Sigma FP2: One-minute review

Sigma's FP2 is a successor to the world's smallest full-frame mirrorless camera, the FP, and it's even smaller, despite coming with a bunch of handy upgrades.

The FP2 packs a partially stacked 24.5MP full-frame sensor — one we've seen before in the Nikon ZR and Lumix S1 II. And like those cameras, it shoots 6K open gate video, only with Sigma's L-Log color profile, and RAW video through an external SSD.

It comes with 70GB built-in memory, plus a higher capacity battery — the same unit found in recent full-frame Lumix models like the S1 II and Lumix S9 — and it features a 3.15-inch tilt-touchscreen. All decent upgrades.

Autofocus performance has been improved too — the hybrid phase detection system can track more subjects, with what Sigma says is a 15% boost in speed and accuracy.

And these features are packed into a diminutive and sturdy metal body with a delightfully simple design and user experience — I love how the photo and video functions are neatly distinguished. It's an attractive package, and a camera that I thoroughly enjoyed having in my hand.

When considered purely as an upgrade to the original FP, the FP2 is a solid camera. However, Sigma's mission to make the smallest full-frame mirrorless camera comes with compromises, which means the FP2 won't be for everyone. For one, the camera doesn't have in-body image stabilization, whereas the Lumix S9, Lumix S1 II and Nikon ZR do.

There's also no built-in viewfinder, though unlike some rivals, there is an optional EVF and it's a fantastically bright and detailed 5.76m-dot unit that tilts for waist-level shooting.

When shooting photos, I regularly found myself bringing the camera up to my eye, only to remember it didn't have a viewfinder – photo and video creatives will absolutely want to pick up the optional EVF.

That for me is where the FP2 comes undone, somewhat. It's starting price is reasonable, but when you factor in the cost of accessories, the package starts to feel pricey.

There is a miniaturisation premium — Sigma isn't alone in this, however. Overall, there are better value conventional alternatives, but if size and feel matters to you, then the Sigma FP2 is well worth a look.

Sigma FP2: Price and release date

• Announced on October 23, 2026, priced from $2,199 / £1,899
• Can be purchased with various kits; with the Electronic Viewfinder EVF-21 or 50mm F2 DG | Contemporary lens
• Goes on sale from November 11

At first, the Sigma FP2 feels like excellent value — it's a beautifully designed and rugged full-frame camera with impressive specs for $2,199 / £1,899. However, that body-only price is just the beginning for a camera that works best with optional accessories — and for those the cost soon stacks up.

For example, photographers will want the divine EVF-21 5.76m-dot tilt electronic viewfinder, which which adds $500 / £500 to the cost when bought with the camera, and it costs even more when purchased separately. Or how about the camera and lens kit with 50mm F2 DG | Contemporary, which I had for the review and you can see in the pictures, which costs $2749 / £2419.

Other accessories include the Hot Shoe Unit HU-21 (same flash terminal as OM System / Lumix), base plate BPL-21, LCD viewfinder LVF-21 and battery charger BC-91. Sigma is still a decent value brand, but you just need to be aware that this camera system benefits from costly extras, and if you're upgrading that the likes of the EVF are not forwards / backwards compatible with the original Sigma FP.

Sigma FP2 specs

Sigma FP2: Design

• Even smaller than the original FP, but a fraction heavier
• Modular design with handy (albeit pricey) accessories, such as the lovely EVF
• Wonderfully simple user experience and interface

The FP2 carries the DNA of the original FP, but comes with some welcome design improvements. Crucially, it stays true to Sigma's core mission with this series — make the smallest full-frame mirrorless camera available.

It's designed as a photo and video hybrid, with a chunky switch to choose between the two and a neatly arranged menu for each discipline — the settings remain unique when you move between the two.

There's a chunky exposure dial, and a line of buttons neatly arranged under the screen, including one for color profiles (there are 13 presets, Log and RAW video options).

The 3.15-inch touchscreen is a tilt-type — impressive considering the camera is thinner than the FP, which has a fixed screen. Pulling the screen out reveals vents which presumably keep the camera cool during high-resolution video recording.

We don't get an EVF, which is no surprise given the size of the camera. However, Sigma sells the FP2 in a kit with the EVF-21 electronic viewfinder.

I actually think the modular design makes perfect sense. Shooting video and don't need a viewfinder? You have the tiniest full-frame shooter. Out taking photos and want the display? Add it on.

And I really did enjoy the display — albeit my brief experience with it. It connects to the camera's side through one of the two USB-C ports, and it's a 5.76m-dot tilt type.

Sigma has added internal memory, with 70GB of usable memory, plus there's the SD card slot. I used the internal memory a lot, and had no operational issues — I wish more cameras included internal memory like the FP2 does.

And then there's the battery — the same type as used in recent Lumix cameras, for a healthy shot-life that belies the compact size of the camera. I don't think I've seen such a large battery squeezed into such a small space before — Sigma really has worked wonders to keep the FP2 this small.

Naturally, there are compromises for the handling of such a small camera, besides the lack of viewfinder and flash. For one, it's flat-fronted, meaning there's no sculpted hand grip for a secure hold. That's no such problem with small lenses, but the FP2 is so small that even compact primes feel chunky by comparison.

It's true: when stripped back to its basic setup, there is no smaller camera in this class. But to get the most out of the camera, it needs bulking out, all adding to the cost.

What I will say is that the FP2 does modular very well indeed. Its two screw mounts for accessories are handily placed, and they can host the (supplied) loops used to secure the camera's strap, which is a neat bit of design.

The FP2's design isn't for everyone, but after almost two weeks of shooting with the camera, I really did appreciate and enjoy it, and can see how it will appeal to certain users.

Sigma FP2: Performance

• 24.5MP partially stacked full-frame sensor, no stabilization
• 6K open gate video recording up to 60fps, plus 4K slow motion up to 120fps
• 13 color profile presets and Log, but RAW video must be recorded through an external drive
• Improved autofocus performance and built-in memory

We've seen the 24.5MP partially stacked sensor before in various Panasonic Lumix and Nikon models, including the Lumix S1 II and Nikon Z6 III. In the Sigma FP2, however, the sensor is not stabilized, which makes handheld video recording much trickier.

I've included a sample reel below, which demonstrates how challenging it can be to record steady video handheld, even with a steady hand. There is a solution, mind you, and that's to record gyro data which can be used to apply stabilization to footage afterwards using specialist software. Alternatively, of course, the camera can be mounted to a gimbal.

I love the photo and video quality I was able to get from the Sigma FP2 and 50mm F2 DG Contemporary lens: 6K open gate video with a choice of 13 color presets make for quick and versatile output, in various aspect ratios for social media (4K vertical video is possible), while the Log profile is a better bet for users who want to edit after the fact.

Photos can be recorded in RAW and JPEG format, and Sigma cameras use the DNG RAW format, which is universally accepted in editing software. For high-speed action, the FP2 can shoot at a rate of up to 20fps, and for sequences up to 180 frames before the buffer slows up — a decent performance.

Sigma says that autofocus performance has been improved by 15% over the FP, with a broader range of subject detection. I found autofocus snappy on people, and it was smooth and subtle enough for video, too, but haven't had the chance to try it out extensively on other subjects, including animals.

There's 70GB of usable built-in memory, which proved reliable during my test. However, it's not possible to record the memory-hungry RAW video using built-in memory or SD card — you'll need an external SSD for that.

Sigma FP2 sample photos

Sigma FP2: also consider

How I tested the Sigma FP2

• I had the camera for 1-2 weeks before its announcement, along with the 50mm F2 DG Contemporary lens
• I tried the EVF-21 electronic viewfinder
• I shot a variety of photos and videos, all handheld

Sigma introduced the camera to TechRadar a week or two ahead of its global launch, where I saw the FP2, 50mm F2 DG Contemporary lens and various accessories, including the new 5.76m-dot EVF for the FP2.

I was loaned the camera and lens only for my review, and have made the most of that time, taking the gear with me on a break to Lisbon in Portugal where I used it extensively for portraiture and travel photography.

All my images and videos were shot handheld, with no stabilization for video footage. I tried the various color profiles for video and shot in 6K and 4K.

• First reviewed: October 2026
• Read more about how we test

• First phone with three 200MP cameras
• A 50MP selfie camera completes the ultra-wide (0.6x), wide (1x) and telephoto (3x) array
• A photographer's kit includes a 300mm teleconverter lens

There's yet another Pro Max phone in our midst, and this time it's the Oppo Find X10 Pro Max that rivals the iPhone 18 Pro Max, following the Vivo X500 Pro Max and Xiaomi 18 Pro Max. For photographers, Oppo's new handset could top the lot as one of the best camera phones for 2026.

I had a good week with the Oppo Find X10 Pro Max ahead of its launch on October 21, including several days in Lisbon, Portugal, where I had the chance to really put the phones camera through its paces. Our full review by Luker Baker is already live, too.

It packs a slightly simpler camera array to last year's Oppo Find X9 Ultra — the company's flagship cameraphone — with an improved ultra-wide f/2.2 (0.6x), a wide f/1.5 (1x) and a telephoto f/2.1 (3x) camera.

Each of those cameras offers the option for 200MP images — that's right, it's the first phone with triple 200MP cameras. Of course, there's a f/2 selfie camera too, with up to 50MP stills.

Video specs impress too — up to 8K / 30fps video with O-Log 2 color profile, 4K up to 120fps, plus Open Gate video. These are formidable photo and video specs, but how good are the images the Find X10 Pro Max produces?

For me, there's an appealing natural look to most of the photos I've snapped with the Find X10 Pro Max, certainly when compared to the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra. I've included some of my favorite shots so far, below, with notes explaining the camera features.

The Find X10 Pro Max costs £1,499 for the 12GB + 512GB version. It's not sold in the US, while Australia availability is TBC.

Oppo Find X10 Pro Max sample gallery: portrait mode

Oppo Find X10 Pro Max sample gallery: zoom range

Oppo Find X10 Pro Max sample gallery: 300mm teleconverter lens

Oppo Find X10 Pro Max sample gallery: ultra-wide

Oppo Find X10 Pro Max sample gallery: general shots

• Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 winners announced
• James Lewin won the Animals in their Environment category
• He used an infrared converted Nikon Z7 II camera and budget lens for his winning shot

This week I attended the press preview of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 exhibition at the Natural History Museum, London, where I had the opportunity to absorb the winning photos on display and meet many of the photographers who took them, and discuss their work.

As fortune would have it, I got chatting with James Lewin, winner of the Animals in their Environment category, as we waited to get into the venue. The British photographer lives in Kenya, where he took his winning photo — it's a country I know well, having lived there for years myself, so naturally we hit it off.

We both know the challenges facing outdoor photographers in this region: a sunrise / sunset that's over in minutes, and an all-too-brief period of golden light that's quickly followed by typically harsh, bright sunlight.

Most seasoned photographers focus on this narrow window of best light, leaving most of the rest of the day alone. However, Lewin took advantage of the harsh light by adopting a niche photography genre: infrared. It's an unusual approach for wildlife photography, but with Lewin's infrared-converted camera, it's as the 'worst' light kicks in that the fun really begins...

Why infrared photography?

Lewin was observing from a hide near a waterhole in the Chulu Hills in southern Kenya. During dry season, this location gets incredibly congested, as you can see from Lewin's photo, below.

Working in the middle of the day, under bright sunlight and with strong reflections from the waterhole, his images looking unappealing. That's when he made the decision to switch to his infrared-converted Nikon Z7 II.

Lewin has had his Z7 II permanently converted, switching the camera sensor's regular filter with a dedicated 720nm infrared filter (monochrome), which accepts part of the spectrum of light that's invisible to the human eye.

"There would have been no image without it [infrared photography]", he told me. But with it "the skies become more dramatic, the plants reflect infrared light, and you get an otherworldly atmosphere and beautifully soft scene that you cannot produce with a regular camera. It feels more timeless."

Infrared photography warnings

Lewin shared with me a couple of warnings for infrared photography newbies. "If it's beautiful light, don't use an infrared camera because you get all kinds of weird artifacts across the across the image." Nor would he use this gear for, say, a closeup portrait of a lion — the eyes can appear particularly spooky.

He also discovered that some of the latest pro lenses, which he had spent a lot of money on, weren't suitable for infrared. Like many of Nikon's newest lenses, his pricey 24-70mm f/2.8 has protective coatings that reduce things like flare and ghosting, but disturb infrared light.

"You have to go back to having an entirely different set of inexpensive, old lenses that create beautiful infrared images, because they haven't got all of these fancy lens coatings." Indeed, James used a budget friendly 28-75mm f/2.8 for his winning shot.

TechRadar's News Editor Mark Wilson has previously unpacked converting his Fujifilm X-T3 for infrared, and in the process also discovered which Fujifilm lenses were (and weren't) suitable for infrared — you'll need to do the same for your camera system if it's a technique you'd like to try.

A cost-effective alternative to permanently converting a camera is to use a threaded infrared lens filter. However, such filters (combined with a camera's regular sensor filter) reduce light intake to such a degree that a slow shutter speed is required for an accurate exposure, which wouldn't have worked for James' comical photo of the young bull elephant spraying the zebra and giraffe with water. An infrared-converted camera, on the other hand, allowed him to "work at a fast shutter speed, and so to be able to freeze that motion and the water coming out the elephant's trunk".

Traditionally, photographers on safari look for their subjects in the golden hour, and if you haven't found a subject, you'd be waiting until evening to start photographing again. Infrared, however, says Lewin, "opens up a whole new opportunity — when the [best] light is gone [in the morning], that's just the beginning".

Lewin's winning photo is on display at the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition, which is open to the public from 16 October 2026 until July 11 2027 and it's well worth a visit. Tickets can be purchased on the Natural History Museum site with prices starting at £8.50 (child) / £13.60 (concession) / £17 (adult).

Wildlife Photographer of the Year is developed and produced by the Natural History Museum, London. This year's 'Wildlife Photographer of the Year Portfolio 36' book was published on October 14 and costs £28.

• Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 winners announced
• Federico Veronesi takes top prize with elephant carrying a dead calf photo
• Winning photographs showcased at the Natural History Museum, London, from 16 October 2026

The winners of the 62nd Wildlife Photographer of the Year have been announced, and once again the selection gives us a fascinating insight into our planet's animal behaviour and evolving habitats.

A total of 19 young and adult category winners covered specific species and habitats, and the overall top prize has gone to the Behaviour: Mammals category winner Federic Veronesi, with his "heartbreakingly poignant" photo of an elephant carrying a dead calf, witnessed in Namibia, Africa, through a Nikon Z8 and 400mm f/2.8 lens.

Having personally witnessed a recently deceased elephant calf years back in Kenya's Masai Mara National Park, I can resonate with what Chair of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Jury, Kathy Moran, said about the photo:

“Emotionally it’s a gut punch, heartbreakingly poignant. Intellectually it’s proof that animals have cognition. This photograph says it all!”

The contest further unpacks the image: "Behaviours centring on death have been observed in both Asian and African elephants, including vocalisations, guarding the dead, inspecting and handling bones, and carrying the deceased. Some researchers suggest these behaviours could indicate an elephant’s journey to understanding death, while others interpret these actions as possible displays of grief."

Witnessing such a moment in the flesh is something I'll never forget — the grief clearly weighed heavy on the motionless elephant herd, guarding the deceased, trunks drooped on the ground, and Federico's image of a female elephant emerging with a calf, its leg wedged between her tusk and trunk, brings that moment back for me.

I've included a selection of some of the winning images below, which will be on display along with the other winners in an exhibition at the Natural History Museum, London, from 16 October 2026 until July 11 2027. Tickets can be purchased on the Natural History Museum site with prices starting at £8.50 (child) / £13.60 (concession) / £17 (adult).

I particularly appreciate the Natural Artistry category winner, for which photographer Michał Michalski intentionally used a slow shutter speed to capture goldfinches and bramblings taking to the sky, creating the illusion of trees still swathed in autumn foliage — really clever, and visually striking.

Wildlife Photographer of the Year is developed and produced by the Natural History Museum, London. This year's 'Wildlife Photographer of the Year Portfolio 36' book will be published on October 14 and costs £28.

WPOTY 2026 category winners

• Rumors point to a 'Nikon Z70' reveal before 2026 is out
• It's supposedly a mirrorless successor to the crop-sensor Nikon D500 DSLR flagship
• As such, expect a rugged design and high-speed photography to feature

One DSLR that Nikon is yet to give to give the mirrorless camera treatment to is the decade-old D500 — but rumors over the last few months suggest that the wait could be over soon through what's being dubbed the Nikon Z70.

The D500 was Nikon's flagship crop-sensor DSLR (APS-C, known as 'DX' for Nikon cameras), with a rugged body, dual card slots and high-speed burst shooting. In other words, it's a mini, crop-sensor version of Nikon's D6 full-frame camera that's used by professional sports, wildlife and news photographers.

We already have the Nikon Z9 as the mirrorless spiritual successor of the D6, and next there could be the crop-sensor equivalent, a rumored Nikon Z70, which sounds like a dream camera for enthusiast wildlife and sports photographers.

The long-time Z70 rumor mill still lacks firm details, and largely lists out educated guesses. The New Camera, however, spotted a Z70 listing on Apple's official ProRes and ProRes RAW Authorized Products page in August, and believes the Z70 will land in November this year.

A flagship Nikon crop-sensor camera would naturally sit above the Nikon Z50 II with a tougher pro-grade body, and likely a faster sensor (perhaps the stacked type like the Fujifilm X-H2S), in-body image stabilization, and shooting speeds we haven't seen from a Nikon camera before. New Camera also suggests video specs will be strong, and include internal ProRes Raw recording (based on the Apple listing).

These kind of features put the would-be Z70 in direct competition with the Canon EOS R7 — which could get a powerful successor soon — the Fujifilm X-H2S, and the Sony A6700, and I wouldn't be surprised if Nikon's tops the lot. Where it would currently come up short, however, is lens selection. On that front, there was concrete, promising news last week.

More good news for Nikon 'DX' shooters

While we don't know a lot about the rumored Z70, we do know that a new Z-mount lens for APS-C cameras was announced last week; the Sigma 16-300mm do-it-all travel zoom.

The lens has been around for over a year in Sony, L-mount and Canon RF versions, but it becomes the first Sigma zoom lens for Nikon's Z-mount, which is a promising sign for Nikon shooters.

Nikon has poured a lot of resources into its full-frame mirrorless camera system, but its APS-C cameras haven't received the same love. As such, it's slim pickings for any enthusiast sports/wildlife photographer wanting a high-quality Z-mount super-telephoto zoom native to its crop sensor cameras.

Sigma's 16-300mm lens, which has a 24-450mm equivalent focal length, isn't quite the bright aperture lens for demanding sports/wildlife photographers. But with the door seemingly open to Sigma, we could start to see more crop-sensor Z-mount lenses that might just scratch that itch.

And for photographers with a deep pocket (and a strong back), the Nikon Z 120-300mm f/2.8 TC VR S (with built-in 1.4x teleconverter) for full-frame cameras (which would work with crop-sensor cameras like the rumored Z70) is en route. Nikon announced its development earlier this year, and recent rumors suggest it will land soon.

Camera gear enthusiasts, myself included, can be an impatient lot at times. We want to see shiny new models with better features (whether we need them or not).

So what happens when two of the major manufacturers have had a particularly quiet year? Pandemonium (on the rumor sites' comment sections, at least)!

So far in 2026, Sony has released the 5-star A7 V and A7R VI mirrorless cameras, and revived its bridge camera range with the class-leading RX10 V. Canon has delivered another 5-star camera, the EOS R6 Mark III, and revealed an all-new design with the recent EOS R8 Mark II.

