AI-edited images produced from the AI Playground by using technology from Adobe’s Content Authenticity Initiative,” and specifies that some models, such as Nano Banana, apply invisible watermarks to images. At the end of the day, though, Adobe puts the onus on users: “Whether the edits you apply are ‘fair’ or ‘misleading’ depend on what you do, who you share the images with, and how you present them.”

Adobe

Ethics aside, it seems like an interesting move for the app, given that the original goal of Project Indigo was to produce more natural images that offer “SLR-like” quality from your iPhone. DPReview’s Dale Baskin even chose Project Indigo as his Gear of the Year last year, because it unlocked the ability to take more natural images, encouraging him to use his phone for photos more often. The AI Playground tools, however, seem to take things in a very different, more synthetic direction.

Additionally, the results, at least for now, don’t necessarily inspire confidence. The image at the top of this article looks more like a video game rendering than a photograph, with a distinctly synthetic sheen rather than the ‘natural’ look Indigo set out to offer. Plus, in some instances, such as the cycling image above, Adobe acknowledges that the models will change details that you don’t want changed. That includes altering face shape and expressions, even if it isn’t part of the user’s prompt or intent. The company’s workaround is to upload reference photos, which certainly isn’t ideal.

For those interested in testing AI Playground, you’ll need to update the Project Indigo app to version 1.1. If you are one of the selected users, you’ll see a screen pop up inviting you to use the feature. If you’re not a fan of GenAI in your camera app and you get invited, you can simply decline and keep using Project Indigo as you did before. Adobe also says that the Nextcam team is working on non-GenAI computational photography features that it plans to launch soon.

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We recently launched the new DPReview website with a beta logo at the top of the page. The site is in beta for a reason: we’re aware that there are things to fix and improve, and our team is actively working to address outstanding issues. The beta logo reflects our ongoing effort to improve functionality, features and the overall user experience.

To make sure you know where to find the latest updates, report bugs or usability issues, or discuss changes to the site, we’ve set up a dedicated forum section to consolidate this information in one place.

Keep updated on changes

Progress updates: To see the latest updates from our team, visit the dedicated Change log thread. This is where we’ll post updates to let you know what changes, updates or bug fixes we’ve made to the site. We are making updates on a rolling basis based on a combination of prioritization and ease of fix. We expect this process to go on for quite some time.

Report a bug or usability issue: If you encounter a bug or usability issue, please use the Known issues and bug reports thread in our forum to share it with us. We keep the first post in that thread updated with all the reports we’re tracking, so please check there first to see if your issue has already been reported before reporting a new one.

New site discussion: If you have other questions or just want to discuss the new site, please create a post in the Website redesign feedback, questions and help section of the forums.

One more thing: If you haven’t already done so, we encourage you to read our article Gear Patrol founder Eric Yang: Why we rebuilt DPReview after 25 years, which provides additional context for why we’re making this change now.

We’ve already heard a lot of valuable feedback, and will continue to gather it to help shape our development and improvement roadmap. Thank you for your patience, feedback and support as we get things dialed in.

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Kodak licensee Reto has quietly added another beginner-friendly 35mm camera to its analog lineup. The Kodak EC35 is a fixed-focus point-and-shoot aimed squarely at casual shooters and film-curious newcomers thanks to its affordable price and ease of operation.

The EC35 is a simple 35mm film camera with a plastic body and 25mm, fixed-focus, 2-element acrylic lens. It’s a point-and-shoot camera, featuring a fixed F10 aperture and a constant 1/100 sec shutter speed. It does offer manual film advance and rewind, though, for a more traditional film experience. There’s also a built-in flash powered by a single AA battery.

It’s highly compact, weighing 102 g (3.6 oz) and measuring 119 x 65 x 41.5mm (4.7 × 2.6 × 1.6″). It features a slide-out cover to protect the lens, just like highly popular retro compact film cameras, such as the Olympus Stylus (Mju series) and Contax T3.

