Pixii software update
In case anyone is using this thread to follow along on general Pixii news (and this is about the only place to do that -- the major photo sites don't pay any attention to Pixii, and the manufacturer doesn't exactly bombard owners with communication either)...
Just before the New Year weekend, Pixii pushed out an over-the-air camera software update [4.11.29] and a firmware update [211231.] A lot of the changes are housekeeping items ("Improve USB charger detection logic and debug display") but there also are some updates that will make a noticeable difference to the user:
Sensor mode option: fast or fine. The change with the most user impact is a new "sensor mode" menu item, with choices of "fast" or "fine." No, setting the sensor mode to "fast" does NOT turn the Pixii into a Nikon Z9 or anything like that! In fact, in a quick test, it had almost no effect on the camera's overall throughput: If you press the shutter button once per second for one minute, you'll get 11 DNG images in "fine" mode and 12 in "fast" mode...not much difference. Either way, the camera responds quickly for the first six images; then the processor pipeline gets filled up, the "Busy" indicator appears, and you need to wait for the camera to catch up before you can add another picture to the pipeline (typically about 10 seconds.) So if you're the type of photographer who fires off 30 or 40 frames in quick succession and then picks the best one later, you'll still be frustrated by the Pixii and should stay away from it.
That's not how most of us use a rangefinder camera, though, and switching to "fast" does something many of us will find useful: it improves shot-to-shot speed. In other words, if your model gives you a great expression, and then immediately gives you a better one... or if your dog does something cute, and then immediately does something cuter... being in "fast" mode gives you a better chance of catching that second shot. In terms of pace (for you classic-camera fans) it's about like switching from a knob-wind camera to one with an advance lever. You're not going to burn through a whole roll either way, but the lever lets you be ready for a surprise follow-up shot just that much quicker.
To put numbers on it: Remember that you're going to light the "Busy" indicator after six shots no matter which mode you're in. But in "fine" mode, you'll hit that six-shot barrier after about five seconds of clicking as fast as you can; in "fast" mode, you'll hit it in about three seconds. In other words, shot-to-shot speed in "fast" mode is about 40% faster. You could even hold the shutter button down and shoot a six-frame burst at about 2fps, if you wanted to... but most of us wouldn't want to, and that's not the point. What the new "fast" option does for me is make me feel better about using the Pixii in spontaneous situations -- more confident that I'll be ready for that second great expression or cute dog trick.
Potential kicker: One thing I haven't figured out yet, since I just downloaded the update today, is what you're giving up -- if anything -- when you switch from "fine" to "fast." Does the camera reduce bit depth, or use less-precise calculations, or cut down on error checks, or simply allocate more processor power to the sensor-readout task? I'll need to do some testing to find out if there's really any impact on image quality.
Improved power management: Aside from that dratted "Busy" indicator, the thing that worried me most at first about using the Pixii seriously was poor battery life. On my very first attempt at a long shoot, the battery warning came on after only about 45 minutes, and that seemed like a potential deal-breaker.
I quickly learned, though, that battery life could be improved a lot by making one change: turning off Wi-Fi, except when you actually need it. While you're shooting, you usually don't need it. You can use the Pixii app to change camera settings and make a quick check of low-res preview images without needing Wi-Fi... those functions run over Bluetooth, which is a lot more energy efficient. The only functions that require Wi-Fi are downloading high-res previews or full-size DNG images, and making software updates... and those are things I usually can defer until I'm camped out in a café or have gotten home. With this change, plus buying an extra battery, I now feel free to wander around for hours with the Pixii without worrying about running out of battery power.
Still, the updates add some tweaks to squeeze out more power if you need it. The "suspend" [sleep] timer, previously fixed at 120 sec., now can be set to put the camera to sleep in as little as 30 sec. (to save more battery power) or as much as 180 sec. (to keep the camera awake during extended shooting sessions.) And one of the firmware changes supposedly provides "lower power usage prior to camera sleep/power-off"... they don't say how, but lower power is better, right?
Auto-lock options: I've noted before that the Pixii is almost totally a software-defined camera. One example is the lock that keeps the exposure in "Auto" mode when you set the shutter wheel to the A position. Lots of cameras have a lock for this, usually some kind of mechanical catch, but on the Pixii it's a "soft lock." If you turn the wheel off A by accident, the camera stays in A mode and the display shows a warning. To unlock it, you need to half-press the shutter release and then turn the wheel off A.
This seemed like a good idea at first, but as I used the camera I found it more and more of a nuisance. It was too time-consuming and fiddly if I didn't like an auto exposure recommendation and wanted to take control right now. Apparently other Pixii owners felt the same, because now there's a preference item that lets you turn the auto-lock on (same way it worked originally) or off, with "off" now the default.
There are other changes too, such as a top ISO setting of 25,600 instead of 12,800 (haven't tried it yet) and an improved auto-white-balance routine that disregards poorly-exposed frames. (The promised custom white balance feature didn't make it into this software release; fingers crossed for the next one!) Some menu-item names and behind-the-scenes routines have been tweaked too.
IMO, it all adds up to a package with no game-changer features, but several welcome updates that add real value for the user... exactly what I'm hoping we can expect routinely from a "camera" that exists mostly as lines of programming code.