Where are Fujifilm and Nikon in this picture? Fujifilm is yet to release a single camera this year. The same was true for Nikon until recently, when it launched a viewfinder-less 'C' version of the Z5 II.

Before that, the last camera Nikon released was the Nikon Zr cinema/vlogging camera, and the Z5 II before that, marking 18 months with no truly new mirrorless camera.

Rumors heavily suggested a Fujifilm X-T6 would land in September, but one month on, we're still waiting. And it's set against this backdrop that fans with a touch of GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) are getting agitated.

Well, I'm here to address those concerns with a healthy reality check.

Already ahead of the game

Yes, new is exciting. This year I've felt the buzz of testing the Ricoh GR IV, Sony A7R VI, Lumix L10, OM System PEN, Leica Q3 Monochrom and Canon EOS R8 Mark II, among others. However, it was the last camera on that list that brought a point into sharp focus for me — cameras have a pretty long shelf life.

The EOS R8 Mark II was a decent upgrade from the EOS R8 from 2023, with a new look, design improvements, and in-body image stabilization added — basically addressing key drawbacks of the original. However, it still failed to reach the entry-level full-frame camera bar set by Nikon 18 months ago with the Z5 II.

In fact, every current Nikon camera fares well against direct rivals at every level — the Z8 from 2023, for example, remains an incredible pro camera. And if you were to ask me which APS-C mirrorless camera I'd recommend in 2026, it would have to be the Fujifilm X-T5. Yes, a camera released in 2022.

Fujifilm hasn’t launched a new camera in 2026. And Nikon's only effort so far is a version of an existing camera with the viewfinder removed. But I don't think that matters.

In the case of the 2025 Z5 II, it already set the entry-level full-frame camera standard and even Canon’s new model hasn’t met it. And you won't find a better APS-C sensor than the Fujifilm X-T5's stabilized 40MP unit. If and when Fujifilm does release an X-T6, it will be improving on an already class-leading model.

Of course, there is space and a need for improvement, but a manufacturer having a quiet year isn’t quite the big deal many Fujifilm and Nikon fans currently make it out to be.

What do you think? Do camera companies need to release new products every year? Have your say in the comments below.

I'm a bit late to the party, but six months ago I picked up the Peak Design Mobile Tripod and attached it to my Pixel 8 Pro. It has lived on my phone ever since.

The tiny magnetic tripod fixes onto any MagSafe / Qi2 phone, though pretty weakly, so I also picked up Peak Design's dedicated SlimLink mobile phone case, which provides a strong, secure attachment I can trust.

It folds flat to just 0.8cm / 0.3 inches thick and neatly fits the profile of a phone when attached vertically — using the tripod in this orientation is a breeze. It's possible to rotate the phone 90 degrees for a horizontal setup, but it's slightly fiddly. You get the knack quick enough, though.

I initially picked up the Mobile Tripod for hands-free filming and photography, as it's an ideal tabletop setup. However, I quickly adopted it for hands-free watching too — perfect on the foldout tables on trains and planes.

It was liberating to give my hands a break and easily position my phone exactly how I liked, especially for long-form watching. I also regularly found its small footprint handy for creative photography techniques, such as the Pixel's long exposure mode — it'll fit on a flat-topped fence post, for example.

As such, the Peak Design Mobile Tripod has now become my most-used phone accessory. At $80 / £75 / AU$125, it's fairly pricey, as is the way with Peak Design accessories. However, you are getting a premium-quality product.

So is the Peak Design Mobile Tripod perfect?

In short, no. As I mentioned, you'll absolutely want Peak Design's compatible SlimLink phone case for a secure attachment (available for iPhone, Galaxy and Pixel). The case I picked up looks lovely. However, it blocked my phone's tap-to-pay feature, meaning I had to remove the case every time I needed to make a payment. Major frustration.

As for the tripod itself, it's wonderfully compact, but consequently its leg length (and therefore maximum height) is tiny. The leg design is smart, mind you, folding away inside the magnetic tripod plate.

The legs attach to the plate via a ball head, the tension of which can be adjusted with a tiny hex key that slots within the legs. Fine adjustments to the angle of the ball head (and therefore the phone) are a breeze, and with the proper tension, completely secure for a Pixel 8 Pro phone or larger — once you position the tripod, it won't budge.

I'd love the legs to extend a little more, but not if that resulted in a larger and less secure product. The fact that it snaps to a phone and adds just 2.7oz / 76g and 0.8cm / 0.3 inches depth is why it has stayed on my device. Any bulkier, and I would have used it less. Yes, it's still a heavier setup than no tripod at all, but I soon got used to the extra weight.

About 4 months in with the Mobile Tripod, I found that the tiny magnet that holds the hex key had come loose. However, the key remained magnetically attached to the phone, so I didn't lose it, and applying a little super glue fixed the magnet back in place.

Despite some minor niggles, the Peak Design Mobile Tripod has lived on my phone ever since I got it. It's an easy recommendation if you ever need to go hands-free for filming, photography, or simply watching videos.

And the ultimate day bag?

Another Peak Design product that I have been using over the same period is the Travel Weekender 25L. It's part of a new range of Peak Design travel bags. I was sent the Sage Green version of the bag ahead of its official release, and it truly looks the part.

One side fits my 17-inch MacBook Pro, while the main compartment is neatly divided into two open areas, with stretch pockets lining each wall for smaller accessories. The divider itself is a zipped pocket.

I've loved using it for days when I'm travelling with a laptop, a camera and a couple of lenses / accessories (stowed in one half of the bag), plus some day items and spare clothes (in the other half). It'll fit various Peak Design Camera Cubes (the smaller ones), which provide extra padded protection for gear.

The bag very much lives up to its Weekender name, but it's a slick option for commuting, too. It also features an exterior loop on one side to slot over the handle of a wheeled cabin suitcase — I've happily paired it with Peak Design's Roller Pro suitcase for a couple of city breaks. The Weekender 25L is available in three colors and costs $200 / £170.

• Sigma completes its trinity of f/2.8 zoom lenses for APS-C cameras
• The 50-120mm lens (75-180mm equivalent) comes to Sony, Canon and Fujifilm from October 22
• It weighs just 13.4oz / 380g and costs $799 / £699 (about AU$1,300)

Sigma has completed a trinity of f/2.8 zooms with the 50-120mm F2.8 DC OS Contemporary — and it proves that you don't need shoot full-frame to have access to exciting lenses.

Designed for APS-C cameras, the telephoto zoom has an equivalent focal length of 75-180mm, and sits alongside Sigma's 10-18mm F2.8 and 18-50mm F2.8.

What's particularly compelling about Sigma's latest f/2.8 zoom is just how compact, lightweight and affordable it is. It measures just 10cm / 4 inches long, weighs 13.4oz / 380g, and costs $799 / £699 (about AU$1,300).

I already own an incredible full-frame 70-200mm f/2.8 telephoto zoom, and it's my most-used lens for professional work. Portraiture, events, sports, even landscape photography — you name it, it can do it all.

That lens is a beast by comparison, however, weighing around 35oz / 1kg. For context, all three of Sigma's f/2.8 zooms for APS-C cameras combined weigh less and cost less — my full-frame lens cost me north of $2,000 / £2,000, which is around three times the 50-120mm's price.

With this new lens alone, Sigma has made APS-C cameras more compelling than before — but it's not good news for all photographers.

The f/2.8 zoom that Sony, Canon and Fujifilm cameras needed — but Nikon misses out

The Sigma 50-120mm F2.8 DC OS Contemporary goes on sale from October 22 in Sony E, Fujifilm X and Canon RF versions. Sony and Canon offer no such lens for their APS-C mirrorless cameras, while Fujifilm has the twice-as-hefty (and pricier) XF 50-140mm f/2.8 R LM OIS WR in its range. Nikon photographers, meanwhile, miss out entirely.

There was some consolation for Nikon photographers — Sigma simultaneously announced that its 16-300mm travel zoom is coming to Nikon Z mount. However, we don't know if the new 50-120mm will make it to the Nikon Z mount.

I haven't personally tested Sigma's 50-120mm F2.8 lens, but I have high hopes for it having already tested the ultra-wide 10-18mm F2.8 zoom for Sony and being thoroughly impressed — the new telephoto zoom is seemingly built to the same standard.

Yes, it misses out out that extra reach at the telephoto end, maxing out at 180mm rather than 200mm (and sadly it won't work with teleconverters to extend the reach), but presumably the thinking behind the focal length range was to make the particularly compact design possible — and that I can get behind.

Telephoto zooms are workhorse lenses, often used on long shoot days. A f/2.8 telephoto zoom that practically fits in the hand and weighs just a third of what I'm used to makes a strong case for APS-C cameras, and it seems that APS-C fans agree — one Reddit thread is already dubbing the lens "an APS-C legend in the making".

• The "eclipse of the century" takes place on August 2, 2027
• Its totality will be up to six minutes and 22 seconds
• The total eclipse track covers parts of North Africa, Southern Spain and the Middle East

This year's solar eclipse was a magical sight, but 2027's is being billed as the "eclipse of the century", with six minutes and 22 seconds of totality set for Luxor in Egypt — that's almost three times longer than this year's, and an eclipse duration which won't be matched again until 2114.

We can expect hotels and flights to peak destinations to sell out way in advance, so if you're keen to see the spectacle in person, it'll pay to arrange your travel plans ASAP if you haven't already (and start saving!).

Fortunately for eclipse chasers, the eclipse track will cover thousands of miles, meaning there are plenty of other alternatives to Luxor, including popular holiday destinations spanning Spain, Gibraltar, North Africa and the Middle East.

If you're especially keen to photograph the solar eclipse (over simply observing it), there's a major consideration beyond the length of totality, though for the full experience you will of course want to head somewhere that will experience totality. That consideration is the solar altitude — in other words, the position of the sun in the sky during totality.

Best places to photograph the eclipse of the century

To photograph the 2027 solar eclipse in all its glory, you'll need to be in a place where there is totality. Not even 99% will do, but a full 100%. And while Luxor gets the longest totality (and the headlines), the solar altitude will be approximately 82 degrees high – that's almost overhead, limiting photography opportunities.

With solar altitude so high during totality, not only will it be hard to frame the eclipse with landmarks or subjects, but even framing a closeup of the sun's corona means pointing your camera straight up, which makes composition especially fiddly.

The very best eclipse photos almost always frame the eclipse with points of interest in the landscape — Olympic skateboarder Danny León jumping mid-air on a half-pipe positioned on the horizon in rural Spain, as the moon eclipsed the sun behind him, was this year's viral solar eclipse shot.

So where is the solar altitude more favorable than Luxor? Tangier in Morocco, for one, where solar altitude will be approximately 39 degrees high. Gibraltar and parts of southern Spain will have a similar solar altitude to Tangier. Options in this region include historic Cadiz, which will have totality lasting two minutes and 56 seconds, while Tarifa (overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar) is closer to the eclipse path centerline and will experience four minutes and 40 seconds of totality. These European locations are blessed with plenty of seascapes and mountains to frame your shot.

Total solar eclipse 2027: further resources

Parts of Spain, Gibraltar, Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria are in the solar eclipse pathway, while Luxor in Egypt will grab the headlines (rightly so) because it's right on the centerline and will enjoy the longest totality. Top alternative tourist locations with transport infrastructure and accommodation options to consider include Tangier (Morocco), Oran (Algeria) and Sfax (Tunisia).

If we've learnt anything from previous eclipses, sometimes the best plan is to simply look up (with the correct safety equipment) and enjoy the spectacle without getting bogged down by camera gear. That said, with a particularly lengthy totality for the 2027 eclipse, it could be possible to do both — enjoy and photograph it!

I've already shared some top tips on how to photograph a solar eclipse, a major part of which includes planning your shot. For next year's solar eclipse, try an interactive eclipse map such as Xavier Jubier’s Google Map, as well as handy apps such as The Photographer’s Ephemeris (which has a highly detailed Solar Eclipse Simulator) and PhotoPills (which is a personal favorite of mine) to discover the altitude and azimuth of the sun at any given location. Locations with totality and low solar altitude are a good place to start for eclipse photography.

For an even more detailed breakdown of the precise time and places to watch the total solar eclipse, you can visit the European Space Agency website, or consult an interactive map at the Time and Date site.

Will you be visiting a location for the solar eclipse totality on August 2, 2027? You can vote in our poll below to let us know what camera gear you plan to use to photograph the event with.

OM System PEN: Two-minute review

Given the ongoing component shortages and price pressures, producing an affordable camera in 2026 is no mean feat — and that's exactly what OM System has achieved with the new PEN.

It has delivered the rangefinder-style mirrorless camera many PEN fans have been crying out for, and equipped it with in-body image stabilization, twin displays, a retro weather-proof design (IPX1-rated), and a range of fun computational photography modes — and kept the price to $1,000 / £850 / $AU1,800. Need a lens? The 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 III kit (see below) is just $100 / £100 / AU$300 extra.

Beyond that kit lens, the OM PEN is part of the Micro Four Thirds system, with hundreds of lenses to choose, covering just about any situation, though any of these will add to the cost. I found it to be a great pairing with the low-cost Olympus 45mm f/1.8 for portraiture.

There's little that's new here, mind you — we have the same 20.4MP CMOS sensor with 5-axis image stabilization as previous models, including the OM System OM-5 II, and the same 121-point hybrid phase-detection autofocus, with stripped back subject-detection options. The vari-angle touchscreen and 2.36m-dot EVF are borrowed from previous models, too.

However, the OM PEN remains utterly compelling because it's so much fun to shoot the everyday with, so easy on the eye, and kind on the wallet. Sure, the PEN could be better in various areas (some of the controls are particularly fiddly), but all is forgiven when you consider the overall package, and that price tag.

Having used the camera for several weeks (and made direct comparisons with the excellent Lumix 10 premium compact), I think the OM System PEN as an ideal starter camera for smartphone upgraders — and it's the best beginner camera for 2026 so far.

OM System PEN review: Price and release date

• Announced in September 2026
• Costs $999.99 / £849 / AU$1,499 (body-only) or $1,099 / £949 / AU$1,799 with new 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 III kit lens
• Available in two colorways: all black, and black with silver trim

After years of rumors, OM System finally put its name on a successor for the Olympus PEN series of cameras. And like the OM-5 II before it, the OM System PEN is excellent value for money in an industry otherwise feeling the effects of component shortages and price hikes — where else can you find a new interchangeable-lens camera with a viewfinder and in-body image stabilization for less $1,000?

That price is for the body only, mind you, and if you're starting from scratch the best-value package is the camera with the new 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 III zoom lens, and that costs $100 / £100 / AU$300 extra. The third-generation kit lens was announced alongside the camera, and gains a splash-proof design, matching the OM PEN camera.

The camera is available for preorder now in two colorways: black, and black with silver trim.

OM System PEN review: specs

OM System PEN review: Design

• Compact, IPX1-rated body that weighs just 13.9oz / 393g
• Twin displays: 2.36m-dot EVF and 1.04m-dot vari-angle touchscreen
• USB-C charging, mic port and hotshoe

There's no shortage of OM System bodies, but the PEN is the first OM-branded rangefinder proper, with its 2.36m-dot EVF neatly tucked into the top-left corner of the compact, IPX1-rated retro body.

It's the same EVF that you'll find in the slightly pricier OM-5 Mark II — a camera that we awarded a 5-star rating, and which sits in top spot in TechRadar's best travel cameras guide.

The key difference between those two bodies is that the OM-5 Mark II has higher-rated weatherproofing, a pronounced viewfinder bump, and a larger grip — meaning it's better suited to inclement weather, outdoor photography, and use with larger lenses. The OM PEN is also a superb travel camera, but you'd typically use it on city breaks, for everyday and street photography with smaller lenses.

It has the retro charm we've come to expect from Olympus / OM System bodies, and I particular liked the black and silver version I had for this review. It's equipped with a hotshoe for accessories such as an external flash (there's no built-in flash), a Mono / Color profile switch, a USB-C port for charging, micro HDMI, mic jack and a single SD card slot.

Most of the buttons are small and can be a little fiddly. I found accessing the computational photography a pain — you need to hold down the 'CP' button while rotating the top dial (that the shutter button is set within) to access the menu. Why not require just a press of the CP button to open the menu?

The on/off switch is poorly designed, too — good luck trying to land on the photography setting without skipping past it to the video mode. If you have moderately large hands like I do, the whole layout might feel a little fiddly. And I'm sure there are some retro camera fans who will be disappointed that there's no cable-release thread in the shutter button. All that being said, I still very much enjoyed using the PEN.

OM System PEN review: Performance

• 20.4MP CMOS sensor with 5-axis stabilization
• BLS-7 battery with 410-shot CIPA rating
• 121-point hybrid phase detection autofocus with subject tracking

A 20.4MP Micro Four Thirds sensor is nothing to get too excited about in and of itself when you consider the larger-sensor, higher-resolution alternatives that are available.

Computational photography modes can close the gap where there are drawbacks; addressing the fewer pixels and lesser dynamic range versus larger-sensor alternatives, though they don't work for every scenario. (I've included some examples, above.)

With 5.5EV image stabilization, the High Res Shot mode can be used handheld to increase resolution from 20MP to 50MP, though it won't work for scenes with movement in them. The same can be said for the HDR modes, which also work by combining several images captured sequentially together into one, and would otherwise have ghosting in them where there's movement in the scene during capture. For still scenes, HDR works perfectly well for increasing dynamic range.

As a starter camera, however, the level of detail this tried and tested sensor is able to capture is easily sufficient for travel and everyday photography. Add a decent lens — and there are hundreds to choose from, including the low-cost 45mm f/1.8 for portraiture — and you have the foundation for smartphone-beating images.

There's nothing wrong with OM System's 121-point hybrid phase-detection autofocus system, despite its stripped-back selection of subject-detection options that includes humans or animals (cats and dogs).

I've used other systems with a wider range of subject-detection modes, but for the most part you'd struggle to see a major difference in performance — when tracking birds, for example, I found the animal-detection autofocus to be sticky. There's not the same degree of complexity for face and eye detection, though — it's reliable, but you can't manually switch which eye the camera autofocuses on.

Battery life is decent, being rated at 410 shots, but video specs are fairly basic for 2026 — 4K up to 30fps / C4K up to 24fps, with a wide choice of color profiles including OM System's flat OM-Log400 profile, but just 8-bit color depth. The slow and quick mode unleashes up to 120fps slow-motion recording, or down to 1fps quick motion, but in 1080p only. Image stabilization works for video, though, which is a major draw for a camera at this price point.

Should I buy the OM System PEN?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

OM System PEN review: also consider

How I tested the OM System PEN

• OM System loaned me the black and silver version of the PEN and the 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 III kit lens for several weeks
• I also used it with Olympus 45mm f/1.8 / Leica 12-60mm f/2.8-4 lenses
• I took the camera to China for a work trip, and used it in a variety of scenarios, trying out the various computational photography modes

OM System sent me the black and silver version of the PEN with the new 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 III kit lens, and I used the kit regularly for several weeks, including during a work trip to China. I also paired the camera with an Olympus 45mm f/1.8 lens and a (Panasonic) Leica 12-60mm f/2.8-4 lens.

I've tried the various computational photography modes, used slow shutter speeds, and shot video handheld to test the image stabilization effectiveness, and tried out various autofocus modes.

I've used the camera in light rain and in bright light, testing its splash proof credentials and the brightness of its displays. Along the way, I compared the PEN to the Lumix L10, a similar MFT camera.