Reto

While the camera uses Kodak branding, it comes from Reto, the Kodak licensee behind the viral Kodak Charmera cameras. Reto has been steadily rebuilding a Kodak-branded analog ecosystem with playful, affordable cameras like the Ektar H35 half-frame, the H35N half-frame and the Snapic A1, a compact with a 25mm three-element glass lens and double-exposure mode. The EC35 slots in as a more basic model that produces full 35mm frames, sitting below the feature-rich Snapic A1 with its LCD, auto wind/rewind and multi-exposure features.

The Kodak EC35 comes in six colors: black, white, yellow, lavender, light blue, light pink and light green. It’s available for purchase now for $35, the same price as Lomography’s recently released half-frame camera.

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Lomography is jumping on the half-frame trend with its latest camera. The appropriately named Half-frame Simple Use Reloadable Film Camera is an affordable option that aims to make film easy for those looking to explore the medium.

As a half-frame camera, it uses half of each 35mm frame, resulting in 17 mm x 24 mm vertical images and letting you get twice as many photos from a roll as a traditional 35mm camera. The small point-and-shoot looks like a classic disposable camera and comes pre-loaded with a roll that gives you 40 shots before you need to reload. Despite its lightweight, disposable-style design, the camera is fully reloadable, and with a standard 36-exposure roll, you can capture up to 72 images.

Lomography

Lomography designed the camera to be easy to use. It features a fixed-focus 21mm lens, a single 1/120 sec shutter speed, a fixed F9 aperture and no ISO adjustment options. It offers a built-in flash to help in low-light situations and has integrated gels to slide in front of the flash for pops of color. There are also shooting instructions printed on the camera body to help you use it if you’re new to film.

You can choose between two preloaded versions of the half-frame camera: one with LomoChrome Classicolor ISO 200 film, and the other with Lady Gray ISO 400 black and white film. You can also opt for a kit that includes six additional rolls and a case to store your film. Sitting well below options like the Pentax 17, it’s meant to be an affordable, casual way to enjoy film.

The Lomography Half-frame Simple Use Reloadable Film Camera is available for preorder now and costs $30 with black-and-white film and $35 with color film.

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Hasselblad launched Phocus Mobile 2 in 2019, as an iOS-only app for editing Raw files from its medium format cameras on phones and tablets. Now, the company has announced Phocus Mobile v1.0.0 for Android, finally bringing the mobile workflow to Android users with the X2D II 100C, X2D 100C and 907X + CFV 100C.

Like the iOS version, Phocus Mobile for Android includes a robust set of editing tools, including exposure, curves, white balance, sharpening, cropping, lens correction and more. It also supports batch adjustments and basic asset management with the ability to add ratings and mark favorites. Images can be imported over Wi‑Fi or, for those using the X2D II 100C (with firmware version 1.3.16.1 or later), via USB‑C. Files can then be exported as Ultra HDR JPEG, HDR TIFF, as well as standard JPEG, TIFF, HEIF or 3FR Raw.

Hasselblad says that the Android app brings its end-to-end Natural Color Solution (HNCS) to mobile, allowing for a consistent look whether editing on desktop or mobile. The app supports HDR viewing and editing for X2D II 100C files on compatible HDR devices. It also features the company’s AI-powered Raw noise reduction, which it says is tuned for its 100MP sensors. The noise reduction tool offers two modes, allowing users to prioritize either cleaner files or better micro-contrast.

There are some hardware caveats, though. The app requires an Android device with at least 12 GB of RAM and Android 12 or later. That said, Hasselblad recommends Android 16 or later and devices powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 or newer for the best experience. Given that the phone needs to handle 100MB files, that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

Hasselblad’s Phocus Mobile for Android is now available on the Google Play Store for free.

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Viltrox has expanded its mid-tier lineup with the AF 26mm F2.8 Evo, a new pancake prime. As the smallest Evo offering yet, it continues the series’ focus on durable build quality and external controls, positioning itself as an everyday carry option for street and travel photographers.

