With the introduction of the X70 I'm looking at these again.
I have Nikon FX gear and a Panasonic GX85. I'd like something smaller than the GX85. Grab and go, stick in my jacket / cargo pants pocket. But not really street shooting grabs so AF is important but I think any of these should work.
Options I'm looking at:
Nikon A - Right size, AF OK but not great and gets worse as the light goes does according to reviews. But since I shoot Nikon I know the menus, files, etc. Actually owned a D7000 with the 16mp sensor. And they can be found for under $300 it you take your time.
Ricoh GR - Good reviews here and everywhere. Though as with everything there are compromises. But it's built a following the Nikon A was not really able to so prices are notably higher.
X100s - To big I think, while thinner the overall size is just too big.
X70 - Not as sharp as the Nikon and Ricoh based on reports. Is it really noticeable on screen? Full screen 2K 25"/27" monitor, not taking 100% pixel peeping. Tilting and touch screen are really big pluses to me. But since it's the newest, it's the most expensive. And since I'm not 100% how much I'll end up using it I'm not sure I want to spend this much.
The RX100 mkI / II would also work and probably in the same price range. I've owned the RX100 mkI before. It was fine, it would do the job. In some respects it would probably work better for me with the zoom. But I'm REALLY not a fan of power zooms. I've owned 2 LX100s and sold them both. But I think in the end I was expecting more from them then just a quick snap camera.
With the introduction of the X70 I'm looking at these again.
I have Nikon FX gear and a Panasonic GX85. I'd like something smaller than the GX85. Grab and go, stick in my jacket / cargo pants pocket. But not really street shooting grabs so AF is important but I think any of these should work.
Options I'm looking at:
Nikon A - Right size, AF OK but not great and gets worse as the light goes does according to reviews. But since I shoot Nikon I know the menus, files, etc. Actually owned a D7000 with the 16mp sensor. And they can be found for under $300 it you take your time.
Ricoh GR - Good reviews here and everywhere. Though as with everything there are compromises. But it's built a following the Nikon A was not really able to so prices are notably higher.
X100s - To big I think, while thinner the overall size is just too big.
X70 - Not as sharp as the Nikon and Ricoh based on reports. Is it really noticeable on screen? Full screen 2K 25"/27" monitor, not taking 100% pixel peeping. Tilting and touch screen are really big pluses to me. But since it's the newest, it's the most expensive. And since I'm not 100% how much I'll end up using it I'm not sure I want to spend this much.
The RX100 mkI / II would also work and probably in the same price range. I've owned the RX100 mkI before. It was fine, it would do the job. In some respects it would probably work better for me with the zoom. But I'm REALLY not a fan of power zooms. I've owned 2 LX100s and sold them both. But I think in the end I was expecting more from them then just a quick snap camera.
Given your background - that you own and use Nikon FX gear - the Coolpix A has one huge (and probably obvious) advantage --- namely that as a Nikon user you are basically already familiar with Nikon menus. And, honestly, in this day and age of more and more powerful compact cameras which are also either gifted with - or saddled down with (depending on your perspective) more and more complicated (and theoretically powerful) menus and menu choices - a passing familiarity with the underlying menus of your (new) camera ain't something to be sneezed at. In fact, were I in your metaphoric shoes, that would be a big consideration.
Incidentally I currently have and used (and love) a number of excellent Panasonic mu43 cameras, including the diminutive GM5 and the jack-of-all-trades GX7 (which btw is the direct precursor and almost literal clone of your GX85) - and being quite familiar with (and generally liking, or at least understanding) Panasonic's menus .... I must confess to being partial to using things that I am familiar with and instinctively understand. If there was a very very high quality fixed-lens compact camera with similar specs to either the GR or the Coolpix A, but made by Panasonic/Lumix with Panasonic Menus .... I probably would seriously consider it. (Personal note: I used to have, and quite love, the LX7 but its larger and heavier replacement, the LX100, never really floated my metaphoric boat, so I haven't been remotely tempted.)
But back to your original question and your original options. As I said, the Coolpix A seems logical because of the Nikon Menus. It's also a truly fine camera; I have one on loan now and am considering making the loan permanent. It does almost everything well, simply and easily, has a fabulous lens which apparently was tailor-made and perfectly mated to the sensor, and its relatively simple (but powerful enough for me) combination of physical buttons and simple (have I overused the adjective 'simple' here?) menu controls make it a wonderful semi-pocketable and incredibly high compact.
The GR (and its successor the GR II) are wonderful cameras too. Owned one for several years, finally sold it. And to be totally honest, part of the reason why is/was the Ricoh Menu system. Many love it. I don't number myself among them. It always seemed messy, overly complicated, and never quite 'instinctive' enough for my needs, uses, wishes and desires. That said, the camera itself is one of the most beatifully designed pieces of photographic hardware I've ever used. And like the Coolpix A, the combination of lens + sensor was designed, built and optimized by engineers (and photographers) with a good sense of what they were doing. So, yeah - it's fun to use. And it's neck and neck with the Coolpix A in the department of being able to produce truly wonderful (IQ wise and image wise) photographs.
But if you don't take to that menu .... good luck.
For the others on your list, ditto the menu comments for the Sony RX100. Additionally, it always has seemed more of a piece of clever electronics than a camera - just my own irrational prejudices, I know - so for me, in spite of the wonderfully tiny size, I'm not a fan.
Fujis, which I've never used, seem to have logical and semi-simple menus, and usually more analog controls than anyone could ever wish for. All of that is a huge plus for me and honestly, the one thing that would hold me back, were I making the choice today, would be the relatively high price of what is a newer piece of technology. If money were no object, an X70 would be truly tempting.
But the other side of the coin is that the GR's are more affordable now that the GR II is out (though they still maintain quite high resale values) - and the Coolpix A's, if and when you can find them, are probably shaping up to be the bargain of the bunch.
Being someone who practices what I preach occasionally, I'm now using my loaner Coolpix A more than any of my other cameras ... and, honestly, have only glowing superlatives for both its user/photographer interface (how it handles) - and the quality of its images. A technically savvy photographer friend of mine gave me a long lecture on the microcontrast which Nikon engineers apparently designed or engineered into the glass and construction of the 28mm equivalent Coolpix lens - and insists that there are technical reasons why its digital negatives (and, to be honest, those of the Ricoh GR) are so great.
But being just a subjective and non-tech-obsessed photographer, ease of use is more important for me.
Bottom line should be obvious by now - try to the extent possible to play around with them all .... and go for the one you enjoy using the most. Because that should be, in many real ways, the best one for you.
Miguel
P.S. A final thing that makes me prefer the Coolpix A to the GR is the manual focus ring - which has a nice (to me) feel to it - and has turned out to be much, much, much more useful than I ever imagined. Manual focusing on the GR was, to put it simply, a complicated chore; on the Coolpix A, it merely involves flicking a switch (to go into MF mode) and then turning that ring. May sound like just a small thing....but to me, it's huge.