• First reviewed: October 2026
• Read more about how we test

• DoorDash has unveiled the drone it's testing with deliveries
• An average delivery time of under five minutes is promised
• The drones will be tested in a limited trial in North California

The future of doorstep delivery is drones apparently (well, drones and robots): DoorDash has unveiled a new drone ready to get food to you in under five minutes on average, even as Amazon faces a growing number of complaints over its own drone delivery service.

DoorDash has been planning drone deliveries for a while, calling the scheme DoorDash Air, and we've now been given a look at the six-propeller aircraft that'll be doing the delivering. A trial is planned for Northern California, in partnership with restaurant brands including Chipotle and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen.

A lot of work has gone into the pick-up and drop-off infrastructure and ordering system, DoorDash says, as well as the drone itself. The company estimates that around 80% of customer orders are light enough to transport by drone, and initial tests suggest orders can be delivered in less than five minutes on average.

Reaction online hasn't been overwhelmingly positive though. "Wait until the birds learn there’s food in those boxes," writes one Redditor, while others express concerns about bad weather, cold food, and packages accidentally being dropped from the skies.

Noise complaints

"Any local business should be able to reach consumers by air," says DoorDash Air chief Harrison Shih. "We built the whole system so that they can deliver by air without being disruptive to how they run their business."

The drones won't land when they deliver — they'll lower their cargo in front of your door or in your backyard and then zoom away again. According to DoorDash, failsafes will be built in so the drones can safely land in emergencies, and their cruising noise will be comparable to a passing car "at delivery height".

That noise element might be crucial to the scheme's success. As TechSpot reports, residents in Richardson, Texas are none too pleased about the constant buzzing being created by Amazon drones, which launched Prime Air in the area last December. The sound has been compared to that of a flying lawnmower.

Dozens of drones can pass overhead each day, residents say. The Prime Air aircraft are allowed to fly between the hours of 7am and 8pm, and Amazon says noise complaints have been a small share of customer feedback.

Bird Buddy 2: Two-minute review

The Bird Buddy 2 is the next-gen smart feeder on from the sleek, popular Bird Buddy Smart Feeder Pro. It shares the same integrated solar roof panels but has a new circular magnetic camera unit that pops out and rotates instantly between 9:16 portrait and 16:9 landscape modes.

More than six months after first hanging the Bird Buddy 2 in my garden, I'm delighted with its build quality and solar efficiency; however, it's fair to say my relationship with this smart feeder is still a mix of genuine appreciation and lingering frustration.

The feeder's integrated solar roof has kept the camera powered continuously for over half a year without me needing to bring it inside to charge once (which is good, as this is a fiddly job).

Combine that with its neat, easy-wipe, plastic build, clean refill design, and a charming app full of postcards and daily highlights, and I think it remains one of the most enjoyable, albeit pared-back smart feeders on the market. The equally popular Birdfy ecosystem offers more functionality, whereas I see Bird Buddy aiming for a simpler user experience.

Although it's easily rotatable, the camera is fixed facing forward, and framing isn’t quite right for landscape mode. The shallow seed tray means smaller birds sitting right in the seed for a good munch get cropped at the bottom of the frame. But now that 2K Ultra video resolution is available to Premium users, it takes the clarity of footage to an impressive level.

As I’ve said, one of the big selling points of the Bird Buddy app is how user-friendly and engaging it is, but this can come at the detriment of basic usability features – such as having customizable sleeping hours – meaning my camera regularly missed the earliest (and often most active) morning visitors because it’s not awake to record them.

But I do love how easy it is to keep your feed organised. New postcards will stay in your active feed for a week. From here, you can choose to collect or discard them (and the collection is where postcards stay permanently), which means the onus is on you to curate your sightings and choose the best clips and stills.

I'm not sold on the app feature to give images filters and birds outfits – but if it helps entice younger users into birdwatching, then maybe it's not such an awful idea. There's also a lot of educational content, with Birdy Buddy feeding you tidbits of facts about identified species.

• Interested what other options are available besides the Bird Buddy 2? Check out our best bird feeder cameras guide.

I found live streaming to be occasionally laggy, sometimes not loading at all, and even when I set the camera to Frenzy Mode, the AI postcard capture missed birds I could clearly see sitting on the feeder from my kitchen window. It’s not the most reliable feeder I’ve used, and not ideal if you want to capture every single bird and build a picture of their visiting habits; however, it does stop your feed from getting clogged with thousands of similar clips.

Despite these niggles and quirks, I really enjoy the core experience. The AI bird identification is almost perfect, the postcard collection system provides a handy highlight reel, and the solar roof means near-continuous use.

The Bird Buddy 2 is a sleek, low-maintenance smart feeder with strong app design and best-in-class solar performance. For now, it earns its spot in my garden (and believe me, I have four smart feeders on the go), though I can’t help thinking about its price and hope tighter bird detection lands in future updates.

Bird Buddy 2: Price and availability

• Wider release rolled out in mid-2026
• Available via Amazon US and Amazon UK
• $299 in the US (approx. £300)

At $299 in the US and about £300 on Amazon UK, the Bird Buddy 2 sits firmly at the premium end of smart bird feeders. It demands a serious investment compared to standard single-camera setups and sits noticeably higher than competitors like the Birdfy range (even the dual-lens Birdfy Feeder 2 Pro at $279).

Bird Buddy is fully functional without a paid subscription, however, giving you AI species identification, live streaming, and daily Postcards for free. The Bird Buddy Pro subscription ($5.99/month or $59.99/year) is optional and unlocks longer video clips, 2K Ultra Resolution, Alexa integration, species-specific AI filtering and more.

US buyers can order directly from Bird Buddy or Amazon, but the brand doesn't currently ship the Gen 2 directly to the UK via its official site. That leaves Amazon UK (around £300) as the main route for UK buyers to get hold of one.

That price tag covers the built-in solar roof, but you don't get accessories like a wall mount in the box, and mounting poles are separate, too (less surprising). The Bird Buddy 2 is undoubtedly a steep purchase, with extra costs for the Premium features like 2K Ultra footage. I think a handful of keen and more technically-minded birders spending this much might feel short-changed.

Bird Buddy 2: Specs

Bird Buddy 2: Design

• Flush solar roof for cable-free, continuous power
• IP67-rated weatherproof housing
• Magnetic camera module for quick portrait and landscape switching

I found setting up the Bird Buddy 2 pretty painless; a booklet in the box details assembly, plus an app walkthrough. Like all smart feeders, you need to download the app first, then follow a series of illustrated steps to set up the Wi-Fi connection between your phone and the camera. It takes no more than five minutes and has been well thought through.

Initially, I connected the Bird Buddy 2 to my main internet router (likely about 12 metres away), as it said there was a strong signal. But each day I checked the app status, and it flagged that there was a low, unstable signal, and this may affect the number of postcards I was getting. Well, reader, it did just this, as I regularly watched a couple of blue tits land, feast and fly off from my kitchen window without any notifications.

I then added a wireless extender much closer to the garden and the camera. You can't change the Wi-Fi network on the camera directly in the app and instead have to factory reset the device and pair it again as a new one. This doesn’t lose postcards and your history as I thought it would; it’s more just a faff.

I’ve tested over ten smart bird feeder cams in my garden before, and the Bird Buddy 2 stands out for its clean aesthetics. It’s still plastic (recycled ASA plastic with an IP67 weather rating) rather than wood or bamboo, but the housing feels solid and has resisted any signs of UV fading over a very hot, bright British summer. Crucially, I’ve also found it fairly easy to keep clean, but you can't dunk the whole feeder in water to avoid getting the USB-C charging point wet.

On earlier units, you could pop the camera out to charge and leave the feeder hanging outside. With the Gen 2, because the solar roof and camera housing are wired together, offline charging requires unhooking the entire dirty feeder or wrestling with the mounting bracket outdoors. At least the solar roof panels sit flush against the top without trailing cables or awkward side arms. Top-ups are easy thanks to a rear-sliding tray that lets you pour seed in without spilling. There’s less room for access than other feeders I’ve tried where the lid totally comes off, but it’s nice and secure.

The biggest design change on this second-generation unit is its circular, rather than pill-shaped camera module. It attaches in a magnetic socket behind a scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass lens, and can be twisted 90 degrees to flip between vertical (9:16) and widescreen (16:9) modes on the fly. For bird photographers who are more accustomed to landscape framing, I think it’s a welcome addition.

However, I found that the seed tray depth negates some of the benefits of having two different views. Because the tray floor sits close to the lens mount, small garden birds often drop low into the seed to feed. In both portrait and landscape orientation, this leaves their bodies cut off by the bottom lip of the frame, resulting in video clips that showcase plenty of background trees but only the top of a bird's head.

There are several ways to mount the Bird Buddy 2. The easiest is to use the metal hanger wire included in the box, which keeps the feeder suspended from a hook or branch in your garden. I used this option and found the wire very strong, though the Feeder did sway slightly in high winds.

A bottom bracket adapter is included in the box, though Bird Buddy sells a metal mounting pole separately. A wall mount for fence panels and outside walls is another optional add-on, which is a shame, as rival Birdfy usually includes this option in the box.

Bird Buddy 2: Performance

• Flawless solar power over months
• 5MP images detailed in bright light; quality drops off in shade
• Engaging app experience, though the live stream is laggy

If there’s one good reason to buy the Bird Buddy 2, it is the battery performance. Over six months of continuous outdoor use, the solar roof kept the battery topped up continuously and is still at 100% as I write this review. I haven't needed to bring the camera inside to plug it into a wall outlet even once—a massive win for an outdoor smart device—even if I have had to bring it in for cleaning and firmware updates.

Like any camera, the Bird Buddy 2’s image quality depends on the light quality. When mounted in gentle, direct sunlight, I found the 1080p videos and 5MP photos captured were crisp and vibrant. Close-ups show some feather textures, eye reflections, and accurate colors, particularly on bright birds like blue tits. The 2K Ultra footage (available to premium users) truly has the sharp look you might expect at a $299 / £300 price point.

For smartphone viewing and social media sharing, both the 1080p and 2K Ultra clips look great – colorful, sharp, instantly recognizable, and easy to download and share to your camera roll. It's a shame that the downloaded images have the Bird Buddy watermark, but this isn't unique to the brand.

The wider 135-degree field of view also gives a nice sense of surrounding garden action, but I still find it frustrating how much of the bird gets cut off when sat straight in the feeder.

Like most small-sensor outdoor cameras, image quality drops off noticeably in flat or shaded light, and noise becomes noticeable. In high-contrast situations (like bright sun filtering through trees), the dynamic range struggles, leading to blown-out highlights or heavy shadows on dark-plumaged birds. The built-in microphone is clean enough for the app's AI audio identification features to work effectively.

As for AI species identification, only a handful of entries weren't identified, usually because the bird in question (Common wood pigeon) was too close to the camera, but you can edit the species manually if you want. When it does trigger automatically, however, the digital Postcards are delightful. Instead of spamming your phone with hundreds of motion-alert notifications like standard security cameras, the AI compiles a daily highlight reel with accurate species identification. It turns checking your garden activity into an enjoyable daily routine rather than notification clutter.

Detection consistency is an area needing refinement. The app prioritizes simplicity over granular controls, which means you can’t adjust the camera's sleep and wake hours. As a result, the feeder frequently stayed asleep past dawn, missing early-morning feeding rushes.

Even when I toggled it to Frenzy Mode for maximum recording sensitivity, the feeder frequently ignored birds clearly visible with the naked eye. Live streaming initially suffered similar latency issues, often taking 15 to 20 seconds to establish a connection, but improved with time. Maybe like the hobby of birdwatching itself, the Bird Buddy 2 just requires a bit of patience and learning to get into the swing of things.

Should you buy the Bird Buddy 2?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider

How I tested the Bird Buddy 2

• Tested for 6 months
• Hung in a UK garden between April and September
• Tried HD and 2K video and stills

I tested the Bird Buddy 2 for more than 6 months, hanging it from a pole in my UK garden where small birds and squirrels visit regularly through the seasons. I left the feeder in the same spot, only bringing it inside briefly once a month for cleaning.

I paired the feeder to my iPhone 15 Pro using the Bird Buddy app, and set up a nearby Wi-Fi extender in my kitchen to ensure it always had a strong connection. I tested the feeder's reliability for recording sightings, assessed the AI recognition and tested all the features and settings available in the Bird Buddy app.

Before May, I filled up the feeder more fully with a premium garden bird seed mix. During the summer months, I followed RSPB guidance on feeding birds and left small amounts of mealworms and suet in the base of the feeder.

First reviewed October 2026

• Critics claim a competition-winning video was made using AI
• They cite unusual movements in the cells shown in the footage
• Contest organizer Nikon says it is investigating

Last month, a video depicting airway cells in motion in a child’s body wowed the world and took home first prize in Nikon’s annual Small World in Motion competition. Yet the footage might not have been all that it seemed, with Nikon now reportedly investigating whether AI played an outsized role.

The image in question showed a child’s airway cilia, which are tiny hair-like structures that protrude from cells. The video was captured at 100x magnification and was shot by Dr. Ning Xu of Tsinghua University in China, who said that “When people watch cilia beating, they immediately understand that something beautiful and important is happening inside us.”

As charming as that sounds, the video raised questions once it became apparent that it had taken home Nikon’s prize. Some scientists have questioned whether the motion seen in the video accurately reflects cilia movements, raising the idea that AI might have been used at some point.

And Nikon has since clarified its position. Commenting under its own post on LinkedIn, Nikon said that it was “carefully re-reviewing the information provided during the initial vetting, along with additional supporting materials from the entrant.”

It added that “Dr. Ning Xu is respectfully complying and has provided detailed technical documentation outlining the microscopy equipment, imaging methods, and processing techniques used to create the source video. We plan to update the Nikon Small World community next week.”

Claims of AI watermarks

Dr. Xu has denied breaking the competition’s rules, saying on LinkedIn (via BBC News) that “AI was not used to generate the experimental movie, the cilia, or their motion.” However, they have conceded to using AI to “to distinguish and visualize features in the reconstructed grayscale images.”

Some critics have argued that the entry’s use of AI goes far beyond that, with claims being put forward that the cilia’s shapes do not fit with known behaviors and that the cilia appear to be too large.

Edward Phelps, Associate Professor at the University of Florida, said on LinkedIn that “There any many serious problems with this video,” for instance, with certain elements “popping in and out of existence and migrating between cells.”

What’s more, Ian Donovan a PhD student at UT Southwestern Medical Center, claimed to have uncovered “an embedded SynthID watermark identifying synthetic/AI-generated content.”

We’ll have to wait to see what conclusion Nikon’s investigation reaches, but it should perhaps not be surprising that, in the age of AI, remarkable images come under much more suspicion than they might have done in the past. AI or not, it’ll be fascinating to see what Nikon’s probe uncovers.

OM System has finally given Olympus PEN fans what they've been wanting for years: a PEN update. The series of rangefinder-style cameras with Micro Four Thirds mount has a cult following, and the latest model to join the ranks, simply named the OM System PEN, is surprisingly affordable.

At the time of writing, I'm still using and testing the new OM System PEN for my in-depth review — look out for my comprehensive verdict, coming soon. But throughout my time with the retro-cool camera I've been struck by just how similar it is in design and size to another hit camera from 2026: the Panasonic Lumix L10 premium compact.

I've already used the Lumix L10 alongside the viral Fujifilm X100VI to see which of those two premium compact cameras I preferred, and there's lots to like about the classy model, which marked the 25th anniversary of Lumix — but how does it fare against a mirrorless camera?

I took the Lumix L10 and the OM System PEN with me on a work trip to China, where I had plenty of opportunities to shoot cityscapes, street photography and more with both cameras, and get a real feel for them in the process. Let's dive in and see how they compare.

Lenses: the major difference

• OM System PEN: Micro Four Thirds lens mount, with hundreds of lenses to choose from
• Lumix L10: A built-in 24-75mm f/1.7-2.8 lens

The OM System PEN features a Micro Four Thirds (MFT) lens mount, meaning it's directly compatible with hundreds of MFT lenses that between them cover just about any situation — macro, portraiture, wildlife, you name it. The camera can be purchased body-only, or with a new kit lens — the 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 III (equivalent 28-84mm). Unlike previous versions, this third-generation lens is "splash proof", as is the OM PEN body.

The Lumix L10, meanwhile, has a built-in 10.9-34mm f/1.7-2.8 zoom lens (24-75mm equivalent), which is more compact than the OM PEN's new kit lens. It extends when you turn the camera on and when zooming, and is, theoretically, at risk of dust ingress over long-term use. Panasonic doesn't class the lens as dust- and moisture-proof, but does note that the design has been improved from previous LX100 cameras that the L10 is based on.

If I'm comparing the two cameras based on using the PEN with its kit lens, then I easily prefer the Lumix L10. The lenses have similar optical zoom ranges — 3x (OM PEN) to 3.1x (Lumix L10) — but the wider focal length of the L10 at the short end of the range makes it the more versatile of the two. The L10's lens is also physically smaller, and its brighter maximum aperture is way more versatile for portraiture and low-light photography.

All that being said, you can easily swap out the OM PEN's kit lens for another, and doing so makes many of the above comparisons moot. For example, I also used the tiny 45mm f/1.8 lens (90mm equivalent) with the OM PEN, and capturing shallow-depth-of-field portraits with this combo is a breeze.

Of course, more lenses means additional cost. If you're starting off with the OM PEN's kit lens, and unlikely to buy more glass, then the Lumix L10 wins here.

In the hand

It's remarkable just how similar the OM System PEN and Panasonic Lumix L10 look. Their bodies are nigh on identical in size, and strikingly similar in appearance and layout. If you want retro looks, both fit the bill.

Both feature a rangefinder-style 2.36m-dot EVF, and I couldn't spot any real differences between these displays. The same is true of the 3-inch articulating touchscreens, though the L10's has a higher-resolution display that looks slightly crisper to the eye. Both feature a hotshoe for accessories such as an external flash, and a largely similar control layout.

There are some minor differences; the OM PEN has an additional color mode dial on the front beside the lens, and it's screen sits nice and flush in the body when folded away. The fiddly on/off switch is poorly designed, though — good luck trying to simply turn it to photo mode without shooting past to the video modes.

The Lumix L10 has a slicker, classier feel to it, with a shutter button (complete with a thread for a cable release) set within the zoom rocker, and a button set within an exposure dial (both the button and the dial are customizable). I'm less convinced about the memory-card door placement being on the camera's underside as opposed to the side. Also, its retractable lens design results in a two-second wait before the camera is ready to shoot from powering up, which limits its street photography credentials.

Battery life is solid for both models too, at 420 shots (L10) to 410 shots (OM PEN) respectively. Overall, I enjoyed the feel of the Lumix L10 more.

Features to play with

Both cameras feature a Micro Four Thirds sensor — the OM PEN's is a 20.4MP, while the Lumix L10's is 26.5MP. You'd think that would be an image-quality win for the Lumix L10; however it's not that simple. Because of its built-in lens design, the L10 can't use the entire sensor area for photos, and with 20.4MP effective pixels, the playing field regarding resolution is leveled — image-quality potential (ignoring factors such as lens choice) is effectively the same.

One major difference is that the OM PEN's sensor features 5-axis image stabilization (IBIS), whereas the Lumix L10 has no such feature. OM System rates the effectiveness of the OM PEN's IBIS up to 5.5EV, which makes it the more versatile of the two for some handheld photography and video.

Pair that image stabilization with the PEN's computational photography modes, which includes Live ND for long-exposure effects (up to 4EV), High-Res shot (increasing the camera's resolution for detailed landscape shots, up to 50MP), focus stacking (ideal for macro photography), and HDR (extending dynamic range in a final single shot), and you have a powerful tool, no tripod needed.