The AF 26mm F2.8 Evo is made for full-frame E and Z mount cameras. As a pancake lens, it’s highly compact and lightweight, measuring just 24mm (0.9″) thick and weighing only 130 g (4.6 oz). Despite its diminutive size, it still offers useful controls. That includes a clicking aperture ring, though there is no toggle to de-click it. There’s also a separate focus ring for manual focus.

Viltrox

The lens uses an optical design of eight elements in six groups, including two aspherical elements and one high-refractive index (HR) element. Viltrox promises good sharpness even with the aperture wide open, and says that in-camera corrections minimize distortion. It uses a seven-blade aperture diaphragm.

The new lens uses an STM autofocus motor. It can focus as close as 0.2m (7.8″), enabling close-up shots in addition to broad views. A machined metal barrel offers greater durability, and it is dust- and splash-resistant around the lens mount. The lens is compatible with 43mm filters, as long as you use the included lens hood, and it uses a magnetic front lens cap. A USB-C port enables firmware updates.

The Viltrox AF 26mm F2.8 Evo is available today for E and Z mounts for $299.

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Fujifilm has released updated firmware for its GFX Eterna 55 medium format cinema camera, and set out a roadmap of additional updates that will follow over the next year.

Firmware v1.1 promises improved stability and usability but future updates include support for desqueezed previews of additional anamorphic lens ratios, improved SDI and HMDI latency, with LANC control and variable electronic ND arriving later.

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Tamron is introducing a fast, ultra-wide zoom lens for full-frame cameras: the 12-20mm F2.8. It’s being released for Nikon Z-mount and Sony E-mount, and is also ushering in a new look for the company’s lenses.

The 12-20mm F2.8 uses an optical formula with 17 elements in 12 groups, with one expanded glass molded aspherical element, three glass molded aspherical lenses, one extra low dispersion element, and three low dispersion elements. The company says it’s designed to be sharp to the corners, and to minimize and correct for aberrations like color fringing and sagittal coma flare. The latter is especially important for astrophotographers, who may be interested in this lens thanks to its wide focal range.

At 12mm, it can focus on subjects as close as 0.18m (7″), and at 20mm, its minimum focusing distance is 0.28m (11″). It has a 12-blade aperture. Because of its bulbous front element, it can’t accept front filters, but it has a rear filter holder in addition to its integrated lens hood.

Focusing is handled by a linear motor and is internal. While zooming doesn’t make the lens any longer, the front element does physically move back into the body. The lens has both an MF/AF switch and a manual focus lock switch; the latter is again something that will be appreciated by astrophotographers.

Beyond those switches, the lens is covered in controls. There’s a customizable function button in both portrait and landscape orientations, a zoom lock switch that can be used to keep the lens at either 12mm or 20mm, a lock for the aperture ring (or control ring on Nikon), a switch to click or declick that ring and a custom setting switch, which you can use Tamron’s Link software to configure to switch between focus position, change your rings’ rotation direction, limit focus, etc. There’s also a USB-C port you can use to update the lens’s firmware, or to connect it to your phone via a cable or wireless adapter to use Tamron Link.

In its briefing, Tamron took a lot of pride in the lens’s size and weight, saying it was comparable to slower lenses, or ones with less range, and substantially lighter than other options. The E-mount version of the lens weighs 570g (20.1oz), with the one for Nikon weighing 15g more. The Sony version is 119mm (4.7″) long, with the Z-mount version adding 2mm.

This isn’t just a new lens for Tamron, though. The company is also introducing its new branding alongside it. Those familiar with the company’s naming conventions may have noticed what’s not there, first: there’s no “Di III” or “VXD” at the end of the name, denoting it as a mirrorless lens that uses a linear motor. Like Sigma , the company has decided that it doesn’t need to distinguish its DSLR lenses from its mirrorless ones directly in the name, and likewise, most of its lenses going forward are likely to use linear motors.

The updated industrial design language that Tamron is launching with the lens is called “Toned Profile Next,” which the company says is made to match how modern cameras are designed, while feeling better in the hand and more recognizably Tamron. Compared to its older lenses, the 12-20mm F2.8 has chunkier rings for zooming, aperture control and focusing, updated textures for its touchpoints, and new placement and print color for its branding. It also narrowed the champagne-colored “brand ring” that borders the lens mount.

