The camera is very likely going to be announced on March 25-26.

UK PR

Sony Launches RX0 II, the World's Smallest and Lightest Premium Ultra-Compact Camera 

Superb image quality delivered by 1.0-type stacked 15.3MP[i] image sensor condensed into waterproof[ii] rugged, highly compact body

Featuring ZEISS® Tessar T* 24mm F4 fixed wide-angle lens

Movie shooting with 4K internal recording and new image stabilisation solutions

Advanced functionality for stills photography including up to 1/32000 sec. Anti-distortion Shutter and up to 16fps[v] continuous shooting

Diverse range of shooting scenes enabled by waterproof 180 degree tiltable LCD panel and Clear Image Zoom 

Perfect for selfie with enhanced colour reproduction, new Soft Skin Effect mode and advanced Eye AF

Microphone jack and Shooting Grip (VCT-SGR1) delivers minimal and ideal Vlog shooting solution

Multi-camera solution that enables creative video expression from various viewpoints

Sony today introduced an exciting new addition to its highly popular compact camera line-up with the launch of the world's smallest and lightest[vi] premium compact camera, the RX0 II (model DSC-RX0M2). Building upon the waterproof/dustproofii, shockproof,[vii] crushproof[viii] and ultra-compact qualities of the original RX0, the new model now offers internal 4K recording, an up to 180-degree and down to 90-degree tiltable LCD screen that even works underwater[ix],ii and new image stabilisation solutions for video recording.

At the heart of the RX0 II sits a 1.0-type stacked 15.3-megapixeli Exmor RS™ CMOS image sensor and an advanced BIONZ X™ image processing engine that offer enhanced[x] colour reproduction including beautiful skin tones. This power packed combination have been optimised to deliver lightning fast performance and exquisite image quality for both stills and movie shooting across a wide sensitivity range of ISO 80[xi]-12800. The ZEISS® Tessar T* 24mmiii F4.0 fixed wide-angle lens has a shortened minimum focussing distance of 20cm, making it perfect for selfies or table-top photos.  

A camera for all conditions

The RX0 II is truly a 'worry-free' camera that can be taken into places that no other camera can go. Measuring just 59mm x 40.5mm x 35mm[xii] and weighing just 132g,[xiii] the RX0 II fits easily into a pocket and is ready for whatever the elements can throw at it. It is waterproofii up to 10 metres deep, dustproofii, shockproofvii up to 2 metres and crushproofviii up to 200KG force. 

"The development goal of the original RX0 was to build a camera that enabled new forms of creative expression through its form factor and technical capabilities," said Yann Salmon Legagneur, Director of Product Marketing, Digital Imaging at Sony Europe. "We have built upon this with the new RX0 II and added features and functionality that we believe make this an ideal camera for any type of travel and will perform equally well as a stills or video camera across a huge range of shooting and vlogging scenarios." 

Movies and More 

The RX0 II offers 4K 30p internal movie recordingiv with full pixel readout and no pixel binning to collect approximately 1.7 times the amount of data required for 4K video. This oversampling reduces the appearance of moiré and jaggies and delivers smooth, high quality 4K footage with exceptional detail and depth. Using the recently introduced Sony "Imaging Edge™" mobile applications, this footage can be transferred to a smartphone[xiv], edited and shared easily across social networks.

The RX0 II introduces in-body electronic stabilisation[xv] for steady footage, even when shot handheld. This can be enhanced even further when footage is exported to a smartphone or tablet running the 'Movie Edit add-on'[xvi] application where the additional information captured during filming can be processed to produce a video with gimbal-like smoothness.[xvii] An additional new feature that can be accessed via Sony 'Movie Edit add-on' is 'Intelligent Framing' where the selected subject is kept in the centre of the frame and  image distortion is corrected in a final edit. Depending on where the video will be shared, the required aspect ratio can then be selected. 

Additional movie features of the RX0 II include Super Slow Motion recording at up to 1000 fps[xviii], uncompressed 4K HDMI output and simultaneous proxy movie recording.  Users can utilise Picture Profile, S-Log2 and Time Code / User Bit functions to ensure a final result that exactly matches their creative vision. 

Precision Photography

The versatility of the RX0 II means that it offers a host of stills photography features in addition to its video capabilities. It boasts an Anti-distortion Shutter of up to 1/32000 sec. and can shoot at up to 16 fpsv to capture any fleeting moment of emotion that passes across the subject's face. In an upgrade from the original RX0, colour reproduction has been enhanced to reproduce natural and vivid colours of human skin, and the optional 'Soft Skin Effect' can be applied to cover minor blemishes and wrinkles.  Rating and Protect functions can be applied in camera and a grouped display of continuously shot images can be viewed on the camera.

Sony's Eye AF, that is proving hugely popular with portrait photographers across the world, has been upgraded on the RX0 II. The speed, accuracy and operation of the Eye AF has been improved to make it even easier to capture a stunning portrait; a simple half press of the shutter button will lock-on to the eye of the subject. The focussed eye can be selected (left / right / auto) in the menu or assigned to a custom button, allowing the user to concentrate on composition. The camera can be set for interval shooting, the results of which can be edited with Sony's "Imaging Edge" desktop application 'viewer' into stunning time-lapse videos[xix].