The Lumix L10 has tricks of its own, mind you, including High-Res shot, while it's the more feature-packed of the two for video, with 5.6K recording, 5.2K open gate, and Panasonic's latest Real Time LUTs profiles and phase detection autofocus. For stills, autofocus performance is similar, but for video the L10 has the edge.

Lumix L10 sample gallery

OM System PEN sample gallery

Price and availability

• OM System PEN: $999.99 / £849 / AU$1,499 body-only, $1,099.99 / £949 / AU$1,799 with the 14-42mm kit lens
• Lumix L10: $1,499 / £1,299 / A$2,599

OM System has priced the new PEN very aggressively, which is refreshing in a time of component shortages and price hikes. I can't think of another camera with a built-in EVF and in-body image stabilization for a price this low — $999.99 / £849 / AU$1,499 body-only, or an additional $100 / £100 / AU$300 for the 14-42mm mark III lens kit.

The latter kit-lens price is the fairer comparison, since you're getting a built-in lens with the Lumix L10, and the PEN is still cheaper. If we're talking optical quality, however, then a pricier OM System lens, such as the 12-45mm f/4 Pro, is an even fairer comparison, at which point each camera feels like similar value for money. Yes, it's cheaper getting started with the OM PEN, but if you're going to build your lens collection then the Lumix L10's one-off price will likely end up being the lower long-term outlay of the two.

OM System PEN vs Lumix L10: early verdict

The OM PEN's rangefinder-style design is well suited to everyday photography, as is the Lumix L10. As such, users are typically going to pair the PEN with lenses that sit within the range that the Lumix L10's built-in 24-75mm f/1.8-2.8 lens already covers. To a degree, therefore, the PEN's lens-choice advantage becomes less important, which surprised me.

Overall, I preferred the feel of the Lumix L10 — it's the classier and slicker camera of the two, and better equipped for video. However, it's slow start-up time (because of the retracting lens design) is a drawback, while I appreciated the OM PEN's in-body image stabilization, and its arsenal of computational modes for creative shooting techniques.

As with so many camera comparison tests I undertake, each of these models has its own distinct advantages. I like the convenience of the OM PEN, but as a standalone package I prefer the Lumix L10.

Fujifilm Instax Pal 2: Two-minute review

I’ve never seen my teenage son more animated about a camera than he was about the Instax Pal 2 — and he’s seen his fair share over the course of my years reviewing gear.

It’s tactile and sensory, with its exaggerated sound effects, clicky winding lever, joystick, dampened dial, and pop-out USB-C connector. For my son, it was like a fidget toy. And I have to confess it was for me too.

The emphasis here is on toy, mind you — he could happily fiddle with the controls for hours without taking a single photo.

Even with my Serious Camera Reviewer hat on, I’m enamored with the Pal 2; it's cute, it's dinky, and there’s enough here to keep my attention.

There's the winding lever that scrolls through the Instax mini, square and wide film formats (or no border at all); the dampened dial for the various picture effects; the joystick that you use to navigate a sub-menu with options for self-timer, flash and display modes, and which you can also press to open the main menu.

Then there’s the cut-out optical viewfinder, and a top-down, 1.3-inch screen for waist-level photography, a red playback button and clear ‘back’ button. Every control is unique, and characterful.

Fujifilm’s design department clearly knows its market — the Pal 2 is latest in a long line of quirky, retro fun models that include the original Pal, the X half and the Instax Mini Evo Cinema.

In a way it’s easy to forget that this palm-sized bundle of retro fun is a camera at all; but that's what it is, and it’s one with very basic tech inside: a tiny 1/3.06-inch sensor with 10MP JPEG photos, shot through a 28mm equivalent f/2.2 lens, with an LED flash for close-up low-light shots. There's no video here, just a 10-shot Animation mode.

It’s also Wi-Fi / Bluetooth-equipped, meaning users can wirelessly connect to a smart device and use the Instax Pal app for image uploads and sharing (the Pal app wasn't updated for the Pal 2 at the time of my review), or to one of Fujifilm’s Instax link printers for uploads or direct printing onto Instax film. There’s that pop-out USB-C for charging, too.

But — and it's a big but — it’s very expensive. The Pal 2 is not priced like the toy camera it is.

You can get four Kodak Charmeras for the price of one Instax Pal 2 and have some change left over. Yes, the Pal 2 is more camera than the Charmera in every way, but they are in the same novelty camera category, and the Charmera knows its place better.

Yes, my son loves the Pal 2, but it’s not in pocket-money saving territory, and it would be a stretch as a birthday gift.

It's easy to be won over by the Pal 2 — this is a retro, pocket digital camera with wireless image uploads and Instax printing. But when the Instax Mini Evo costs the same, and that camera has a larger body and screen, and can print images selected from the gallery directly, the Pal 2 feels like a stretch. If its price comes down, like the X half's did (by about 40%), then it might be a different picture.

Fujifilm Instax Pal 2 review: Price and release date

• Announced in September 2026
• Priced at $169.95 / £149.99 / AU$249
• Available in two colorways; black with silver trim, or white with silver trim

The Fujifilm Instax Pal 2 costs $169.95 / £149.99 / AU$249 and is available in two colorways: black with silver trim, or white with silver trim. It comes with a small rubber selfie stand, which fixes in place by slotting around the lens, and a wrist strap.

Fujifilm Instax Pal 2 review: specs

Fujifilm Instax Pal 2 review: Design

• Weighs just 3oz / 87g, fits in a pocket
• Cool retro look and multi-sensory controls
• Twin displays: LCD and cutout optical viewfinder

It might share the name as the original Pal, but the two cameras bear little resemblance to each other. The original Pal’s golf ball-like exterior is cast aside in favor of retro-style, mini Fujifilm camera-like body.

Fujifilm has packed a lot of controls and features into the tiny, palm-sized body, including a cut-out viewfinder, 1.3-inch top LCD, winding lever, on/off dial, a joystick set within another dial, playback and back buttons, a pop-out USB-C, and a tiny selfie mirror, tripod mount, microSD card slot, and LED flash.

Each control has its own distinct character, and it took me no time at all to memorize each one, meaning I could instinctively locate them.

For the most part, I only found myself scrolling through the Instax film types (glorified aspect ratios) using the winding lever, and using the six picture styles, and the flash settings, self-timer and display mode options in the sub-menu. There’s little else to experiment with, besides perhaps exposure compensation, which is buried in the menu.

You can choose whether to display the selected picture style on the LCD display (kind of like a film roll), or the live view, when composing images. I'd hardly say composition is critical though, because the lens is a wide-angle 28mm optic, meaning you can blindly point the Pal 2 in the direction of your subject and it will be in the shot.

There’s plenty to like about the design of the Instax Pal 2. It’s a highly enjoyable camera to play around with, and it earned plenty of admiring comments from other tech journalists when I was attending another event.

Fujifilm Instax Pal 2 review: Performance

• Wide-angle 28mm f/2.2 lens
• 10MP JPEGs, plus a 10-shot animation mode
• Bluetooth / Wi-Fi equipped for wireless image uploads and printing

The charming, tactile and dinky design is the major appeal of the Instax Pal 2 — you’re not buying it for its technically impressive images and high-speed performance.

Take the JPEG-only photos (up to 10MP, depending on the aspect ratio) from the tiny 1/3.06-inch sensor and 28mm f/2.2 lens. There's no getting away from the fact they're lo-fi images; they're Better than the Charmera’s, but no match for your phone’s.

Don’t expect much detail in highlights, either — they blow out with the camera’s exposure metering left to its own devices, although ±2EV exposure compensation is buried in the camera’s main menu, so it is possibly to go for dark, moody photos too.

The six color profiles are all towards the vintage end of the scale, with options for Soft, Muted, Cool, Flare, Mono and Pure (see below). If you want a punchy, vivid setting, you’re out of luck. The picture style and aspect ratio used at the time of shooting, whether that’s mini, square, wide or no border, are locked in.

Technically this is a photo-only camera, but if you turn the winding lever clockwise (instead of counter clockwise for the Instax film borders), you can enter a burst-shooting 'animation' mode that takes up to 10 photos in a sequence and then pieces them into a single stop motion-like clip (see above).

There’s a built-in battery that's recharged through USB-C — and you’ll need to do that regularly, because battery life is poor. A combination of me playing around with the camera settings and taking around 50-75 images saw battery life depleted by three quarters, so you’ll struggle to get through a full day of shooting.

Shutter lag — the time between pressing the shutter button and the camera actually taking the photo — can get really frustrating, and it’s made worse with the LED flash active. You'll need to hold the camera steady after pressing the shutter, and hope that your subject stays still, otherwise you'll miss the shot

I had the flash mostly set to auto, and it mostly only fired in low light — this isn’t a flash-on for every photo setup, as is the case with some Instax mini cameras.

As with any wide-angle camera, but especially so with the Pal 2's small picture size, it pays to have your subject close and filling the frame to maximize the impact of the photo — this isn’t a camera for taking landscape images, in which detail will be lost.

A curiosity is that the camera limits users to 100 shots between connections to the Pal app, whether that's shooting onto the internal memory or the microSD card. This isn't an issue when shooting onto the internal memory, since there's only space for 100 shots, but I found it a frustrating and unnecessary restriction when shooting to the card.

The original Instax Pal app is also designed for the Pal 2, but at the time of writing there wasn't an update for the app, so I haven't been able to try it out with the latest camera yet. I'll update this review once I've tried wireless uploads and printing.

Should I buy the Fujifilm Instax Pal 2?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Fujifilm Instax Pal 2 review: also consider

How I tested the Fujifilm Instax Pal 2

• Fujifilm loaned me the black and silver version of the Instax Pal 2 for three weeks
• I kept the camera with me at all times, and took it to China for a work trip
• I've shot around 150 photos using the various picture styles and aspect ratios (Instax borders)

Instax loaned me the black-with-silver-trim version of the Pal 2 for a few weeks, during which time I’ve kept it on me as an everyday camera, and taken it to China on a work trip.

I’ve used the various picture effects, aspect ratios (Instax film types), the self-timer and the LED flash, and tried the 10-frame animation mode.

At the time of my review, the Instax Pal app wasn't updated for use with the Pal 2 (on Android, at least). I'll update this review once I've paired the camera with the app and used it properly.

• First reviewed: September 2026
• Read more about how we test

What if you could "spend the day making a shot that AI could make in a minute?" That's the somewhat facetious pitch for Polaroid's new all-analog Polaroid Mod Instant camera, and, in my experience, it's a challenge I accepted and thoroughly enjoyed.

No, it doesn't take all day to make some pretty wild instant Polaroid photos with the Mod, but it's also not as easy or unsatisfying as entering a prompt and waiting for a far-flung generative model to do the work.

Sitting somewhere between the Polaroid I-2 and the Polaroid Flip (in functionality if not price), the Polaroid Mod, which Polaroid unveiled today (September 29) and gave me some time with earlier this month, takes virtually every setting that might've been digital on a previous 21st-century Polaroid and made it analog, or more precisely, a series of dials.

With its metallic finish and familiar curves and angles — right down to the flip-open front film pack loader —it's instantly recognizable as a member of the Polaroid family. The gray body features a two-lens system: a 103mm main lens and a 95mm portrait lens. It uses an infrared autofocus system (it has just two focus zones, to keep things simple). There's a small dial on the front for exposure control with just three settings: auto, one step lower, or one step higher.

There's a large embedded flash and a red shutter button. On the back is a touch control for the flash, an LED light readout for the number of photos left, and a self-timer. There's a USB-C port to juice up the 750mAh battery, which should last through shooting over a dozen film packs.

The most important feature, though, and one that leads to an almost endless array of creative possibilities, is the mode dial around the main lens. In addition to the auto setting, it offers a Double-Exposure setting, Split Shot, Motion Freeze, and Light Painting. Each is represented by a tiny but clear cryptogram. The camera even ships with a special half-lens cover to assist in the Split Shot.

Like most of Polaroid's other full-size instant cameras, the Mod is designed to work with 600 film and Polaroid's I-Type instant film packs.

Let's shoot

Polaroid walked us through some of the basics of shooting with this relatively retro camera, and I was so struck by the simplicity of each operation that I felt empowered to try a few of them.

At 520g, the camera feels lightweight but substantial in the hand. It's also pretty rugged: I accidentally dropped the camera from a height of almost four feet. The film pack door popped open, but the Polaroid Mod was otherwise unharmed and worked for all my future shots.

I held the camera at eye level, looked through the large viewfinder, and snapped a photo of photographer and current Director of Polaroid's 20x24 Studio John Reuter. A second after I pressed the well-placed shutter button, I heard that iconic motor whir to life as the Mod spit out my first, still blue, undeveloped image. Polaroid film still takes 10 to 15 minutes to fully develop. When I finally had the finished image, I was impressed with the quality despite the suboptimal lighting.

I was anxious, though, to try out the wilder flights of photographic fancy, and with a colleague, I set about making my first Split Image.

First, I selected the mode by twisting the dial until I could see that icon. I asked my friend to stand with a drink and imagine she was toasting herself. On the camera, I placed the half-lens cover, which, as the name implies, leaves only half the film exposed.

In this mode, the camera will show a 1 on the tiny readout when you take the first photo.

I then repositioned my friend so she was shifted to the right and facing the opposite direction. Meanwhile, I took off the lens cover and switched it so the other half of the film would be exposed. On the readout, it shows a "2" to let you know the camera is ready for the second image.

I took the second image, and then the photo spit out of the Mod. The finished image was pretty cool, though I realize more care in the camera position and my subject would be needed for the maximum effect.

The Double Exposure setting is somewhat similar, but instead of using the lens cover, you shoot the first image with the lower exposure setting and then find your second subject and shoot the next image (again, the digital readout shows a "2") for the next part of your double image. The example we saw was an oversized live cat next to his tiny owner.

There's a motion freeze that opens a long exposure in which you can move the camera and then blast a flash at the end to capture a sharper image.

I was intrigued, though, by the Light Painting settings. After watching Polaroid try it with a variety of light sources, I asked Tom's Guide's Kate Kozuch to work with me on making my own Polaroid Mod light painting photos with an iPhone flashlight as a light source.

This Polaroid Mod mode gives you a full seven seconds of exposure to create some pretty wild images. Polaroid recommends a tripod, but I'm pretty good at holding still. For our shots, which we did in an almost fully darkened event space, I had Kate wave around the iPhone flashlight in a couple of different patterns. The results, which I saw 15 minutes later, were honestly far better than I expected.

I should be clear about something, though: most of these images, even in the best lighting, are arthouse quality. They can be grainy, moody, with sharp contrast between light and dark. I tend to love them, but if you're used to the clarity of an iPhone or Samsung Galaxy, you might be surprised, and not in a good way.

These images tend to tell a story with every bit of unpolished grain, so how you shoot it is as much a part of the tale as what you shot. With enough fiddling with the few available settings and true daylight, you might get some images approaching basic iPhone 13 quality but, again, that's not why you buy one of these cameras.

The camera, which goes on sale today, lists in the US for now (globally early next year) for $169.99 (a little cheaper than the Flip and roughly half the price of the more complex I-2), a comparatively affordable price, but keep in mind that Polaroid 600 and I-Type film can run you $20 for 8 pictures. At least you can get twice the imagery with the double exposure and split modes.

• Vivo announced a new G2 Ultra 4.7x teleconverter lens alongside its flagship X500 series of phones
• The lens comes in the X500 Pro Max photographer's kit, or it can be purchased separately. It's compatible with all three X500 phones
• The phones and accessories are China-only for now, with a wider rollout TBD

My first time was… OK, but my second was a revelation. Behave, I'm talking about taking photos with a smartphone and teleconverter, of course, and Vivo has shown Oppo, Honor, and everyone else, in fact — including Apple — how it’s done.

Available separately (in China only) or in the Vivo X500 Pro Max photographer’s kit (much like the previous X300 Ultra-compatible model), there are now two teleconverter lenses that extend the phone’s reach: a 2.3x and a new ‘G2 Ultra’ 4.7x.

Like the Oppo Find X9 Ultra and its teleconverter lens, they are designed to be paired with the phone’s telephoto camera, but in this case, it’s a 3.5x lens with an 85mm effective focal length. Add the ‘G2 Ultra’ 4.7x teleconverter — which is a proper bit of gear with Zeiss optics — and you therefore have a 400mm lens, no digital zoom required.

What particularly impressed me on the Vivo X500 Pro Max is how its teleconverter is implemented within the phone's camera app. You check the teleconverter option in the camera menu, after which an icon always appears on the screen.

If you want to use the teleconverter, tap the teleconverter icon, follow the prompt to select which teleconverter is attached, and the phone corrects the image for use with the phone (the teleconverter uses mirrors, so the image would otherwise be upside down).

The Oppo phone, on the other hand, requires a dedicated teleconverter mode to optimize the image. This mode is severely simple and restricted, and therefore you cannot use it with the phone’s best camera features. The same can be said for new Honor Magic 9 Pro Max and the latest iPhone 18 devices paired with third-party options such as PGY Tech and its associated app (as demonstrated by @byteddyk).

Meanwhile, the Vivo X500 Pro Max doesn’t require a dedicated mode — it can be used with any of the other modes, with no real restriction in place, making the teleconverter inherently more useful.

A teleconverter with no limit

Working with any shooting mode and the 3.5x telephoto camera means that users can access the phone’s maximum 200MP resolution. You can select the Pro mode with RAW file format and full control over exposure, too.

Or how about SnapShot — a mode designed for action photography that automatically uses a high shutter speed, which you likely want to use at such a magnified 400mm focal length for wildlife and sports photos.

Oppo’s teleconverter mode can do none of those things, and it’s real case use is fairly limited, as I discovered when attempting to photograph a pro Champions League soccer match from my distant seat in the stadium.

The cherry on the X500 Pro Max and teleconverter cake is that the lens is supported by decent image stabilization, though you're not getting the 7EV in-body image stabilization like with the phone's main camera.

The lens comes with a collar and tripod mount, making it easy to attach to a tripod. It's best to use one, but I found that I could still shoot sharp images, smooth video, and track subjects handheld at 400mm.

It's also possible to extend the 400mm reach digitally, with 800mm, 1200mm, 1600mm, and 3200mm options, but I find that using the digital zoom with a Vivo phone makes for artificial-looking photos (when pixel peeping, at least. A better option is to up the resolution from the standard 12MP to 50MP or 200MP and then crop in. Check the gallery below to see how much you can crop in from a 200MP file.

I still have the Oppo Find X9 Ultra and its teleconverter, but I couldn’t ever get past the limitations of using it. The Vivo, on the other hand, will be the setup I reach for next time I want to grab super-telephoto shots with a phone.

For now, sadly, the Vivo X500 series and accessories are only available in China, with a wider rollout TBD, though these flagship Vivo devices have not sold directly in the US or UK before.

Still, the G2 Ultra 4.7x teleconverter is a real showcase of what smartphone cameras can be capable of — hopefully, one day, they will be more widely available.

• A study carried out by researchers in France looked at drone delivery for defibrillators
• It found that wait times could be cut by 3.76 minutes on average
• Provision of more fixed defibrillators and better placement of the devices is important too

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrests are currently survived by fewer than 1 in 10 people, but researchers in France have explored a new defibrillator delivery method that could help push these figures in the right direction: delivery by drone.

In an analysis carried out by Lariboisière Hospital emergency physician Hillary Minka and her colleagues, drone delivery capabilities were added to the current network of fixed automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in areas surrounding Paris.