I personally quite like the new look, especially since it comes with a clicking aperture ring on E-mount, something Tamron hasn’t been including on its recent lenses. I also appreciate that it’s now quite easy to grip the control rings and to distinguish which one your finger is on just by feel. The switches and buttons are all satisfying to use, and the lens feels solidly built, even if I don’t prefer the finish’s smooth texture.

The Tamron 12-20mm F2.8 will cost $1699 for the E-mount version and $1799 for the Z-mount version; the company says the difference comes down to volume, behind-the-scenes differences in manufacturing, and the competition on the different mounts. The Sony version will be available starting July 30th, while Nikon owners will have to wait until August 27.

Sample Gallery

Please do not reproduce any of these images on a website or any newsletter/magazine without prior permission (see our copyright page ). We make the originals available for private users to download to their own machines for personal examination or printing; we do so in good faith, so please don’t abuse it.

Thanks to Nikon for the loan of a Z8 to shoot this gallery. All images were processed using our standard lens workflow in Capture One, with the manufacturer’s distortion correction applied but no correction of vignetting. The profile corrects a minor amount of distortion – barrel at the wide end and pincushion at the long end – but we wouldn’t consider it an essential part of the lens design.

Tamron 12-20mm F2.8 specifications:

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The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is proposing $25,000 fines against eight companies after they allegedly failed to respond to questions about DJI‑related products sold in the United States. The agency is examining whether these firms played a role in bringing cameras, drones and other wireless devices based on DJI technology into the country under different brand names.

The companies named in the action are Cogito Tech, Fixaxo Technology, Lyno Dynamics, Skyhigh Tech, Spatial Hover, SZ Knowact, WaveGo Tech and Xtra Technology. According to the FCC, the proposed penalties stem from the companies’ refusal to answer formal letters of inquiry, rather than from a final determination that specific products violated U.S. equipment rules. Each firm has until July 20 to respond before the Commission decides whether to proceed with the fines or take further enforcement steps.

This latest action builds on a series of moves that have steadily tightened U.S. scrutiny of DJI. In late 2025, the FCC added DJI to its “Covered List,” a designation that prevents new DJI radio‑based products from receiving equipment authorization, effectively blocking future models from entering the U.S. market. Existing, previously approved drones can, however, continue to be sold and flown. As DPReview reported at the time, that shift marked a turning point in the long‑running debate over a possible “DJI ban” and pushed creators toward stockpiling current models or looking at alternative brands.

Xtra

Xtra’s inclusion in the new enforcement action is particularly notable for photographers and filmmakers. The brand has been selling cameras and gimbal systems in the U.S. that closely resemble DJI’s Osmo Pocket and Osmo Action lines, effectively providing a path for DJI‑style hardware to reach U.S. buyers despite the Covered List restricting new DJI‑branded products.

What this could mean for DJI’s U.S. prospects

In the short term, the FCC’s move does not mean that existing DJI or Xtra products are suddenly banned or pulled from shelves. Equipment that already holds valid FCC authorizations remains legal to own and operate. However, if enforcement pressure causes these lesser‑known brands to scale back or exit the U.S. market, the supply of DJI‑adjacent “clone” or rebadged devices could become more limited.

Longer term, the enforcement push could complicate DJI’s efforts to return to the U.S. under its own name rather than help it. By formally targeting companies suspected of funneling DJI‑linked technology into the country, the FCC is reinforcing the idea that this hardware poses enough concern to warrant ongoing scrutiny. That may strengthen the case for strict controls and keep political and regulatory pressure on DJI high, even as the company continues to challenge its inclusion on the Covered List and push for a path to get new products approved again.

We’ll have to wait and see what the outcome will be, but the direction from regulators is clear: companies tied to DJI‑linked technology are expected to fully cooperate with FCC investigations, and a lack of cooperation could result in additional enforcement action beyond the currently proposed fines.

