Ricoh is expected to release the GR Digital IV camera in October, two years after it launched the GR Digital III.

"The new GR Digital IV, featuring a new image engine and a refined optical filter, exceeds the GR DIGITAL III and achieves the highest level of image quality in the history of the GR series," claims Ricoh.

The firm has introduced a Hybrid AF System and an Image-sensor-shift Image Stabilization Function, "which makes use of Ricoh's independently developed external AF sensor." Ricoh has also added a three-inch, approximately 1.23 million-dot VGA LCD monitor for heightened outdoor visibility.

"The addition of an electronic level that can detect inclination in the tilt direction, as well as the conventional horizontal direction also improves operability," says Ricoh. "Moreover, the inclusion of Dynamic Range Compensation makes it possible to shoot subjects in backlit or high-contrast scenes in the way the eye sees them, and Interval Composite, which can combine images shot at a certain shooting interval, advances the camera's expressive capabilities.

Ricoh's GR Digital IV will be available in black or white at £500.

For more details, visit www.ricoh.com.