Using drones could cut delivery times by an average of 3.76 minutes, the simulations showed, with 95% of cardiac arrest patients reached within five minutes, compared to the current 30-40% figure when relying on foot and road transport of the devices.

However, the researchers emphasize that the provision of more AEDs should be a priority too, not just the use of drones to deliver them, and say locating more AEDs in places that are publicly accessible, rather than in private spaces, will also help. Together, they say these measures could increase the five-minute coverage rate to 99.4%.

Real-world testing is next

"Drones will never replace bystanders, resuscitation efforts or emergency medical teams," says Minka. "However, they could represent an additional link in the chain of survival and help make defibrillation available more quickly."

The researchers' work also showed the importance of the geographical distribution of AEDs. Better placement reduces the need for additional units, given the drone range of around 3,900 meters (12,.795 feet).

Next, the researchers want to set up real-world trials. This new study was based on simulations and modeling — no actual drones were flown — and so it doesn't take into account any day-to-day variables, such as weather conditions.

The study hasn't yet been peer-reviewed, but it has been presented at the European Emergency Medicine Congress 2026 in Paris. Defibrillators are already delivered by drone in some parts of Sweden, and it may not be too long before other countries follow its lead.

• The Godox iT32 simplifies off-camera flash with its modular remote trigger
• It's available from just $79 / £87 (about AU$140), plus as a kit with your choice of trigger
• Wireless triggers covering leading camera systems are also available separately

Price and technical complexity put most people off ever trying off-camera flash photography — and if you're in that camp, I implore you to consider the Godox iT32.

The Godox kit is the camera flash reimagined for today; it's simpler and cheaper than others I've tried, and I had a blast using it with my Nikon, Canon and Olympus (OM System) camera gear. I shot portraits that popped, and ones that I simply couldn't have created by relying on available light alone.

What's so different about the iT32? Well, it's built around a remote trigger, which snaps magnetically into the base of the flash itself, and secures to your camera's hotshoe. The trigger, called the X5, is available in five versions for leading camera systems: Canon, Sony, Nikon, Fujifilm and Olympus / Panasonic. I used three of them for my review.

This unique design simplifies off-camera flash. You can quickly switch from on-camera to off-camera flash, which you'll want to do for the best results, simply by pulling the flash off the remote trigger, which remains in the hotshoe. With some basic camera settings knowledge — which I'll share later in this article — off-camera flash really is a cinch. Heck, it's even fun.

For other camera flashes, you'll need separate remote triggers and receivers attached to the camera and the flash respectively for off-camera flash, all adding to the cost and complexity of the setup.

The iT32 also features a touchscreen to navigate settings, and it might surprise you just how innovative this feels, given that camera flash design has remained largely the same for decades, with most models featuring a basic LCD (or no screen at all).

Furthermore, the iT32's internal battery charges via USB-C. Again, a regular-sounding feature in 2026, but most others continue to be powered by AA batteries.

Perhaps the best part of all is that the Godox iT32 costs a fraction of the price of old-fashioned proprietary alternatives from Nikon, Canon, Sony and others. It's available for just $79 / £87 (about AU$140), with your choice of remote trigger costing an additional $19-20 / £17-18 (about AU$30).

Shoot with multiple camera systems? You can buy additional X5 triggers separately, again cutting the cost of having to fork out for multiple flashguns for different cameras. The Fujifilm trigger costs $19 / £17, while the Sony, Canon, Nikon and Olympus units cost $20 / £18).

Godox sent me the iT32 flash with X5 triggers for Canon, Nikon and Olympus cameras for review (each manufacturer's hotshoe is the same size, but with a unique pin design), and each version worked flawlessly for iTTL (through-the-lens metering) flash.

For the gains, the iT32 may well be the best money you spend on camera gear this year. Let's dig into my experience with the Godox iT32 a little more, and why you might want to use it.

The case for off-camera flash

I used to shoot with natural light at all costs. After all, flash photography can be a complicated business — the technique, the extra gear, not to mention the prohibitive cost — whereas available light felt simplest of all.

There's no getting around it, though: sometimes you just need off-camera flash to lift portraits and still-life photography. For me, flash has become an essential part of my setup for portraiture and weddings. And in this vein, the Godox iT32 quashes all of the hurdles for getting started.

I came across the Godox kit when I spotted a fellow tech journalist using it at an event for the Lumix L10. At first, it looked like a regular flashgun, the kind I've relied on for years. However, he then pulled it off the camera and carried on using it as per usual. I grilled him about it, saw it in action, and knew that I had to get one for myself.

You see, on-camera flash is one thing, of the type that's built into your phone or camera, but being able to direct light is another level, and that's what the iT32 allows you to do, the most accessible way imaginable.

The classic Rembrandt lighting, for example, is 45 degrees above and to the side of your subject. With the iT32, you can simply line up the shot, remove the flash from the receiver on the camera, and hold it manually to get that effect. You then just snap it back in place when you're done. For me, for the first time, off-camera flash felt completely simple, even enjoyable.

How I used the Godox iT32

In addition to composing your shot and understanding where to position the flash, you'll need to know what flash settings to use for any given situation.

A two-second hold of the power/test button turns the flash on (the button illuminates green), followed by a swipe up of the screen. This two-step process confirms you didn't accidentally turn the flash on.

From here, exposure compensation can be dialled in (manually adjusting the brightness of the flash) by swiping the screen left or right, or scrolling the dial on the flash's side.

The menu is accessed through the menu button or by swiping down the touchscreen, where you'll find the option for a model (continuous) light, the flash modes and more.

There are iTTL, manual and multi-strobe flash modes, plus options for rear curtain, front curtain and high-speed flash.

I tend to rely on iTTL (through-the-lens auto-exposure metering), which is available with the flash physically or wirelessly attached to the X5 trigger, and experiment with exposure compensation for each scenario. Sometimes I just want a little fill light, so I'll dial in negative exposure compensation. Other times I'll want punchy lighting for which I might not make any changes at all. In any case, the maximum power of the flash is impressively bright.

For the manual flash mode, flash brightness is adjusted in the same way as exposure compensation for the iTTL mode.

You won't generally need to bother with the on-camera / sender / receiver menu options, as the flash automatically switches modes when you attach or detach the flash from the X5 trigger.

I only had a single iT32 flashgun for my testing, but it is possible to sync multiple flashguns and control the brightness as a group using the basic controls on the remote trigger.

If you want different brightness values for multiple flashes — say, the main front flash at full value and a side- or rear-positioned flash as a dimmer fill light — then those values need to be dialled in on the flashgun itself when it's off-camera. Something to bear in mind if the flashes aren't easily accessible in your setup.

With iTTL in play, I set camera exposure settings manually, mainly because I usually want background detail to come through, too, rather than it being mostly black or seriously under exposed.

The flash sync speed of most cameras maxes out at around 1/250sec, but 1/160sec is a safe bet. An aperture of around f/11 tends to make a correct exposure in daylight, while a brighter aperture with shallow depth of field, say f/2.8, can be possible in low light at night or indoors.

An ND lens filter will unleash a brighter aperture in daylight for shallow depth of field (or a camera like the Sony A9 III). I then use a high ISO setting that brings through some of the background detail.

For the portraits I took at golden hour, my camera settings were 1/160sec, f/11 and ISO 3200, with the flash set to iTTL and the power adjusted with -0.7EV exposure compensation. Those settings are a good starting point to experiment from — but, of course, they depend on how bright the ambient light is.

Having used two flashguns for years that each require 4 x AA batteries, I really appreciated the USB-C charging of the iT32. The port can also be used for firmware updates, say, adding compatibility with future cameras.

The X5 remote trigger also has a built-in battery, and this receives charge when docked in the iT32 flash. The LCD shows the battery life of both units, and if you run into any off-camera pairing issues, docking the flash back in the trigger will do the trick.

The perfect package?

Is the Godox iT32 the perfect package? For pros, not quite — there's no multi-channel feature for individually controlling brightness values from the main transmitter of complex multi-camera flash setups. However, for beginners and simple 1-2 light setups, with the features on board and the low asking price, the iT32 is for me the perfect gateway to off-camera flash.

• The Z5 II C is a lighter version of the full-frame Nikon Z5 II, without a viewfinder
• Prices start at $1,399 / £1,349 / AU$2,399, on-sale date mid-October
• It's available in black or black/silver colorways, and numerous lens kit options

Nikon redefined entry-level full-frame cameras with the Z5 II, which scooped our Camera of the Year 2025 award. Now the company is upending the notion that full-frame is just for pros with its most affordable and compact model in this format yet, the Z5 II C.

As its name suggests, the Z5 II C is a ‘compact’ version of the Z5 II, and the key difference is that it doesn’t have a viewfinder (and it has a single card slot rather than dual slots). This means the ‘C’ model is smaller, lighter and cheaper.

It still has a tough magnesium-alloy body with a chunky grip, is sealed for dust and moisture resistance, and packs a healthy 3.2-inch, 2.1m-dot vari-angle LCD, all carried over from the Z5 II. The cameras share identical features too; the same 24.5MP full-frame sensor with image stabilization that’s rated up to 7.5EV.

Nikon UK's Training Specialist Ricci Chera briefed me on the camera ahead of its September 24 announcement and mid-October on-sale date, emphasizing that the Z5 II C is about choice, offering certain users the “benefits of full-frame, without paying for something they’re never going to use [a viewfinder]”.

Is Nikon onto something here? Is the $1,399 / £1,349 / AU$2,399 asking price enough of a gap to tempt first-time buyers, or sway them from the Z5 II?

So, full-frame is for beginners now?

The low £1,349 / AU$2,399 asking price of the ‘C’ version seems pretty appealing, especially given the spec and features you're getting: the Z5 II C has the same sensor as the Z5 II and Nikon’s latest processor, while its subject-detection autofocus can recognize subjects even when they take up as little as 3% of the frame, and which is low-light sensitive to -10EV (with a new ‘fish’ detection mode added — that’s a first),

There's also 14fps with a mechanical shutter (30fps electronic) and 4K video with 12-bit N-RAW internal recording, and much more. Besides the Lumix S9, I can't think of a better-value full-frame camera, and not one that launched for such a low price.

The price and compact size are the major selling points of this full-frame model, which Nikon says is about offering users "choice" — the pricier and larger Z5 II with a viewfinder and dual card slots, or the cheaper and smaller viewfinder-less Z5 II C. I get the logic.

However, I’d still stump up the extra cash for the Z5 II — its viewfinder is bright, big and immersive, it has the extra card slot, and I personally don’t mind the extra size and 100g in weight (the Z5 II C is around 600g with card and battery inserted while the Z5 II is around 700g).

Video-first users and even smartphone upgraders who've never experienced a viewfinder might not feel the same way, and for them the Z5 II C could prove to be the wiser choice, and one of the hits of 2026. We'll bring you our review of Nikon's latest full-framer soon.

• Vivo launched the flagship X500 series of phones, with three new models
• A new monitoring screen comes in the X500 Pro Max photographer's kit, or it can be purchased separately
• At launch, all the phones and accessories are China-only, with a wider rollout TBD

Vivo quietly launched a really neat accessory alongside its new flagship X500 series of phones — an ultra-slim and light Bluetooth monitoring touchscreen — and, having paired it with the new X500 Pro Max, I wish it were compatible with my phone.

The monitoring touchscreen, aka a selfie screen, mirrors your phone's camera app, complete with touchscreen control over key camera settings and subject tracking, and can be attached to the phone magnetically or used as a remote monitor within its Bluetooth range.

Why not just use your phone's selfie camera instead, you ask? Well, the quality of the rear-facing selfie camera is always inferior to the front-facing cameras, as are the camera settings available.

A selfie screen, on the other hand, unleashes the device's superior front cameras — in the case of the Vivo X500 Pro Max, a triple array including a 50MP main camera and a 200MP 3.5x telephoto camera.

We've seen this kind of selfie screen tech before; Insta360's Snap Selfie Screen comes to mind. However, it needs a cable to connect to a phone, it has an annoying protective cover that flaps around when the screen is in use, and the display is smaller and harder to see. The new Vivo accessory, however, is better and more sophisticated in every way.

The best mobile accessory for 2026 so far?

Vloggers should take note of Vivo's new selfie screen. For one, it can snap onto the device magnetically, or be used by hand, so long as a Bluetooth connection is possible. No cable needed.

Used as a remote monitor, you can position your phone somewhere, say, on a tripod, and then walk into the shot and see what your phone is seeing, no cameraperson needed. (Great for group photos as well, by the way.)

It's clearly a trend — the Insta360 Luna Ultra vlogging camera features a removable touchscreen and controller module (which also has a built-in mic), while DJI launched a remote controller with a screen for its Pocket 4 series.

Whether used remotely or attached magnetically, the Vivo selfie screen's 3.92-inch AMOLED display with 419 pixels per inch (PPI) is clear and crisp. It’s also super light and thin, measuring just 5.65mm thick and weighing 68g — you'll barely feel it on the phone.

It has a USB-C port for charging, plus three side buttons, including a recording button and one for adjusting the screen's brightness levels. Otherwise, that's it.

What's unclear at this stage is which devices are compatible with the monitoring screen, besides the Vivo X500 series, if any.

There’s one major drawback to using it with the Vivo X500 Pro Max — neither device is MagSafe, meaning you need a dedicated case for the phone and monitor for them to stick together!

Vivo sells a case (and the monitor) separately, or they're included in a photographer’s kit which also includes two teleconverter lenses. Meanwhile, the monitor is supplied with a magnetic MagSafe-style rubber case. Vivo says the monitor costs 699 Chinese Yuan (a price conversion is $105 / £78 approximately, though international pricing will be higher).

Compared to the other similar devices I've tried, I found the Vivo vlogging monitor lighter, has a clearer display, and I appreciated its wireless connectivity, with options for remote or MagSafe-styler setups.

If you ever shoot selfie content and wish you could more easily use your phone’s superior front camera, then a selfie screen is a great option, and Vivo looks like it has just made the best one. If it turns out to be compatible with your device, then it could be the best phone accessory you buy all year — I'll update this page once I know more about the availability and compatibility of the screen.

• Over 1,000 small drones are being added to the British Army’s modernized battlefield surveillance kit
• 245 FOXE-NATO drones from Evolve Dynamics in Hampshire, England, have been ordered by the Ministry of Defence (MoD), with a further 670 built by California-based Skydio
• A further £400 million investment in “long-endurance surveillance drones” has also been announced

The British government has announced spending on over 1,000 small surveillance drones for the British Army, as part of its Defence Investment Plan. This includes compact, lightweight devices assembled at UK-based Evolve Dynamics, designed for fast deployment.

Announcing the spending plans and investment, the UK’s Ministry of Defence has emphasized the use of what it terms Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) drones as a step forward in detecting emerging threats.

In addition, a huge £400 million is being invested in replacing the Watchkeeper Uncrewed Air System. This unmanned drone surveillance program has been in operation since 2014, and is being retired in 2027.

UK companies handling delivery

In total, 1,025 smaller drones are being procured in the £16 million deal, which involves deals with a trio of UK-based companies. Among these small and medium sized companies is Evolve Dynamics, a Hampshire-based company which is supplying the army with 245 FOXE-NATO drones. Weighing under 250g and equipped with infrared cameras for nighttime use, the FOXE-NATO drones are also designed for quick deployment from a backpack or pouch.

Meanwhile, Marlborough Communications Limited, in Surrey, England, is supplying the MoD with 670 Skydio X10 INTL drones, also capable of a fast deployment and speeds of up to 45 mpg. Skydio is a California-based company.

Finally, Exeter-based Brigantes Consulting and and Harmattan AI are delivering 110 SONORA drones. These are training devices, to prepare soldiers for using field-ready drones.

“Our soldiers deserve the best technology, and that’s what we’re delivering,” said Luke Pollard MP, the UK’s Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry.

“From small drones giving troops eyes on the enemy, to the AR5 offering commanders better intelligence over the battlefield, we’re transforming the Army’s ability to see, understand and act first.”

“This is defence procurement that backs British industry, creates skilled jobs and keeps our Armed Forces ahead of our adversaries.”

Long-endurance

Joining the smaller surveillance and training drone expenditure, the MoD has announced a £400 million spend on a fleet of Tekever AR5 surveillance drones (initially six, rising to 24 by 2029), designed and built for endurance. These craft have already seen action in Ukraine.

“We are proud to be delivering the AR5 to the British Army at this critical moment for national security,” said Tekever UK’s Managing Director Karl Brew. “This investment allows us to grow our UK operations, create hundreds of skilled jobs and bring cutting-edge surveillance technology, proven on the battlefield in Ukraine, into service with British forces.”

These units, capable of carrying up to 50kg of cameras and sensors, are being assembled at Swindon, UK, and the contract is expected to create 1,000 jobs at sites around the UK, including sites in the South West, Edinburgh, and London.

DJI built its name on drones, but nowadays it has firmly established itself in multiple other content creator gadget markets too. That includes mics. The brand makes a selection of microphones, including two models released this year. Our testers have been extremely impressed with all of them — so much so, we awarded every single one a perfect five stars in their respective reviews.

If you're a content creator looking to upgrade your audio so it's just as good as your video, how do you choose between them? There's no dud option here, but certain models will be better than others depending on your needs. Below, you'll find an overview of the brand, links to find out more about each one, and a handy specs comparison table. Here's everything you need to know about DJI's microphone range.

DJI mic range

There are two main microphone lines: Mic and Mic Mini. The former is more pro-friendly, larger and higher specced (details vary by model, but expect superior audio quality, more adaptable noise cancelling and features like timecode and built-in storage). The latter is more compact and lightweight — although note the main Mic models aren't exactly bulky — and an excellent entry-level choice.

Scroll down for more details, and tap the View details button for a summary of each model, plus a link to read the full reviews.

In the main range the Mic 2 (launched 2024) and Mic 3 (launched 2025) are still widely available. In the Mini range, it's the Mic Mini (launched 2024), Mic Mini 2 and Mic Mini 2S (both released 2026). We awarded every single one of them a perfect five stars in our reviews, so you can expect a very capable mic no matter which one you go for.

Broadly speaking, within each lineup it's the newer the model, the more advanced the specs — although the gaps between some generations are bigger than others. The Mini 2S came out more recently than the Mini 2, and offers a number of upgrades over that model, most notable of which is internal recording.

For each model, you can also choose from various bundles of transmitters (TX), receivers (RX) and charge cases. These elements can, broadly speaking, also be purchased individually.

DJI Mics: specs compared

• Scaleout's onboard AI let a BAE Systems ALMA drone rank, select, and strike an armored engineering vehicle in a January 2026 demo
• Humans set the mission, started the system, and kept a pilot in reserve, but did not ultimately use them during the test
• The test underscores how small AI models can essentially take over not only the target-selection part of the equation, but also perform the actual mission end-to-end without human intervention needed

A small drone flying over a snow-covered Swedish test range in January 2026 found several objects, ranked an armored engineering vehicle as the most valuable, and made a beeline for it, successfully targeting it; Uppsala-based Scaleout Systems told TechRadar Pro that no actual explosives were used during testing.

The process involved no human input, though a pilot remained on standby to monitor the process; the drone handled selection, targeting, and neutralization, making it far more autonomous than current battlefield systems.

The flight, part of BAE Systems Bofors' Affordable Loitering Modular Ammunition (ALMA) program with onboard AI supplied by Scaleout Systems, resurfaced this month as AI safety became a key topic among industry and government stakeholders alike.

A growing threat and capability for modern militaries

Scaleout Systems tested the AI in question with a pilot on standby and a continuous connection throughout the exercise, during which the drone used AI to detect, identify, and geolocate potential threats.