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Insta360 is teaming up with 3D printer company Bambu Lab to encourage custom accessories for the new Luna Ultra gimbal camera. To that end, the pair has launched a co-branded Luna Ultra Design Challenge and made official design files available for creatives.

The challenge is hosted through Bambu Lab’s MakerWorld platform, a community where creators can share and 3D‑print custom designs. To make things easier for those interested in creating accessories, Insta360 has published official 3MF and STL design files for the Luna Ultra. Insta360 is the first camera brand with an official presence on MakerWorld, and it’s certainly not typical to see a company sanctioning third-party 3D-printed, precision-fit accessories for its cameras. That hasn’t stopped people from making their own accessories, but having an easier means to do so will likely be appreciated by many users.

The contest has two entry tracks: Track A is about designing and uploading actual 3D-printable parts for Luna Ultra, while Track B is about showcasing or pitching those ideas through content across major social platforms.

Track A is geared toward 3D designers and engineers and is meant for fully realized models. It consists of two categories: The Practical Add-ons category includes things like stability mounts, filming rigs and advanced creator tools, while the Creative Mods category focuses on aesthetic covers, playful themes and stylistic upgrades. Those submitting to Track A should use #PrintForLuna within MakerWorld.

Track B can include finished 3D-printed products, but it’s also open to hand-drawn design concepts and creative accessory ideas, so even those without a 3D printer can still take part. Those interested in submitting projects in Track B should tag their posts with #PrintForLuna, #BambuLab and #Insta360LunaUltra on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook or Reddit (r/Insta360).

Insta360

The challenge has prizes up for grabs. Insta360 says there are a total of 40 joint awards, with selected winners receiving the Insta360 Luna Ultra camera and either the Bambu Lab X2D Combo or A2L Combo 3D printers. There will also be other hardware prizes, along with gift cards and coupons. Additionally, the company says the best ideas may be selected for further development and possibly turned into an official product. Creators of those designs will have access to “exclusive collaboration opportunities and additional rewards, with full details confirmed with the winners directly.”

The Luna Ultra Design Challenge runs from now through August 9, with winners announced on August 20. You can download the 3MF and STL design files from MakerWorld, and learn more about submission requirements on the challenge page.

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Fujifilm has announced the GF19-35mmT3.5 PZ OIS WR, a cinema power zoom lens. This marks the second power zoom lens for the GFX system, joining the GF32-90mmT3.5 PZ OIS WR.

The GF 19-35mm T3.5 offers a 35mm equivalent focal length of 15-28mm, providing an ultrawide perspective. It offers the widest angle of view for the GF format, though it just achieves that by only 1mm over the GF 20-35mm F4 R WR. Like Fujifilm’s first power zoom lens, the 19-35mm T3.5 covers the GFX Eterna 55’s full sensor, making it compatible with the camera’s open gate recording mode.

The lens’s built‑in focus motor enables the GFX Eterna 55’s full suite of autofocus modes, making it suitable for everything from handheld documentary work to more controlled studio productions. Its internal servo system lets users control focus, iris (aperture) and zoom directly from the GFX Eterna 55 body for more precise, integrated operation on set. It features built-in image stabilization, ideal for run-and-gun filming.

Fujifilm

The lens consists of 23 lens elements in 15 groups, including four extra-low dispersion (ED) elements and three aspherical elements, which Fujifilm says successfully suppress aberrations. Fujifilm says its optical design suppresses focus breathing, keeping the angle of view consistent as the focus is adjusted. It features a 13-blade aperture.

The GF 19-35mm T3.5 shares the exact exterior dimensions as the GF32-90mmT3.5 PZ OIS WR, measuring 222mm (8.7″) and weighing 2.1 kg (4.6 lbs), making it possible to use the same accessories and setups. It also shares the same controls, with geared rings for focus, iris and zoom, all of which use the same 0.8m gear pitch as existing Fujinon cinema lenses.

The GF19-35mmT3.5 PZ OIS WR will be available on July 23 at a suggested price of $5499.95.

