Standing Quietly, a World First: Zeiss ZX-1 Unboxing Review

October 18, 2026

Standing Quietly, a World First: Zeiss ZX-1 Unboxing Review

The Zeiss ZX-1 is an extremely rare camera in Taiwan — yet so mysterious and captivating. As Zeiss's first fully self-developed full-frame compact camera, this time Xiaojian Tang walks us through this creative Zeiss camera.

By Xiaojian Tang

Zeiss ZX1 | Close-up of blue Zeiss ZX-1 lettering in the foreground, the black ZX1 camera body resting on a wooden ledge behind it, warm lights dissolving into soft bokeh in the shallow depth of field

"Immerse yourself in the image — shoot as you please."

Remember the Loxia 25mm I shared not long ago? (If you missed it, see here.) In that article I mentioned my dreams for Zeiss — and for a century-old optics company, those dreams are big enough to hold several of mine. The most delightful one: the Zeiss ZX-1, which I've been longing for day and night since its 2018 announcement.

[Carl Zeiss, ZX1]

Founded in 1846 and now celebrating its 175th anniversary, this world-leading lens maker — whose little blue badge intoxicates photographers — entered the 21st century by releasing its first full-frame compact digital camera. Whatever its fate, this camera is a bold, defining stroke in Zeiss history.

The first full-frame digital camera in history was Zeiss's N Digital, announced in 2000 and released in 2002. To my then young and naive self, that pioneering spirit shook me deeply — but I was in no position to take part. So when the ZX-1 was announced in 2018, I told myself I had to get one no matter what.

After the passage of time and countless browses of B&H, eBay, and Ruten… by chance I asked Zeiss Taiwan's distributor, Cheng Seng Group — and then………

Zeiss ZX1 | A black Zeiss ZX1 camera resting on a bunch of yellow-green bananas, Distagon 2/35 lettering visible on the lens ring

(All photos below have been retouched to varying degrees)

[First Impressions]

Zeiss is always different — and the ZX-1? I think the character "青" (a cool, bluish-green) sums up my entire first impression. Unlike the usual Zeiss look with its slightly red, vivid punch, the ZX-1 renders a peculiar melancholy — a calm, cool temperament, somewhat like the Leica Q, yet even more like an alpine flower, hard to approach.

Zeiss ZX1 | A shopping street after rain, signboards and rows of parked scooters lining both sides, pedestrians walking on the wet reflective pavement in cool teal tones

Matching that unapproachable character, the camera's operation is ultra-willful minimalism: a gorgeous 15-second boot animation (I later discovered a standby mode for quick on/off), and just one physical button on the back (AEL/AFL) — a bucket of cold water on my excitement.

[Continuing the Story]

This camera's arrival inevitably invites a showdown with the eternal friend (Sony) and the eternal rival (Leica). If Zeiss pioneered the full-frame digital vision, Sony is the originator of the full-frame compact — the 2012 RX1 with its Zeiss 35mm F2.0 stunned the world, and my heart still races thinking about it. (See: The Full-Frame in Your Palm: A Brief, Beautiful Encounter with the RX1.) Then the 2015 Leica Q arrived with a bolder 28mm F1.7 spec. Under the long shadows of these two legends I kept wondering… what about Zeiss? When would it release its own full-frame compact? In 2018, the ZX-1 — carrying the RX1's promise in a single changed letter, with the same Zeiss 35mm F2.0 — boldly challenged its greatest rival, the Leica Q. So what specs could such a unique camera offer?

Zeiss ZX1 Key Specs:

⦿ 37 MP full-frame sensor

⦿ 255 focus areas

⦿ ISO 80–51200

⦿ Up to 3 fps continuous shooting

⦿ Lens: Distagon T* 35mm F2.0 (5 groups, 8 elements)

⦿ 0.7" 1080p OLED electronic viewfinder

⦿ 4.34" 921k-dot capacitive touch curved display

⦿ Built-in 512GB storage

⦿ 4K (3840×2160 30fps) and 1080p 60fps video

⦿ Android OS, runs Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC

[Lightroom & Upload???]