Depending on how you frame it, you can argue that this is both a threat to modern militaries and a boon: an autonomous drone that can select targets without oversight or a backlink is essentially immune to jamming, offering a much higher likelihood of completing its mission than alternatives.

At the same time, it becomes riskier when it is completely cut off from communications, malfunctions, or fails to select the correct target without human oversight.

Interestingly, BAE Systems Bofors' own release on Winter Demo 2026 does not mention the strike at all. It frames the three-day Karlskoga event around roughly 20 startups and technology companies, with Swedish Defense Minister Pål Jonson joining a panel and saying, "We need more actors and entrepreneurs in the defense industry."

The test, despite lacking human interaction in its end-game, still relied on human input to some degree: a user pushed a button to start the exercise, and humans set the parameters overseeing the entire exercise.

This isn't the first machine to choose its own target, however; Israel's Harpy loitering munition, fielded since the 1990s, can autonomously detect and attack radar emitters whose locations were unknown at launch.

This is awkward timing for regulators, to say the least: on September 5, the 128 states party to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons agreed on a non-binding text on lethal autonomous weapons, after the United States and Russia pushed late changes, including to a section on human judgment and control.

As a result, Nicole van Rooijen of Stop Killer Robots told Reuters that three years of work had been "substantially diluted in the last hours." For now, Scaleout has shown that detection, ranking, and targeting can run on a small airframe without a data link, within parameters that people set.

Whether this makes it to a modern battlefield is increasingly likely, even as the Russia-Ukraine conflict becomes more reliant on autonomous machines. The more pressing question is one that will be answered sooner or later: how does such a drone make decisions if it is jammed from its source without any human oversight?

Drone technology has rapidly advanced in the last five years. They are recording sports events, helping to track the movements of wildfires, and even delivering McDonalds. But their rise has a far more sinister side.

As the war in Ukraine has demonstrated on sea, land, and in the air, their capacity as warfighting tools is evolving, with high-precision first-person view (FPV) drones being used for targeted strikes in warzones around the world.

But the drone industry relies heavily on Chinese hardware - with China's DJI commanding an 80% global market share - and with that comes the risk of supply chains being cut, costs increasing, or malicious software being secretly installed.

How drone tariffs address supply chain risk

In an attempt to address these risks, President Trump has recently introduced sweeping tariffs on drones and drone components in an attempt to bolster domestic production and reduce the risk of supply chain disruptions.

Drones over 25 kilograms or with thermal imaging capabilities now face a 100% tariff, while those smaller in size without “certain capabilities that particularly implicate national security” face a 25% tariff. The 25% tariff also applies to drone components.

But Trump - not wanting to strain relations with allies further than they already are - has applied a 15% tariff for drones and components from the European Union, Japan, Liechtenstein, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, and Taiwan. The United Kingdom has also received a much more lenient tariff of just 10%.

But the question remains on how drone manufacturers in the US will adapt to increased import costs and how the tariffs will affect manufacturing while addressing the growing demand for drones from civilian, law enforcement, and military markets.

Latronix provides compute, System-on-Module platforms, and flight-ready reference designs for drones and Unmanned Autonomous Vehicles (UAVs). I spoke to Latronix CEO Saleel Awsare to understand the challenges facing domestic component suppliers and how the tariffs will affect competition at home and abroad.

• As soon as I heard of Trump’s new tariffs on foreign-made drone parts, I immediately thought of the supply chain issues the US encountered after the tariffs imposed towards the start of 2025. How adaptable is the US drone supply chain to these new tariffs, and does the grace period provide enough time for adaptation?

The broader supply chain impact is that the market is being pushed toward more regionalized, transparent, and trusted sourcing rather than globally optimized sourcing based purely on cost. Drone manufacturers will have to look much more closely at where key components are designed, manufactured, assembled, and supported.

At Lantronix, we are well positioned because our System-on-Modules (SOMs) are dual-use platforms designed for a broad range of commercial and defense applications, helping ensure customers aren't exposed to unnecessary regulatory or supply-chain risk. Our SOMs are already production-ready embedded compute platforms, and our Drone Reference Platform is designed with NDAA and Trade Agreements Act (TAA) compliance in mind. With U.S. manufacturing options also coming online, we can give customers a path toward American-made SOM solutions without sacrificing the performance, software support, and scalability next-generation drone platforms require.

Lantronix is already positioned with compliant SOM and reference-platform solutions, but the grace period could still be challenging for customers because qualifying and designing a new compute platform into a production drone takes time, even when a compliant alternative is available today.

• What challenges and benefits do you see the US drone industry encountering as a result of these tariffs?

Challenges: The biggest short-term impact will hit the consumer and commercial drone market, where cost-sensitive products still rely heavily on foreign motors, electronic speed controllers, batteries, cameras and electronics. Tariffs could make affordable alternatives difficult to source until U.S. or allied suppliers scale. Defense suppliers should be better positioned because many already design around NDAA, Blue UAS and trusted-supply-chain requirements that are already in place.

Benefits: Longer term, the tariffs should accelerate a stronger U.S. and allied drone supply chain, with more focus on trusted sourcing, controlled bills of materials (BOMs) and domestic manufacturing. This creates an opportunity for Lantronix because our solutions already provide compliant, production-ready compute platforms with long lifecycle support and North American engineering.

• Do you see the lesser tariffs on US allies hindering or helping competition within the US drone industry, and are there key component industries (software or hardware) that will be affected to a greater extent?

The lower tariffs on U.S. allies should help the drone industry stay competitive while domestic capacity grows, giving manufacturers continued access to trusted suppliers in Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Europe and the UK.

Hardware will be affected far more than software, especially motors, batteries, ESCs, sensors and structural components where China has significant scale.

The tariffs should also accelerate investment in U.S. manufacturing and technologies like additive manufacturing. For Lantronix, this is favorable because we can provide trusted, compliant compute platforms while still leveraging established U.S. and allied semiconductor supply chains, rather than competing in the hardware categories facing the most disruption.

• What effect will the US Commerce Department's onshoring exemption have on the competition with existing domestic suppliers, particularly with reference to the reduced duty rates they will receive?

The onshoring exemption should benefit companies that were already proactive about compliance, supply-chain planning, and U.S. operations. Lantronix already had a plan in place to bring SOM production to our Plymouth, Minnesota facility, so the exemption strengthens our ability to support compliant U.S.-based drone programs. Companies with the right operational infrastructure and trusted supply chains should not be negatively impacted, and, in many cases, should be better positioned to grow and support the U.S. drone market.

• What effects will these tariffs have on the US drone industry's exports? Do you see US allies shifting purchases towards the US drone market or turning away as a result of these tariffs?

There is a potential downside internationally. Some EU and other non-U.S. customers could view U.S. localization requirements as a precedent or competitive threat, particularly if more countries begin mandating local manufacturing. It would be difficult for the industry to operate efficiently if every market required its own domestic supply chain.

Today, many international markets have less restrictive component-origin requirements than the U.S. does, but this could change as governments look to reduce dependence on Chinese or other sole-source suppliers. Longer term, we may see more emphasis on regional manufacturing, trusted allied supply chains, and diversified sourcing rather than purely global supply chains.

• Is the US drone industry better positioned to compete within the global market? Where can the US offer greater value in its drone manufacturing over the economies of scale driving drone production for DJI and China?

The US is now better positioned to compete, but historically there was not the same urgency to rebuild domestic drone manufacturing and supply chains. That is rapidly changing, although the timeline is challenging because moving and qualifying supply chains takes time.

There is also a wide range of critical components: from motors, batteries and electronics to magnets, rare-earth materials and other underlying resources. Additionally, there is a need for domestic or trusted-allied capacity to ramp up production. The US may not match DJI and China purely on cost and scale in the near term, so the greater opportunity is to compete on trusted supply chains, advanced AI and autonomy, cybersecurity, customization, and engineering support. For companies like Lantronix, that creates an opportunity to provide compliant, production-ready compute platforms with U.S.-based engineering and expanding domestic manufacturing support.

• Vivo reveals its new flagship X500 series of phones, with three new models
• The X500 Pro Max is the priciest model, succeeding the X300 Ultra
• They're only available in China at launch, with wider availability coming later

It's no longer a secret that some of the best camera phones are coming out of China, and Vivo is very much competing with Oppo and Xiaomi with its flagship 'X' series — it has just revealed the latest crop; the X500, X500 Pro and X500 Pro Max.

I'm at the launch event in Shanghai, China, and have already had 24 hours with the Vivo X500 Pro Max, which effectively replaces last year's X300 Ultra. Like the previous flagship, it features a triple front camera array comprising ultra-wide, main, and telephoto Zeiss optics, only this time, the main lens has a 24mm focal length, like most other flagship wide cameras (whereas the X300 Ultra stood out with a tighter 35mm main camera lens).

The 3.5x telephoto lens has an 85mm equivalent focal length — a well-loved focal length by portrait photographers — and a mode which unleashes a 200MP resolution, while the 50MP boosted resolution is available for the ultra-wide and main cameras.

I'll be bringing you an in-depth camera comparison soon with the Vivo X500 Pro Max, Vivo X300 Ultra, and the Oppo Find X9 Ultra (a top camera phone from last year) soon, plus more details on the former. In the meantime, I've included some of my favorite photos that I've taken with the X500 Pro Max already, so you can begin to see what it's capable of.

The X500 series was announced on September 21 and, at launch, is exclusive to China, with a wider rollout expected later, although it's unlikely to come to the US. With the Oppo Find X9 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra, both now available in the UK, I'll be keeping an eye out for Vivo's release plans with the X500 models.

Vivo X500 Pro Max sample gallery

If you followed the release of the new Canon EOS R8 Mark II, you might be wondering what the feature pre-continuous shooting is, otherwise known as pre-capture (Sony and Nikon), Pro Capture (OM System), Pre-Burst (Panasonic) or Pre-shot ES (Fujifilm).

The feature has been around for a while now having been introduced by OM System (Olympus), and it’s slowly worked its way across brands and into affordable models, including the R8 II, Sony A7 V and Nikon Z5 II.

I'm here to explain pre-capture, and show you the benefit of this feature with images I wouldn’t have otherwise been able to capture without it. Let’s dive in.

What is pre-capture and how does it work?

Picture this — you’ve got your camera fixed on a subject, poised for the action to happen; athletes on the 100m start line, a kingfisher on a branch that could take flight at any moment, a potential goal in a soccer match.

Sometimes your reactions aren’t up to speed to capture the key moment, and it's gone before your finger has pressed the shutter button. It’s exactly these scenarios that pre-capture is designed for, and it's the feature that helped me get the images of birds in flight, where previously I’d have missed the moment or simply settled for ones of them perched on branches.

Pre-capture gives you up to a 1 second head start (depending on the model) before the shutter is pressed, continually shooting (to a temporary buffer) before you press the shutter button, at which point the images shot in the specified time before the shutter button was fully pressed are recorded retrospectively.

With pre-capture on, it's typically initiated by half pressing the shutter button (or fully pressing an assignable button, such as the autofocus button), as is the case with the Sony A7 V I used to take the pictures in this feature.

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II, for example, can shoot up to 40fps and offers up to 0.5 second pre-capture, meaning you can retrospectively record a 20 photo sequence in the half second before you press the shutter button. The Sony A7 V can shoot up to 30fps with up to 1 second pre-capture, so that’s up to 15 images.

How to use pre-capture effectively

I recently got into bird photography and it didn’t take me long to bag some beautiful photos of the varied birdlife in my local nature reserve and wetland, using some superb review gear — including the Sony 400-800mm F6.3-8 super telephoto zoom lens.

As enjoyable as this hobby is (and it really is), soon enough I was considering how I could mix up the kind of photos I was making, besides stationary birds on branches. Pre-capture came to mind. How about capturing photos of the birds taking flight?

Birds in flight is one of the toughest photography challenges — as I found out during a recent hands-on with the Fujifilm XF 400mm F4.5 R LM WR lens at a birds of prey experience. And that was when I had some idea of where the birds would be flying. But wild birds in flight? Nigh on impossible, I thought.

I chose the most appropriate autofocus mode (in this case bird subject detection), the continuous high drive mode (30fps), set a suitably fast shutter speed to freeze movement (1/1000sec, wasn't fast enough it turned out) and, of course, activated pre-capture. I started with the maximum time possible of 1 second, though the camera in question has options from 0.1 sec to 1 sec in full decimal points.

Pre-capture helped me get the shots you see in this article, but there were a couple more non-technical ingredients in the recipe: an eye for the shot and, ultimately, patience.

Once I had the composition and subject I liked, I kept the camera locked in with the shutter half pressed and waited for the bird to take flight. Many times the bird was content for several minutes, and I could feel my finger / thumb burning by the time it moved.

On my first attempt I thought I had missed the moment even with pre-capture active, but low and behold my slow reactions were redeemed.

I think my patience has paid off. Yes, the photos of the birds stationary are still lovely, but the ones of them in flight in an already well-composed scene take them to new heights.

There are plenty of other scenarios that benefit from pre-capture, and if you’re a keen sports or wildlife photographer it’s well worth trying out — I’ve included a list of recent cameras equipped with the feature, plus shopping links, below.

Cameras with pre-capture

The following cameras are listed as having each company's version of pre-capture:

• Canon EOS R1, EOS R5 Mark II, EOS R6 Mark II, EOS R6 Mark III, EOS R8 Mark II
• Nikon Z9, Nikon Z8, Nikon Z6 III, Nikon Z5 II, Nikon Z50 II
• Sony A9 III, Sony A1 II, Sony A7R VI, Sony A7 V
• OM System OM-1, OM1 Mark-II, OM-5 Mark II, Olympus OM-D E-M1 X, E-M1 Mark III, E-M1 Mark II, E-M5 Mark III, Tough TG-6, Tough TG-7
• Panasonic Lumix G9, Lumix G9 II, Lumix S5 II / X, Lumix S1 II, Lumix S1 II R
• Fujifilm X-T5, X-T4, X-T3, X-T30 III, X-T30 II, X-T30, X-H2S, X-H2, X-Pro3, X100VI

The iPhone 18 Pro Max main camera's new variable aperture is a huge deal and, in my limited experience, I can already see that it could transform iPhone photography. Still, to know why this matters, you need to understand how it works.

The best analogy is your eyes.

If you've ever squinted to read something, you understand how an aperture works. The more open your pupil, the more light that comes in, but it's widely scattered, making objects in the distance out of focus. If you squint, that cuts the amount of light coming into your eye, but it also removes more of the scattered light, leaving only the sharper light and imagery. On a camera, the open aperture (represented by lower f-stop numbers) has the same effect as your wide-open pupils. Lots more light, but only stuff nearest you is in focus. A smaller aperture, represented by higher f-stop numbers, is the eye-squint: less light but more focus throughout the frame.

Ever since Apple announced the iPhone 18 Pro (and Pro Max's) big camera update, which also includes voluminous Pro-level controls, I've been itching to try them. As soon as I got my iPhone 18 Pro Max in black, I ran outside to see if the update makes an appreciable difference in photography quality and possibilities.

The short answer is yes.

Understanding this new variable aperture

A few things you should know about this new hardware feature. First, it's only on the 48MP main lens, so the 48MP, 4x telephoto, and 48MP ultrawide cameras only have fixed apertures: ƒ/2.8 and ƒ/2.2, respectively. Those are decently wide apertures, but the Main camera has Auto, ƒ/1.48, ƒ/1.8, ƒ/2.8, ƒ/4.0. That's a wide range. It's not quite DSLR-level, where you can stop down to, say, ƒ/11, which can be useful for deep focus and for capturing ultra-bright objects like the moon at night.

It's also worth noting that these are physical f-stops. The iPhone 18 Pro Max Main camera aperture features an array of interlocked blades thinner than a human hair, and they slide over each other as the aperture opens and closes. It's an engineering marvel. In the right light, you can see them adjusting.

I think it's fair to wonder why we need a physical, variable aperture when many of the iPhones since the iPhone 7 Plus have included portrait mode technology. In the early days, it used information from its wide and telephoto lenses to craft a bokeh effect. Eventually, Apple started using software to analyse the image and create a portrait mode with just a single lens (see 2020's iPhone SE). No matter how the iPhones have done it over the years, it's impressive and, for most users, good enough.

My goal, though, was to see how the portrait mode on the iPhone 18 Pro Max might differ from variable aperture photography (my preferred setting was f1.48). In other words, software vs. hardware. I did also fiddle with the other f-stops, but in bright daylight, the bokeh effect on ƒ/1.8 and ƒ/2.8 is quite subtle.

I took pictures of myself, photos of statues, and the image above of a drying leaf. That photo, or rather that one compared to the Portrait Mode shot of the same leaf, is what convinced me: this is a game changer.

When you use Portrait Mode on an iPhone, you can adjust the bokeh before or after photography. It's a reminder that this is, at least in part, a software effect that can include or discard as much background sharpness as you desire.

A new leaf

Using the variable aperture is more akin to traditional photography. You have the lens, the aperture settings, and, now, if you choose, shutter speed, exposure, and focus. In the initial images, I left everything alone except for the aperture. To access it, you select the grid menu in the camera app, choose Aperture, and then select the aperture opening of your choice.

I chose f1.48 and snapped a photo of the same leaf.

The result, which you can see above, was two pretty good pictures, but closer examination reveals how Portrait Mode struggled with the curling leaf. Look at the stem. It's almost gone. By contrast, on the variable aperture shot, it was clear that the phone wasn't trying to apply some software magic to separate the leaf from the background and create the bokeh. The leaf is complete. The whole image looks natural and, honestly, the hardware does what it would do on a traditional camera: let the lens and aperture opening make the call.

The leaf is in stark, colorful focus, and the background, while not as blurred as you get from Portrait Mode's default settings, is pleasantly out of focus.

I saw similar results with my selfies. Again, Portrait Mode goes hard on the background blur, but because it's largely computational, some artifacts remain. In particular, the space between the right stem of my glasses and my head is oddly sharp. And, if I'm being honest, the default level of bokeh sort of disconnects me from the background environment.

The results on the Gertrude Stein statue are less equivocal. The default portrait mode seems to favor the figure a bit more, though I still like the variable apertures' more realistic background blur.

Let's go Pro

Later, I started fiddling with a combination of aperture settings, shutter speeds, exposures, and focus. There are limits on all of these tools, but that's really the limitation of a smartphone camera. Without the really big sensor, wider space between the lens, aperture, shutter, and sensor, there's only so much you can do.

Still, I was impressed. My variable aperture shots look closer than ever to pro-level photography, and the additional pro controls are just so much fun to play with.

If there's any disappointment here, it's that we have just one variable aperture. I could do amazing things with more f-stops on the telephoto lens. Ah well, there's always next year.

Check out my gallery to see some of what I shot on my first day with the iPhone 18 Pro Max.

• The Nikon Small World in Motion 2026 winners are here
• First prize goes to video of the cilia structures inside airways
• It's a 'beautiful and important' record of biology, says the winner

The beauty in the world (and the universe) around us can be shown at the smallest scales as well as the largest, as demonstrated by the annual Nikon Small World in Motion competition. The competition aims to showcase "the beauty and complexity of life as seen through the light microscope", and the 2026 winners have now been announced.

First prize this year goes to a video of airway cilia (tiny hair-like protein structures that stick out from some cells), captured at 100x magnification via diffractive super-resolution microscopy. The cilia are there to process mucus and carry waste out of the airways, though they're actually colorless — the green color here is artificially added.

There is a sad element to the story: these are the airways of a child with Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (PCD), a rare genetic disorder that means the cilia don't work as they should, and mucus isn't as effectively cleared out. That's why these little structures are waving irregularly, rather than in one uniform, smooth movement.