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DPReview has an all-new website, our first redesign from the ground up in over 25 years. For the full story, see our announcement article. If you just want a quick answer, you’re in the right place.

If your question isn’t covered here, post it in this forum thread or in the comments below, and we’ll get you an answer. If it’s something others would find useful, we’ll add it here.

General questions

Q: Does the new site signal a change in DPReview’s coverage?
A: Our editorial mandate isn’t changing. We’ll continue to bring you the same authoritative, unbiased coverage of cameras and photography you’ve come to depend on, written by the same people.

Q: Was the old site broken? If not, why change?
A: Not broken, but overdue. The site has been running on the same aging codebase for over 25 years, and maintaining it has become increasingly costly and limiting. Moving DPReview onto a modern platform means we can invest in new features and improvements far more efficiently than we could on legacy infrastructure while keeping DPReview’s editorial identity fully intact. The old system was a ceiling. This removes it.

Q: Does the new site have a ‘light’ mode?
A: No. At this time, the site is exclusively in dark mode.

Account and history

Q: Do I need to do anything to update my account?
A: No, your account will transfer over to the new site automatically.

Q: Will my comments, forum posts and history carry over?
A: Yes, your previous account history, including comments, will follow your account to the new site.

Q: Do I need to log in again or reset my password?
A: No, you should not need to log in again on the new site.

Article comments

Q: What happened to my old comments?
A: Your comments are all being migrated and won’t be lost. Older comments take longer to move over, so they’ll appear in stages: the most recent should return within a few hours of launch, comments from earlier this year within a day, and older comments over the following days.

Q: Why did you change the commenting system?
A: Our previous commenting system was deeply integrated with the old website, and it wasn’t feasible to bring it over to the new one. We know commenting matters to many members of our community, so keeping it meant building a new system on a new foundation. Comments still appear under articles, but they work a bit differently.

Q: Why aren’t comment replies nested anymore?
A: They’re not, and we want to be upfront about it. The old system nested replies one level deep, to indicate which reply belonged to which comment. The new system works differently. Instead, you can quote the comment you’re replying to, so it’s still clear who you’re responding to.

Q: How do I reply to someone now?
A: Click the “Reply” button under their comment to start a reply. If you want to quote the other person for clarity, you can click the “Quote Reply” button and the system will quote the other user above your text.

Ads

Q: How do I get fewer ads?
A: Log into your DPReview account when browsing the site. If you’re not registered, creating a free account and signing up for our newsletter takes a minute and gets you the same benefit.

Q: I’m logged in. Why do I still see ads?
A: This isn’t meant to be an “ad-free” experience. You’ll still see ads, but fewer of them. We still rely on advertising to help fund DPReview, but as a thank-you to our registered users, we’re giving logged-in visitors a cleaner page.

Q: Is there a paid ad-free subscription?
A: Not currently, but it’s something we’re exploring for the future.

Challenges

Q: What happened to Challenges?
A: As we mentioned in April, our old Challenges system was tied closely to the previous site and couldn’t move over as-is. Rather than rebuild it exactly as it was, we’re building a new Challenges system from the ground up that reflects a lot of the feedback you’ve given us over the years. It’s actively in development.

Forums

Q: Does the new website impact the forums?
A: No, the forums are not affected. They run on a separate platform that isn’t part of this migration, so you can keep using them exactly as before. To get there from the new homepage, click “Discussions” in the navigation bar, which links directly to our most popular forums, or select “All Forums” to see the full index.

The Beta label and site speed

Q: Why does it say “Beta” at the top of the site?
A: It’s our way of being upfront that we’ll keep refining things over the coming weeks. That includes addressing known issues and dialing in details as we go. Separately, a small number of features, like Challenges, aren’t live yet and are being rebuilt from the ground up; you can read more about that below.

Q: How long will it stay in beta?
A: We expect the site to stay in beta for several weeks. We’ll drop the label once we’re confident the site has earned it.