Multi-camera options

Up to 5 RX0 II cameras can be controlled wirelessly[xx] using Sony 'Imaging Edge Mobile'[xxi] application and between 6 to 50 cameras will be able to be controlled via an access point (scheduled for Summer 2019.) The RX0 II is also compatible with the Camera Control Box CCB-WD1[xxii] which enables up to 100 cameras to be connected and controlled in a wired multi-camera setup. These multi-camera solutions unlock a whole new world of shooting opportunities and free video expression from any viewpoint that the user wishes to pursue.

Pricing and Availability

The RX0 II kit with the VCT-SGR1 Shooting Grip and bracket will ship in Europe in May 2019, priced at approximately €800/£730.

For more information on the new RX0 II camera, please visit; Camera page

A variety of exclusive stories, videos and exciting new content shot with the newest cameras and other Sony's Alpha products can be found at https://www.sony.co.uk/alphauniverse. Sony's European photography hub is available in 22 languages and details product news, competitions and an up-to-date list of Sony events in each country.

Stabilization seems good if you use the post processing app on a mobile device.

Still amazing that GoPro does it all in-camera.

Obviously one target audience is vloggers, including those who shoot selfies. That is touted in all the PR.

The camera is almost half the price of the RX100 VI, so if one wants a small 1" sensor 4K camera with equally (almost) good video and stills in the RX100 series, it is the lower-cost option.

Sort of an action cam too, given robustness against water and tough use. So also a higher quality IQ GoPro and X3000, without the fisheye look. More versatile than an action cam, though less good IS that either action cam.

And put in on a small gimbal (like the Feiyutech G6, which has a dedicated RX0 mount and controls) and you have a higher-quality (better stills, better video, much better audio) Osmo Pocket that is waterproof out of the box (G6 too!). That is what appeals to me (so we get one target).

I am not saying this is enough to justify the product's existence, but you asked. Obviously the original sold enough that it justified to Sony creating a second model, which basically eliminates the major shortcomings of the first but, atypical for Sony, sells at the same price as did the original.

it would be cheaper, in terms of camera, not action camera needs, to buy an rx100mkiii

Although to be fair, you could also get a Hero 7 with a microphone adapter for substantially less (like 2/3 the cost) and get decent bitrate 4kp60 HEVC and much better in-camera EIS, but with disadvantage of a fisheye lens.

@eatstoomuchjam

LINEAR view (with software dewarping of the lens) has removed the fisheye effect if you don't want to, but sadly not for 4K yet.

GoPro should in my view try to copy the flippy screen and get the analogue mic input back on the camera body.

https://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/sony_rx0_ii_review/preview_images

@eatstoomuchjam If you are using stabilization you are not shooting 4K with the GoPro Hero7 Black - it uses some of those scarce pixels for the stabilization, about a 10% loss in resolution. The RX0 ii oversamples by 1.7X to get 4K; it is not just a crop of the sensor and thus there are extra pixels for stabilization and for their "lossless" zoom.

@markr041...nope...I don't need to check my facts first. No photographer ever is going to choose the rx0 over any rx100...i, ii, iii, iv, v, or vi .... for still photography, I don't care what's color science sony put on the fw. That's what photoshop is for. And the iv shoots raw as well....and omg...guess you'll have to get a mark iv on sale ! Where's the hostility? ...I'm just not a gearhead and know which gear is useful and which gear is flawed. And I don't need to jump on every bandwagon passing thru town.

@markr041....actually no, I don't give a shxt about learning, when it conflicts with my own opinion based on my experience. Working as a real photographer and supporting a family for my third career after research engineer and artist was enough learning curve. Color science is apparently more important to some video shooters, bur rarely ever gets mentioned by still photographers. Like I said...photoshop. Works for video too. $100 here nor there. Really....man ...it's you who's hostile...so I'll give you a pointer....your videos are boring ! Get some content, or if it's just a sample, cut it to 30 seconds !

@Vitaliy...actually I'd prefer a squirrel to the rx0 ! ...and thank god for the pause button. My point being....who cares if a camera shoots 32k holograms and cost 100 bucks...if people have no interesting content. And people with no interesting content shouldn't play teacher. We had some interesting threads....( @maxr and others) about the filmic image. Maybe some might benefit from a search. Nothing like learning photography and film history before one picks up a camera....imho. One of the reasons photography has been relegated to the trashbin of instagram is mediocre content. And of course the other reason is anybody who buys a camera automatically becomes edward weston. And these dayz, any dude can buy a rx0 and call himself a cinematographer. Well, imho, that dude would be better served by buying an rx100 ...for about...plus or minus $100 ...but he still wouldn't be a cinematographer ! This camera is what v1.0 should have been, but sony makes a profit off their flawed learning curve, at the customers expense. At a certain point, people who use cameras need to realize that that newer model won't make them any more creative. I'd far prefer to watch an interesting mini dv than a boring 4k video anyday....even if it's oversampled from 6k. But gearmania is driving the market. http://francisalys.com/el-gringo/