The condition is a serious one, but usually manageable with the right treatment, and super-close-up videos like this one help scientists learn more about it. "To understand this disease, you need to watch the cilia through dozens of beat cycles, not just a still image," says Dr. Ning Xu, who captured the footage.

Microscopy as a shared language

Xu is an optical engineering researcher who helps develop imaging systems for scientists to use. He's currently a fellow at the National University of Singapore, and has previously worked with researchers at Tsinghua University, the University of Cambridge, Beijing Children's Hospital, and the California Institute of Technology.

He's also apparently a big fan of the Nikon Small World in Motion competition. "When people watch cilia beating, they immediately understand that something beautiful and important is happening inside us," says Xu. "I think this competition turns microscopy into a shared language."

Second place in this year's competition was awarded to a video of a tiny roundworm and a single-cell organism interacting at 40x magnification, captured by Nguyen Nam Nhat. In third place was Benedikt Pleyer's footage of jellyfish larvae suspended in water droplets, recorded at a magnification of 25x.

The fourth place entry shows the process of synchronized cell division in neighboring cells, as captured by Dr. Andrew Moore at 63x magnification, while fifth place in the 2026 awards was given to Dr. Patrick C. Hickey's 40x magnification recording of the cell power plants mitochondria interacting with chloroplasts in Turtle Vine leaf cells.

It's time for TechRadar's annual tech awards, and this year we're doing it differently. For the first time, we have a complete set of categories where the winners are chosen 100% by you, the TechRadar readers.

The TechRadar Readers' Choice Awards 2026 comprises nearly 100 categories, but we know that not everyone is interested in voting in every one, so on this page you can vote in just our Phones and Cameras categories.

These include tablets, ereaders, drones and more, as well as various phones and cameras awards. You can vote in the survey just below — or follow the links to see other specific categories, or to vote on the full list instead.

The shortlists were chosen by TechRadar's editors based on the best products we've tested or the most popular products of the year. You'll need to vote before 00:01am PST / 03:01am EST / 08:01am BST on Wednesday October 7th 2026 for it to be counted.

• All categories
• Computing & Gaming
• TV & Audio
• Fitness & Home Tech

Once the deadline has passed at 00:01am PST / 03:01am EST / 08:01am BST on Wednesday October 7th 2026, we'll tally your votes to find the winners in each category.

We'll announce the winners in our big TechRadar Awards 2026 Week, starting Monday October 19th. We'll reveal the winners of the Reader's Choice Awards, as well as the winners of our TechRadar Product of the Year Awards, which are chosen solely by our expert judges.

How many products will do the double? We'll be curious to see — but right now, all you can do is vote for what you think should win, so vote away!

• Canon announced its 3D image generation 'Dual Pixel 3D' tech
• It uses depth data from a single shot via Dual Pixel CMOS AF, through a free Windows-only app coming in October
• The EOS R10 and most models up to the EOS R5 series are compatible

Canon introduced a new Dual Pixel CMOS-type sensor and autofocus system in the EOS R5 back in 2020, and a string of cameras have since inherited this tech, most recently the EOS R8 Mark II announced today. And it's these cameras that just got a free upgrade that can add another dimension to photos: Dual Pixel 3D.

The new software leverages "depth and phase-detection data captured in a single shot via Dual Pixel CMOS AF", says Canon, using "an exclusive algorithm to convert your photos into highly realistic 3D imagery", plus 3D models in OBJ or GLB formats, or as an MP4 video, "complete with rich photographic textures."

This depth-adding tech will come in the (free) Dual Pixel 3D Converter software, which will be available for Windows only (Windows 11 64-bit 24H2 or later), from October 3.

So what exactly can users expect from the software, and which cameras are compatible? Let's take a look.

An extra dimension

Billed as 'simple 3D image generation technology', Dual Pixel 3D enables users to create immersive three-dimensional images and models from a single RAW photo, without needing specialized equipment or viewing devices. Canon also says the technology works with JPEGs captured by the new EOS R8 Mark II.

These files contain depth information from slightly different views, captured by each pixel's two photodiodes, which are then converted into 3D shape data.

Users will be able to fine-tune the degree of depth in the new software, for a more pronounced 3D effect or a subtler appearance. The depth information in Dual Pixel CMOS-captured photos also simplifies background removal, should users want to output a subject onto a plain background as a 3D model, or as a stereographic photo.

Can has shared tips for how to take photos designed to be converted for 3D on its YouTube channel (see below).

Photographers working in product and still life photography stand to benefit from the creative possibilities in particular. We'll be sure to try out the new software when it's released on October 3, and share our experience of making 3D imagery with it.

Compatible Canon cameras and lenses

Here's every Canon mirrorless camera that features Dual Pixel CMOS AF and can, therefore, enjoy the new Dual Pixel 3D feature, provided images are captured with a compatible lens:

• EOS R5 Mark II
• EOS R5
• EOS R6 Mark III
• EOS R6 Mark II
• EOS R7
• EOS R8 Mark II
• EOS R8
• EOS R10

And you'll need to be using one of these lenses;

RF24-70mm F2.8 L IS USM

RF24-50mm F4.5-6.3 IS STM

RF24-105mm F4 L IS USM

RF24-105mm F4-7.1 IS STM

RF35mm F1.8 MACRO IS STM

RF50mm F1.8 STM

RF70-200mm F2.8 L IS USM

RF70-200mm F4 L IS USM

RF85mm F2 MACRO IS STM

RF100mm F2.8 L MACRO IS USM

RF-S18-45mm F4.5-6.3 IS STM

RF-S18-150mm F3.5-6.3 IS STM

Canon's EOS R8 Mark II is here, with a fresh new look that's inspired by the world's leading camera manufacturer's heritage, and finished off with a "modern twist". The resemblance to Canon's analog SLRs such as the T80 or AE-1 is faint, but in any case the new model is certainly a decent upgrade of the EOS R8, adding image stabilization, a multi-controller, and various performance and design improvements.

When I pored over the specs and pricing of the EOS R8 Mark II during my hands-on, however, a surprising reality came into sharp focus: Nikon's year-and-a-bit-old Z5 II remains highly competitive and it costs less than Canon's latest entry-level full-frame mirrorless model.

If you're considering your first full-frame camera and are not tied to Canon or another system, you should totally read on to find out more about the new EOS R8 Mark II, and how it fares against our Camera of the Year 2025 winner, the Nikon Z5 II.

1. Sensor

• Both feature a 24MP full-frame sensor
• Both sensors are equipped with image stabilization, rated up to 7.5EV

This section is going to be straightforward: both cameras have a full-frame 24MP sensor that's equipped with image stabilization (IBIS) rated up to 7.5EV.

Besides nuances in how each camera handles color and noise, and personal preferences, the image quality will be pretty similar. Having said that, I've historically found Canon's image stabilization to perform better than Nikon's.

• Sensor winner: Tie

2. Video

• Both shoot 4K video up to 60fps, but the Z5 II has a 1.5x crop
• Both shoot 4K 30fps with 10-bit color depth from the sensor's full width, the Z5 II shoots 12-bit RAW
• 1080p slow motion recording up to 180fps (EOS R8 Mark II) and 120fps (Nikon Z5 II)
• Color profiles for video; new 'filmtones' for EOS R8 II, well-regarded RED profiles for Z5 II

There's much more to unpack and compare regarding each camera's video features. Both can shoot 4K video at 30fps with 4:2:2 10-bit color depth from the full width of the sensor, and up to 60fps at this resolution, although at this frame rate there's a 1.5x crop in the Z5 II.

The Nikon camera, however, is the only one that can shoot 12-bit internal RAW video, which certainly gives it the quality edge for users who want greater tonal depth and editing latitude, and who don't mind the larger file sizes.

Slow motion recording is also possible in 1080p, but again the EOS R8 Mark II has the frame rates edge — it can shoot 6x slow motion (180fps) to the Z5 II's 4x slow motion (120fps).

There's no shortage of color profiles for each camera, either. There's each company's version of a gradable, flat Log profile (C Log and N-Log) and Rec 709, while Canon has introduced two new 'filmtones' looks and the Nikon Z5 II features a RED RAW profile. Each can link with a companion app to import custom profiles, too. Users with either camera should have no issues getting a style they like.

Both camera's video recording is supported by powerful autofocus and image stabilization, making smooth and sharp run-and-gun filming a distinct possibility. The EOS R8 Mark II features a tally lamp to indicate when recording is active, but the Z5 II offers dual SD card slots for overflow / backup storage, whereas the Canon camera just has the one slot.

There are distinct advantages for each camera — and more besides that I haven't got into here — and as such it's tricky to call an outright winner in this category.

• Video winner: Tie

3. Design

• Canon EOS R8 Mark II: 546g body (with battery and card), not weather resistant, single card slot
• Nikon Z5 II: 700g body (with battery and card), weather resistant mag alloy, dual card slot

The EOS R8 Mark II is the guinea pig for Canon's new design. It forgoes the sweeping curves we've come to associate with Canon camera, in favor of straight, angular lines and a pronounced viewfinder bump that are "inspired by Canon's heritage". In this sense, it actually has more in common with the Nikon camera than previous Canon models.

Beyond the looks, the cameras are roughly the same size, but the EOS R8 Mark II is notably lighter at 546g. The quality of its buttons, controls and body have a much more entry-level feel to them, whereas the Z5 II feels more like a level up. The Z5 II feels like the more robust of the two, plus it's officially noted as weather resistant whereas the EOS R8 Mark II is not. The gulf in quality is compounded by the displays...

• Design winner: Nikon Z5 II

4. Displays

• Canon EOS R8 Mark: 3.0-inch 1.62m-dot vari-angle LCD and 0.39-inch 2.36m-dot EVF
• Nikon Z5 II: 3.2-inch 2.1m-dot vari-angle LCD and 0.5-inch 3.69m-dot EVF

Put simply, the Nikon Z5 II's LCD screen and EVF displays are higher-specced than the EOS R8 Mark II's, despite the camera arriving almost 18 months earlier.

Both screens are vari-angle, so they can be pulled out to the side of the camera and tilted for low-level shooting / rotated for selfies. The Z5 II's display is slightly larger at 3.2-inches to the Canon's 3.0-inches, and it has a higher resolution, although the pixel density is roughly the same.

I've used both cameras separately, but can attest to the superior quality of the Z5 II's EVF – it's physically bigger, has more pixels, higher magnification, and is brighter — in short, a more immersive display. This category is an easy win for the Z5 II.

• Displays winner: Nikon Z5 II

5. Performance

• Canon EOS R8 Mark: 220-shot (VF) / 340-shot (LCD) battery life, Dual Pixel CMOS AF II, 40fps with pre-capture
• Nikon Z5 II: 340-shot (VF) / 350-shot (LCD) battery life, Hybrid phase detection AF, 30fps with pre-capture

If you prefer using a viewfinder, then the battery life of the Z5 II is much better than the EOS R8 Mark II, although the playing field is somewhat levelled when using the LCD. Neither camera has a particularly impressive battery life, but both can be recharged on the go, via USB-C.

Both also have excellent autofocus performance, with subject tracking and detection for humans, animals and vehicles. I haven't directly compared the performance of each camera, but they do inherit autofocus systems from pricier models that I have tested at length. Canon's 'Register People' mode is super handy for prioritizing specific people in crowded scenes — and you can store up to 10 faces at any one time.

Canon improved autofocus sensitivity in low light down to -7.5EV in its second-gen EOS R8, but the Nikon camera was already more sensitive, being rated to -10EV.

For outright burst shooting speeds, Canon has the edge — it's capable of up to 40fps, compared to 30fps for the Nikon. However, neither are true sports cameras in the sense that once the buffer is full, they will slow up quicker than high-end models. The Z5 II has both a mechanical and electronic shutter, while the Canon model only has the latter.

• Performance winner: Tie

6. Price and availability

• Canon EOS R8 Mark II announced on Sep 16, 2026, for $1,899 / £1,729 / AU$2,529
• Nikon Z5 II was released on April 3, 2025 for $1,699 / £1,599 / AU$2,699, but the price has since dropped

Canon's EOS R8 Mark II has only just been announced at the time of writing, and its sales start date is October 20. It will cost $1,899 / £1,729 / AU$2,529 body only, or £2,119.99 / AU$2,859 with the budget 24-105mm F4-7.1 kit lens / $2099 with the 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lens in the US. Naturally, there are no price cuts yet.

Nikon's Z5 II, meanwhile, was released almost 18 months ago, and at list price was approximately 10% cheaper in the US and UK, but a little more in Australia — so no huge difference. However, it has since come down in price, and that margin has increased. Like the Canon model, it's available in a kit with a 24-105mm F4-7.1 lens, but there are other good-value kits on sale, including with the 24-200mm travel zoom.

• Price winner: Nikon Z5 II

Canon EOS R8 Mark II vs Nikon Z5 II: early verdict

As entry-level full-frame cameras, the Canon EOS R8 Mark II and Nikon Z5 II share many key features, including things like a 24MP full-frame sensor with image stabilization, 4K video recording and powerful autofocus.

There are specific features unique to each model that stand out, but not enough to swing the balance either way. However, where the gulf becomes clear is in each camera's overall handling and quality — the Nikon Z5 II's superior displays, control layout, body quality, extra card slot and better battery life deliver a better all-round shooting experience.

The Canon feels every much the entry-level camera with powerful features, whereas the Nikon camera redefines entry-level quality. And when you think that the Z5 II has pricier components but costs less, it feels like a solid win for the Canon rival.

• Canon EOS R8 Mark II upgrades the original R8 with image stabilization
• It also features a new design 'inspired by Canon's heritage'
• Prices start at $1,899 / £1,729 / AU$2,529, on-sale date mid-October

The Canon EOS R8 Mark II is here, and it isn’t the digital remake of the 50-year-old AE-1 analog SLR camera that rumors had been suggesting — but it is a new design direction for the world’s leading camera manufacturer nonetheless.

Canon has historically stuck with a consistent design approach for its DSLR and mirrorless cameras, with sweeping curves and familiar controls. The EOS R8 Mark II, however, is "inspired by Canon’s heritage" with a "modern twist", so a Canon spokesperson told me, and it's unlike any other model before it — check out my first impressions.

I like the new angular look, but I think the company has unintentionally made a camera that looks just like those from its chief rivals Sony and Nikon, and I don't think we can call it retro.

Canon fans hoping for an old school EOS R mount model to rival the Nikon Zf will surely be disappointed. Could Canon's design department have pushed the boat out more? Perhaps, but there’s nothing to say it won’t go full retro-style in the future with another model.

Design is the major talking point, but there are plenty of other features worth highlighting in what is a solid upgrade of the original EOS R8.

Beyond the looks

Like the EOS R8 — which Canon told me will remain on the market — we also get a 24.2MP full-frame sensor, but this time it features in-body image stabilization that’s rated up to 7.5EV.

Continuous shooting is again up to 40fps using the electronic shutter — in fact, like the EOS R8 there’s no mechanical shutter at all — but pre-capture has been added for up to half a second before you fully press the shutter, which is handy for when your reactions aren’t up to speed, and a first for a Canon camera at this price point.

And — praise be — an AF joystick has been added (Canon calls it a multi-controller), and it's positioned next to an autofocus button, both of which are conveniently placed right next to where your thumb rests. I was easily able to use the camera and its autofocus one-handed with a 24-105mm F4-7.1 IS STM kit lens attached.

Canon’s Dual Pixel CMOS AF II features, as does subject detection of people, animals and vehicles, plus Canon’s ‘Register People’ mode with the option to store up to 10 people for the camera to prioritize — handy for weddings, sporting events, and so on.

Video is still 4K, but now up to 60fps and oversampled from 6K, plus there's 180fps slow-motion recording in 1080p. There's a tally light to indicate when the camera is recording, while the SD memory card slot is now accessed through a side door, rather than underneath in the battery compartment.

Those are some of the major upgrades, but there's also plenty that's familiar. For example, the 3-inch 1.62m-dot vari-angle touchscreen and 2.36m-dot EVF are unchanged, and there’s the same battery too. In fact, with the power-hungry image stabilization feature in play, shot life is actually slightly lower than before — battery life is a major weak point of the EOS R8 Mark II.

The camera weighs 19.3oz / 546g with card and battery included, and the quality of the plastic body is decidedly entry-level once more — this isn’t a weather-sealed camera you’d thrash around like the tougher EOS R6 Mark III is, which is the near-perfect Canon camera that the EOS R8 Mark II sits below.

Overall, I think Canon has addressed the key areas for improvement from the EOS R8, adding in-body image stabilization into a body that feels better in the hand, even if the build quality and battery life position it well below the EOS R6 Mark III.

I must also mention the Nikon Z5 II from 2025, which is the obvious entry-level full-frame rival to the EOS R8 Mark II, and which is available for a slightly lower price. Nikon's camera has many similarities, but with a magnesium alloy chassis and weather-resistance it's clearly the tougher camera of the two, plus it has a superior LCD and EVF. If you're not already committed to Canon, the Z5 II looks to be the better of the two cameras.

The EOS R8 Mark II costs from $1,899 / £1,729 / AU$2,529 for the body only, or £2,119.99 / AU$2,859 with the 24-105mm F4-7.1 IS STM (don't confuse this lens with the pricier 24-105mm F4 L), or $2099 with the 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lens in the US, and it feels like the sweet spot for users who want powerful features but are less concerned about build quality and shot life.

What do you make of the new EOS R8 Mark II, especially its new design? You can vote in the poll above, and leave your comments below.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: One-minute review

It might look like a Sony or Nikon, but I can assure you that the EOS R8 Mark II is a Canon camera. It's the realization of a long-rumored model that was expected to be a digital remake of the AE-1 analog SLR camera to mark that camera's its 50th anniversary, only those rumors proved unfounded, with Canon working in a "modern twist".

I can see the faint resemblance between the two cameras, and I like the EOS R8 Mark II's angular look, but I also think Canon has missed a trick by not going all-out retro here, in the way Nikon did with its Zf.

Design should have been the major selling point here, but instead we have a camera that blends in, and that's not a compliment. This makes it harder to forgive the dated elements of the camera that have been carried over from the original EOS R8.

That's not to say the EOS R8 Mark II isn't a decent upgrade from the EOS R8 — it adds in-body image stabilization that's rated up to 7.5EV to the 24MP full-frame sensor, plus an AF joystick (Canon calls it a multi-controller) which makes autofocus selection simpler.

Video specs are also improved, autofocus performance enhanced, and pre-capture appears for the first time in a Canon camera at this price point.

The EOS R8 Mark II is a better camera than the EOS R8, but it also carries the same LCD and EVF displays, and the same tiny battery and entry-level build quality. These dated elements only highlight how much better a camera the Nikon Z5 II is — and that camera from 2025 costs less.

Still, if you're a Canon fan and committed to its system, the EOS R8 Mark II is a solid upgrade of the EOS R8, and a sensible alternative to the pricier EOS R6 Mark III for users who don't need the premium design, superior battery life and various high-end features.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: Price and release date

• Announced on September 16, 2026, priced from $1,899 / £1,729 / AU$2,529
• Available in 24-105mm F4-7.1 IS STM kit for £2,119 / AU$2,859 (or with the 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM lens for $2,099) in the US
• Dedicated Extension Grip (EC-G2) costs $99 / £89 / AU$169
• Goes on sale from October 20

Canon is expected to sell the EOS R8 Mark II from October 20, with a body-only price of $1,899 / £1,729 / AU$2,529, which rises to £2,119 / AU$2,859 for the 24-105mm F4-7.1 IS STM kit (not to be confused with the pricier 24-105mm F4 L IS USM), while in the US there's a 24-50mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM kit for $2,099. Other bundles will be available, including one with an additional battery.