Q: Why are some pages loading slowly?
A: In the first days after launch, some pages, especially photo-heavy ones, may load more slowly than usual. The site caches an optimized version of each image and page the first time it’s viewed and serves the fast cached copy thereafter. Right after launch, those caches are still filling in, so the first visit to a given page does more work than subsequent visits, which should load more quickly.

Getting help and bug reporting

Q: I have a question or need help. Where do I go?
A: Please visit the community forums to ask questions and discuss the site redesign. You can also report issues there as well. If you are unable to log in or have other access issues that prevent you from posting in the forums, please email us and include your account username, along with a brief description of the issue, at community@dpreview.com.

Q: How do I report a bug
A: If you discover a bug you’d like to share with us, please report it using this forum thread. Note that we will keep an updated list of reported bugs in the first post of the thread, so take a moment to review that list in case your bug has already been reported.

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Sony is set to announce a new model of its RX10 enthusiast long zoom compact next week, according to a teaser video. Captioned “The wait is over. A new RX10 is coming 7/9/2026,” it shows off a silhouette of what appears to be the camera’s lens and body.

The reference to a wait is apt. The RX10 IV, which featured a 20MP Type 1 sensor (116mm²) and a 24–600mm equiv. lens, was released in late 2017, and hasn’t been available to buy new for a while now. That absence has been felt even stronger because of the lack of other cameras in this class. Panasonic’s FZ1000 II was one of its closest competitors, but is also now unavailable.

Other bridge cameras, like the Nikon P1100 or Panasonic ZS300, fill similar roles of offering a ton of zoom range, but with different sets of trade-offs. The P1100 offers a massive 24–3000 mm zoom range, but uses a Type 1/2.3 (28mm²) sensor that makes even the RX10 IV’s look massive by comparison. And while the ZS300 also uses a Type 1 sensor, its 24–360mm is decidedly less ambitious with an aperture range of F3.3–6.4, compared to the RX10 IV’s F2.4-4 (equivalent to F9-17.4 and F6.5-10.9, respectively).

Sony’s teaser has essentially no other information on what upgrades it has made to the RX10 IV’s formula in the near decade since it launched, but we don’t have long before we find out. According to the video, the announcement will be at 07:00 Pacific / 15:00 BST on July 9th.

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Fujifilm

Fujifilm is celebrating the 40th birthday of the QuickSnap series of single-use 35mm film cameras. To mark the occasion, the company has announced two new additions: the QuickSnap Black and White and Active.

The QuickSnap Black and White is Fujifilm’s first one-time-use camera that uses monochrome film. That perhaps isn’t too surprising; while Fujifilm has produced black and white film under its Neopan brand since 1952, the line has been whittled down over the years to just a single stock, Neopan 100 Acros II.

Fujifilm

The new disposable camera uses 400 speed film, but Fujifilm hasn’t specified an emulsion. Given that Fujifilm’s only black and white film in production right now is 100 speed, it isn’t that. But it isn’t clear if this is a proprietary emulsion made for the camera, or if it’s sourced from a third party like Ilford. Either way, Fujifilm says the film stock is “designed to capture rich contrasts, tones and textured grains.”

The black and white camera uses a 1/140 sec shutter speed and a plastic, 32mm lens with fixed focus and F10 aperture, as is typical on single-use film cameras. It features a built-in flash with a range of roughly 3 meters (10′), and a switch to turn the flash on and off. It offers 27 exposures and can be developed with C-41 chemistry.

Fujifilm

The QuickSnap Active replaces the previous waterproof QuickSnap. It’s designed to withstand rain and underwater adventures up to 10 meters (33′), thanks to an integrated waterproof housing. It also uses a 32mm plastic lens with F10 aperture and fixed focus, though a slightly slower 1/125 sec shutter speed.

The Active uses an 800 speed color negative film. The previous waterproof camera likely used Superia X-TRA 800, but it isn’t clear yet if that continues in the new Active. Unlike the black and white offering, the Active does not feature a flash. It is capable of 27 exposures and can be developed with C-41 chemistry.

The Fujifilm QuickSnap Active and Black and White will be available for purchase in early September for $25 and $23, respectively.