Digital compacts can be frustrating--endless menus, difficult access to manual control, screens that fade out in bright sun, no wide-angle, no RAW.... Not the Ricoh GX100! The control system is logical and allows customizing buttons to bring up features you use most often. There are two control dials, so you can, e.g., set aperture and shutter speeds quickly. It has an accessory electronic viewfinder (VF1 in the "kit"), so you can press the camera against your face for extra stability and see the image in bright sunlight. The lens goes from 24-70 (35 mm. equivalent), and there's an accessory lens to convert the wide end to 19 mm. For street shooting, "snap focus" sets the lens to hyperfocal distance, so the shutter release is nearly instantaneous. For Photoshop mavens, it shoots RAW along with JPEGs. Unlike some shiny little cameras, it has a great grip. It's fun to use and is built like a little tank. I've used it a lot and love it!

I love my Canon digital SLR, but I rarely take it anywhere because it's so big and heavy.
The GX100 isn't exactly shirt pocket sized, but it is tiny compared to my SLR, so I don't mind taking it along pretty much anywhere.
I reckon it's SLR users who will get the most out of this camera, because it needs a bit of effort to get good results out of it, and SLR users are used to that.
The GX100 actually goes one better than my SLR by having two command wheels. For me this is the perfect layout and actually encourages you to take manual control of aperture and shutter.
The controls are essentially what you get on an SLR, and you can customise them in various useful ways.
Despite having a useful range of apertures to choose from, the GX100 won't really let you control depth of field like an SLR, but it's useful to have control over the aperture, especially for macro shots. The Ricoh is very good at macro shots: unlike most compacts, you can use macro and zoom at the same time. At full zoom, you will get some nice background blur in macro mode and you can get as close as 4cm.
There are plenty of different quality and aspect ratios to choose from. I like the 1:1 mode for square photos.
But mostly I shoot in RAW because jpeg quality isn't particularly special. I'm used to this now with my SLR and use Adobe Camera Raw. There is basic software for PC only with the camera.
While not quite the sharpest photos I've ever seen, the photos the GX100 takes are generally pretty good, as long as you keep the ISO low. The creative possiblities of the 24mm lens outweigh the lack of outright sharpness.
Quality-wise the Ricoh is better than most compacts you'll see, though I don't particularly care for the loud noises the lens makes. The body is mostly metal, with sticky rubber pads front and back that make this particularly easy to use with one hand. The camera feels as expensive as it is. Attention to detail is excellent (theres's a tether for the lens cap for instance) and there are many nice touches, like a battery compartment that takes two AAA cells as well as the supplied lithium-ion battery. So if your main battery runs out of juice, you can buy some alkalines; just remember that they will only give you about 30 shots.
Stacked up against mainstream rivals, the GX100 might not seem like the obvious choice. It's quite expensive, photo quality is ultimately no better than cheaper rivals, and you need to be an enthusiast in RAW and perhaps Photoshop to get the best results.
This should probably put a lot of people off. But if you appreciate good design, enjoy being creative, like a challenge and want to be different, the GX100 could be for you.

Lately I'm using my DSLRs more often, but this has been my main camera for the past year. I'm going to pick up a second before they go out of production because I have a bad feeling Ricoh will be taking some backward steps with the successor, as they did with the GRD II.

What I love about it:

--Color rendition. It's hard to put a finger on it, but it's immediately different than than the usual Canon/Nikon, in a good way. Not quite like film, but the images don't look typically digital, either. Unique and very pleasing.

--Grain quality. Yes, the G9 reviews better for having less noise, but I sold mine after just two months. The noise with that camera is speckled with bright dots, very digital looking, whereas the GX100, though it has more noise overall, is evenly distributed.

--Killer lens. Sharp into the corners, faster and wider than any other compact. Will get you those night shots.

--Accurate LCD for both color and exposure; what you see pretty much what you get.

--Hybrid AF system.

--"Snap" (hyperfocal) focus eliminates shooting lag. What this means in the real world is being able to shoot without waiting for the half-press for focus. So on vacation you can hand it to a stranger who has never used a digital camera and still get a focused picture. Why Ricoh doesn't advertise this more is beyond me.

--Best user interface ever, of any camera, period.

--Excellent and intuitive manual focus.

--1cm macro.

--Soft rubber grip on par with my D300, won't slip out of your hand.

--DNG RAW format, with optional fine JPG.

Nitpicks:

--Barrel distortion at 24mm is higher than I like. Needs a 4-5 correction number in CS3.

--Can't shoot square in RAW. Why, Ricoh, you added this to the GRD II? Hardware issue? Saving it for the GX200 maybe?

--RAW shooting could be a little faster, best with a Class 6 SDHC.

A lot of reviewers complain that this camera has a small sensor, and I suppose they do so because this is a premium product that Ricoh is marketing as a professional tool. Nevertheless, it is a professional tool and up to ISO 400, shooting RAW, I continue to be excited by the images. Rare is the camera that you can't wait to get home and see what you've got.

The reviews above have described this camera to a "T". Let me piggy back and add what I enjoy about this camera. 1. Wide angle! 24mm is great on a little compact like this. 2. You can store your favorite settings in one of two memory positions. You could set one for slow shutter at night, and maybe the other for recording audio with your photos (Great for taking photos at a party when you need to recall people's names). 3. You can store your most 5 used menu items for quick access (4 on the adjustment wheel, one on the function button). 4. The Macro mode really lets you get up close and if you use the digital zoom you really get larger than life-size images. 5. The flash will not pop up when you don't want it...you tell the camera you need the flash. 6. You can select the size (320 or 640) and fps (15 fps or 30 fps) of the video.

This camera is not for a casual shooter. If you want to control the camera, if you get frustrated at compacts that are fully automated, if you want to travel light, but wish you had your digital SLR...this is the camera for you!

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this Camera!!!, May 20, 2008
By Randy Shelton "Galavoxx" (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

I used to have a Ricoh GR1s 35mm point and shoot that I carried with me everywhere. For some time I had wanted to buy a RAW capable P&S with the functionality of a DSLR but I couldn't decide on which one to get.

For awhile I wanted the Canon G9 but after handling the camera, it did not compare to the Ricoh GR1s I was then using. I really didn't want to give up the amazing ergos of the GR1s for something that felt so bulky. I wanted a smallish camera with all the features of a big camera. I then discovered that there was a Ricoh GRD and GRDII but the price on those were little out of my range for a fixed lens camera. So when I found the GX100 I started looking into it. Soon after, I made my purchase.

I have been incredibly pleased thus far. Lens quality is amazing, though not as sharp as the GR series (but that could be the image processor). Ergonomics and functions are all there and it just works and captures amazing photographs. One of my favorite things about the camera are the "My Settings" options. You can select your favorite settings and record them to be selected on the option wheel. So if you love shooting at 80 ISO in RAW at 28mm and 5.1 aperture you can save it to "My1". And if you have some other setting you like save them to "My2". All of your other settings are also saved. Every time you turn off the camera and then back on you can click back to one of the wheel modes and your last used settings are there!!

For some sample images check out flickr. For more serious reviews, do a google search.