Canon also launched a grip for the EOS R8 Mark II, which costs $99 / £89 / AU$169. It's a grip only, and doesn't feature a battery, but it does feature a hinge allowing direct access to the camera's battery door.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II specs

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: Design

• Major new look for an interchangeable-lens Canon camera
• Multi-controller and tally lamp added
• Single SD card slot relocated to a dedicated side access door
• Same LCD and EVF displays as the EOS R8
• Body not weather resistant

I've already covered the new look of the EOS R8 Mark II. Whether that fresh design is going to be worked into other Canon cameras or remain exclusive to the R8 series, or if an unadulterated retro mirrorless body is on the way, we'll have to wait and see. I asked a Canon spokesperson about the prospect of an all-out retro body, and they didn't rule it out.

I've included a side-by-side photo of the EOS R8 and and EOS R8 Mark II, below, and you can see the sharper lines, and the deeper and textured grip of the new model, which for me evoke the look of Sony bodies more than Canon heritage.

One welcome addition is Canon's multi-controller button, which can be used to select the autofocus point among other things, and is a much loved feature by users who like to control to how their camera autofocuses, included point selection.

I really appreciated the placement of the multi-controller alongside the AF-ON (autofocus) button, which are both within a slight move of your thumb where it naturally rests in the grip. As such, it was entirely possible to hold the camera and make autofocus point selection one-handed.

A tally lamp has been added to indicate when video recording is active, while the single SD card slot has been relocated to a dedicated door on the grip-side of the camera, whereas in the EOS R8 it was found behind the same door as the battery on the underside.

Sadly, Canon hasn't used the space saved in the battery compartment (and deeper handgrip) to fit in a larger-capacity battery. The EOS R8 Mark II uses the same battery as its predecessor — shot life was already a major weak point — and has an even lower battery life when the power-hungry image stabilization feature is active, being rated at 220 shots when using the viewfinder (or 340 shots with the LCD).

Nor has the quality of the body been improved — Canon notes that the EOS R8 Mark II's body materials are part aluminum alloy, part polycarbonate, and it's not weather resistant. The controls, and the build quality, really do feel entry-level.

The 3.0-inch 1.62m-dot vari-angle LCD and 0.39-inch 2.36m-dot EVF displays are unchanged from the EOS R8, and look fairly dated when you compare them to the Nikon Z5 II's displays.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: Performance

• 24.2MP full-frame sensor now equipped with 7.5EV image stabilization
• Digic X processor unique to the camera, 40fps burst shooting
• 4K video up to 60fps, oversampled from 6K, plus 1080p up to 180fps

The addition of in-body image stabilization (IBIS) is the major upgrade offered by the EOS R8 Mark II, and its effectiveness is rated up to 7.5EV. This feature makes life simpler shooting handheld in many scenarios — whether that's for sharp images in low light or with telephoto lenses, creative long-exposure shots, or run-and-gun video.

The sensor that incorporates the IBIS is otherwise the same as the one in the EOS R8 — a full-frame 24.2MP CMOS unit which is a decent all-purpose sensor. Nothing too exciting in 2026, but dependable.

Maximum burst-shooting speeds are once again up to 40fps, using the electronic shutter. Not that there's a choice — if you didn't already know it, the EOS R8 Mark II, like its predecessor, doesn't have a mechanical shutter.

Canon has added Pre-Continuous Shooting (more widely known as pre-capture) to the EOS R8 Mark II. In short, the camera is able to continually buffer up to 0.5 seconds while the shutter is half pressed, before the user fully presses the button to take photos. In this case, you get up to 20 photos spanning the half-second before you start photos — it's a really useful feature for wildlife and action photography, for when your reactions aren't otherwise up to speed. The feature was introduced in the EOS R5 Mark II, and the EOS R8 Mark II is the first Canon at this price point to get it.

Video recording has been improved in several ways. First of all, 4K footage is oversampled from 6K, so it should look sharper. Secondly, 4K frame rates have been upped to 60fps, while 1080p goes up to 180fps — that's 6x slow motion. Thirdly, there's the aforementioned IBIS, which makes smooth handheld shooting all the more possible. And then there are additional color profiles to choose from, including 'filmtone' looks and other picture styles which can be added using the Canon EOS Utility app.

Canon has also added a new 'defocus' feature, which can add a creative blur effect (not aperture dependent), and alter the speed of focus transitions. I haven't had the time yet to test any of the EOS R8 Mark II's video features, but I will do for my upcoming in-depth review.

Dual Pixel CMOS AF II powers the camera's autofocus, which like before includes subject detection of people, animals and vehicles, but which Canon says offers an improved performance. For example, the camera's focus sensitivity in low light has been improved, being rated to -7.5EV.

‘Register People Priority’ is a neat addition — users can select specific people’s faces, storing up to 10 people for the camera to prioritize. It's a handy feature for scenarios like a wedding, where you might want to keep the bride and groom in sharp focus among a sea of faces.

Canon EOS R8 Mark II: also consider

How I tested the Canon EOS R8 Mark II

• I had a two hour hands-on session with the camera and kit lens
• I spent the time getting a feel for the camera, and took some sample photos
• Canon provided the EOS R8 and EOS R6 Mark III for comparisons

I've only used the EOS R8 Mark II for a couple of hours at Canon Europe's offices in London. During this time, I got a proper feel for the camera, and paired it with the 24-105mm F4-7.1 IS STM lens that the camera is available with in a kit.

Canon supplied me with the original EOS R8 and EOS R6 Mark III, so I was able to make direct comparisons between the three cameras, though only how they handle — I didn't have time to take like-for-like pictures.

I took a stroll in the outside space, and took various photos of birdlife, foliage and buildings. Look out for our in-depth review of the EOS R8 Mark II, coming soon.

• First reviewed: September 2026
• Read more about how we test

Sony FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS / Sony FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS: One-minute review

I've only just had my hands on the Fujifilm XF 400mm F4.5 R OIS LM WR lens, photographing birds of prey in flight, but I can now reveal that I was also testing two rival super-telephoto Sony primes at the same time ahead of their launch; the FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS and FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS.

Both lenses sit within the focal length range of Sony's longest zoom lens — the 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS — but they sacrifice zoom versatility for a couple of real benefits: they have a slightly brighter maximum aperture, and they're significantly lighter.

In fact, Sony's new 400mm and 600mm primes are the lightest of their kind, weighing 994g / 995g respectively (35oz approx). It's the light weight that's their major appeal — plus the promise from Sony of superior MTF performance (the outright optical quality at the various lens settings) versus rivals, such as Nikon's 400mm f/4.5 VR S.

There's no shortage of super-telephoto lenses from Sony, but these primes are probably the best option for enthusiasts who know their focal length and want to prioritize quality over zoom versatility.

They're way more affordable options than Sony's high-end 400mm F2.8 and 600mm F4 pro primes, but they still boast the superior GM quality designation over comparable 'G' zooms such as the 200-600mm and 400-800mm, and are by no means cheap.

If you mainly photograph larger wildlife, then the 400mm lens is ideal, while the 600mm lens is better suited for smaller creatures. I took both lenses to my local wetland reserve and to a nearby deer park to really test them out over hours-long hiking and photography sessions, and I was able to get a feel for how they sit with a Sony camera – in my case the A7 V that Sony loaned to me for this review — and how each one performed. Let's dive in.

Sony FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS / Sony FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS: price and availability

• The 400mm F4.5 GM OSS costs $2,699 / £2,400 / AU$3,999, while the 600mm F6.3 costs $3,699 / £3,300 / AU$5,599
• Both come in a soft padded case with handle and shoulder strap, and with a lens hood

Before I get into the handling and performance of each lens, let's look at the pricing. In the UK the FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS costs $2,699 / £2,400 / AU$3,999, while the FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS costs $3,699 / £3,300 / AU$5,599.

Each lens comes in a soft padded case with handle and shoulder strap, so they can be securely carried separately to a bag. A lens hood is supplied, too.

To put that pricing into context, Fujifilm's new 400mm F4.5 lens (for APS-C with 600mm equivalent focal length) costs around the same, while the cost of Nikon's 400mm f/4.5 VR S has fallen by 15% since its 2022 launch, which takes it to the same price.

The 600mm lens is cheaper compared to Nikon's 600mm f/6.3, which originally cost about 50% more, but with price reductions is currently about 25% more.

Sony's professional FE 400mm F2.8 GM OSS and FE 600mm F4 GM OSS are in another (five-figure) price and weight category altogether.

Though hardly cheap, considering the specs, and the fact that these are 'Grand Master' (GM) lenses — Sony's professional series — I think the pair are pretty decent value overall.

Sony FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS / Sony FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS: specs

Sony FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS / Sony FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS: design

• Lightest lenses of their kind at 994g (400mm) and 995g (600mm) respectively
• Weather resistant, with rubber sealed lens mount
• Removable tripod collar

Light weight is the major talking point here. Both the FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS and FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS weigh a fraction under 1,000g (about 35oz), making them the lightest of their kind. For the wildlife and sports photography that these lenses are designed for, the light weight makes long shoot days more manageable — and I should know, because I've used them both extensively.

Nikon's equivalent lenses are 1,160g and 1,360g respectively, while Sony's 400-800mm G lens weighs 87oz/2,475g — and Sony's high-end 400mm F2.8 and 600mm F4 primes are around 3x the weight of its new additions. There are other Sony zooms available; the pricier 100-400mm F4.5 GM OSS weighs 65oz/ 1,840g, while the lower-end FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3G OSS weighs 75oz/2,115g. Canon has no comparable lenses.

As for size, the 400mm measures 242mm in length, and the 600mm 263mm in length — not the smallest of their kind, therefore, but definitely the lightest.

Despite the lightweight build, each lens is dust and moisture resistant, features a rubber ring to seal the lens mount, and includes Sony's Optical SteadyShot (OSS) — a key feature when shooting at such extreme focal lengths.

There are five switches, covering off focus mode, a focus range limiter, optical stabilization and the stabilization mode, a function ring, plus four focus hold buttons. The tripod collar ring hosts a (removable) tripod mount.

Like the rubberized function ring, the generous focus ring has pronounced ridging, which makes gripping and rotating it a cinch.

Both lenses support Sony's 1.4x and 2x teleconverters, the latter of which doubles the focal length, at the cost of maximum aperture. I preferred shooting without teleconverters, because aperture margins are amplified when shooting high-speed action with fast shutter speeds at such extreme focal lengths — every bit of additional brightness goes along way.

Compared to Sony's pricier primes, the maximum aperture of each lens is less bright, being f/4.5 and f/6.3 respectively. However, the maximum aperture is brighter than the 400-800mm's, which is f/6.3 at 400mm, and f/8 when zoomed in to 600mm.

Sony FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS / Sony FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS: Performance

• Snappy and quiet internal autofocus when paired with a recent Sony camera
• 11-blade aperture creates attractive, smooth bokeh
• Detail is very sharp, especially when subjects are relatively close

Both lenses feature a fairly complex optical construction, comprising extra-low dispersion elements to minimize chromatic aberration, Sony's Nano AR Coating II to reduce flare and ghosting, plus an 11-blade aperture for what Sony calls "gorgeous ball bokeh".

Twin XD linear motors drive those lens elements for fast, precise autofocus and tracking, being able to support tracking up to 120fps — which covers 4x slow-motion video recording.

With the appropriate bird, animal and insect detection in play for taking photos of birds, deer and dragonflies respectively, autofocus proved swift and reliable. Only for photos of large mammals using the maximum aperture, did I see the occasional softness,where focusing was slightly off from the creature's eyes.

I used the maximum aperture of each lens for the majority of the photos I took, and image quality is impressive — you can see for yourself in the gallery of some of my favorite shots below.

There's no particular sign of vignetting at the maximum aperture, while chromatic aberration is well controlled. Bokeh is smooth, too, while detail in subjects, provided they're not too far away and they're in focus, is crisp.

When depth of field is narrow and subjects are at some distance, images benefit from a little sharpening, but otherwise I'm really happy with the photos I took. The original images you see in the galleries are converted RAW files, which are largely unedited — I haven't applied any sharpening.

Should I buy?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

How I tested the Sony FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS / Sony FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS

• Sony loaned me the FE 400mm F4.5 GM OSS and FE 600mm F6.3 GM OSS weeks ahead of their unveiling
• I received the lenses with a Sony A7 V body to test them
• I used the lenses in actual wildlife photography scenarios, and carried them over many hours

I was fortunate to receive both lenses from Sony, with an A7 V body, several weeks ahead of their announcement, and was able to give them a proper test in the scenarios that people would use them.

I went to a wetland reserve to photography birdlife and insects including dragonflies, and to a historic park that's habited with deer. On multiple occasions I carried both lenses and camera over the course of several hours, and used the gear in bright daylight, under light rain, and as daylight faded.

I mainly used the maximum aperture of each lens, but also stopped aperture down to make comparisons. I set the camera up specific to each scenario, with the appropriate subject detection autofocus.

First reviewed September 2026

• Instax Pal 2 unveiled with new design that sings Kodak Charmera
• It's more camera, mind you, and costs from $170 / £144.99 / AU$249
• There are two colorways at launch; black (with silver trim) or white

Instax has clearly taken note of the Kodak Charmera digital keychain camera's viral popularity and wants a piece of the action. Enter: the new Instax Pal 2. Its new look is a major departure from the original golf ball-like Instax Pal — so much so that this camera could have had an entirely new name — and is instead all retro vibes.

There's plenty going on in the tiny 1.5oz/ 41g body, mind you; twin displays (a top down 1-inch LCD screen, and a simple cutout optical viewfinder), a wind lever that adds an Instax frame around your photos, a film simulation dial with five picture styles (each with six unique effects), plus a slide out USB-C port for charging / connecting directing to a smartphone to upload your snaps.

Instax says there's enough built-in memory to store 100 photos — which are 10.7MP and captured through a tiny 1/3.06-inch sensor — plus a micro SD card slot. The digital-only camera is also equipped with Bluetooth for wireless smartphone connection and printing, with direct support for Instax Link printers (a new Wide Link 2 printer was announced at the same time as the camera).

Should toys be this expensive?

The Instax Pal 2 carries on from where the Fujifilm X half and Instax Mini Evo Cinema left off: it's majorly quirky and packed with charm. However, it feels like too much camera, with too high a price tag, to hit the sort of sales heights of the Charmera, or even the screen-less Camp Snap cameras.

The Instax Pal 2 is easy on the eye, but sadly less so on the wallet — it comes in at $170 / £149.99 / AU$249 (while the Charmera is a mere $35 / £35 / AU$55). You can choose from two colorways: black with silver trim (pictured), or white.

I'm yet to play with the Instax Pal 2, but I'm sure it'll put a smile on my face when I do. Even without testing it out, however, I get the feeling that it misses the point of these tiny toy cameras. So far, something a little less, that costs a whole lot less, has been the recipe for success.

Camera technology has come on leaps and bounds throughout the 20th and 21st century, but one of the most important developments was the invention of the CMOS image sensor. This invention, dubbed the ‘camera-on-a-chip’, is the technology that allows everyone to carry high-resolution cameras around in their pockets.

But the history of the CMOS can be traced back to NASA’s desire to install small, low-powered cameras capable of capturing high-resolution imagery on interplanetary spacecraft.

Dr. Eric R. Fossum is the inventor of the camera-on-a-chip, and he has not only fathered an era of space-based photography, but also the many industries and technologies that revolve around the micro-cameras we know today.

The camera-on-a-chip has changed the world

Before the development of the CMOS image sensor, photography and videography often relied on photographic film, or the more advanced Charge-Coupled Devices (CCDs). The Apollo 11 mission famously used purpose-built Hasselblad cameras - which were too heavy for the return trip to Earth - requiring the astronauts to transport just the film back for development. They’re still there to this day.

CCDs on the other hand were the precursor to Dr. Fossum’s camera-on-a-chip. They detected photons using individual pixels that fed an electrical charge to a single readout amplifier in a row-by-row configuration. These cameras improved significantly in reducing weight and capturing much more vivid imagery than their film-based counterparts, but suffered from high power-usage and heat generation.

CMOS image sensors improved further on the CCD design, giving each individual pixel its own local conversion circuit and amplifier allowing each pixel to be read simultaneously while significantly reducing the energy required per image taken and the heat generated by the camera.

CMOS image sensors are the basis upon which most modern cameras work - from the camera on your phone and in your doorbell, to the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems that power self-driving cars, and even the cameras still heading into space today.

I spoke to Dr. Fossum to understand how CMOS image sensors were developed and their impact on the world we know today.

• Eric, did you ever think that your invention - the CMOS-based image sensor - would have such an impact on society worldwide?

I thought it could become ubiquitous and thought it should become so, but my confidence that it would actually happen was low, due to all kinds of unknowns. I did not foresee at all the social-media application, nor its impact on society, nor its impact on citizen-newsgathering, nor its impact on social justice, whether to protect good actors in law enforcement or to identify bad actors in law enforcement. I also knew there could be impact on privacy and liberty, and I am uncomfortable with how that has evolved.

• I note that you worked at NASA's legendary JPL (Jet Propulsion Lab) at the time. We don't usually associate JPL with cutting-edge digital imaging. How did that happen? Was JPL essentially another Xerox PARC?

NASA and JPL is associated with cutting edge digital imaging, from its earliest activities in the robotic exploration of space. JPL engineers found ways to beam back images from distant places using digital imaging and data transmission. Eugene F. Lally at JPL in 1961 was probably the first advance the idea of a ‘mosaic’ image capture, where mosaic refers to an array of pixels. JPL developed many digital imaging technologies for scientific use in the harsh environment of space with high precision and reliable image capture across a larger range of wavelengths than consumer products. My job at JPL was created by JPL management to further grow JPL’s bench-depth in CCD technology.

• I am sure that you followed avidly the visual journey of Artemis II a few weeks ago: from the iconic photos to the videos that the crew and the entire team produced during that trip. Do you remember what your thoughts were when you first saw the wonderful pictures the crew delivered?

My initial thoughts focused on the impressive images, and I was pleased that humans have returned to the moon, at least into orbit for now. But it did occur to me that that it was also cool that NASA –invented image sensor technology, employed in a consumer smartphone (and digital camera), was used on the this NASA mission, further completing its promise to make cameras faster, cheaper and better.

• Your current research at Dartmouth centers heavily on the Quanta Image Sensor (QIS). Can you tell us more about what it is, how is it different from CMOS image sensors and why it is called Quanta (which I presume is the plural of Quantum).

In the CMOS QIS, due to its ultra-low readout noise, it is possible for the first time to discern individual photons via their generated photoelectrons, and to count with high accuracy the number of photoelectrons at each pixel, at room temperature, at low voltages, and without the use of avalanche gain. The CMOS QIS we developed at Dartmouth and later at the spin-off company Gigajot is, in essence, a CMOS image sensor that uses intra-pixel charge transfer (invented at JPL) and extremely low readout-node capacitance, to generate a large enough voltage signal from a single photoelectron to overcome background thermal noise in silicon.

The QIS concept, itself though, is technology agnostic, since it was about creating great images one photon at a time. Single-photon-avalanche photodiode (SPAD) technology has significantly advanced in the past 20+ years so that it is also becoming useful for image sensor implementation. A SPAD QIS has larger pixels and consumes much more power than the CMOS QIS, but offers time-tagging of pixel arrival far more accurate than CMOS QIS and is being produced as a foundry-process that is also easily integrated with CMOS circuits.

• How has the IEEE impacted your professional journey?