It runs Android and can run Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC — seeing that spec, I bet everyone thought of opening the app store to download Meitu or VSCO first. But in practice this side of the design feels rather limited: cloud and editing remain semi-closed, and after long study I still couldn't figure out uploading to personal cloud or phone, so I won't dwell on it.

As for Lightroom, Zeiss boldly removed the picture-style options nearly every camera has — there is no way to adjust color while shooting at all; everything is left to in-camera editing or post-processing on a computer. That's one of this camera's defining traits.

The first hurdle in Lightroom editing is the login requirement — having long forgotten my desktop account, I could only browse the features roughly (without login, applying styles and guided edits are unavailable). What impressed me most: built-in one-tap auto edit and custom style presets — edit one photo to your taste in-camera, then apply that style to the rest. Very, very cool.

…………But as a member of the ancient tribe, I still transferred everything to my computer for post-processing.

The three below were edited in-camera, then transferred to computer, resized, and uploaded.

Zeiss ZX1 | A red old wooden window frame on a weathered wall, green vines climbing beside the window, the wall marked with moss and traces of age

[In the Field]

Zeiss ZX1 | The curved corridor of a pedestrian overpass stretching into the distance, mesh fencing and railings on both sides creating strong perspective depth

But through sporadic shooting, I gradually got used to its bad temper and slow pace — and gradually fell for this texture so different from my usual style.

As a 35mm carry-everywhere camera, shooting food feels like its calling. Many of its straight-out-of-camera food shots carry that greenish "青" cast with a peculiar narrative feel — but after slight editing at home, they turn out surprisingly, remarkably textured.

Two deliberate close-ups to examine the bokeh — transitions delicate and natural.

A senior photographer once told me that every Zeiss lens's dimensionality and color transitions deserve savoring. Back then, shooting mostly ZA lenses, I couldn't grasp it — but unexpectedly, on the ZX-1 I tasted that unmistakably Zeiss yet different flavor.

Zeiss ZX1 | On a rainy market street, a cleaner in an orange reflective vest and raincoat holds a broom beside an orange trash bin, food stall signs lining both sides above the wet reflective road

Zeiss ZX1 | Looking up inside a temple at a stone pillar carved with a coiling dragon and the ornate gilded caisson ceiling, the carvings layered in warm golden light

The ZX-1's sense of depth is subtly hard to control: at medium distance with F2.0 it readily builds spatial depth, but at hyperfocal distances it often flattens out a little (like the three below).

Zeiss ZX1 | A rainy night market street, people in raincoats and holding umbrellas walking between stalls covered with tarps, lit shop signs on both sides and the wet pavement mirroring the lights

Later I cracked its color code: an indescribable luminosity and fine material texture, kneading what should be strong dimensionality into something like medium format — quietly narrated yet unforgettable in every frame (though it still can't quite match the X1D..).

Eventually, the ZX-1's straight-out-of-camera color became a kind of training for me, pushing me to weave ambient light into my compositions.

Zeiss ZX1 | A slice of meringue pie on a white plate on a wooden table, the piped cream and crisp pastry clearly textured, the café background melting into blue-toned bokeh

Zeiss ZX1 | People carrying bags of trash and recyclables toward a recycling truck parked at the roadside, a worker standing on the truck bed taking the bags handed up

Zeiss ZX1 | Inside a market food court, rows of red lanterns hang in the tall space, a red-brick archway and vertical signs on the left, a stall counter with staff working on the right

In this practice, I seemed to return to that innocent pursuit of photography — and the longing and joy of shooting, and shooting, and shooting.

Zeiss ZX1 | An open light-blue cooler box at a market stall, neatly packed with colourful bottled drinks on ice, a handwritten sign with items and prices behind it

Zeiss ZX1 | The grand stone façade of a classical-style building, round windows and arched storefronts in a neat row, a black van parked by the street trees in front

The sun finally came out on the last day of Lunar New Year!!

Zeiss ZX1 | An elevated metro track running between office towers into the distance, rows of high-rises on both sides and faint mountains under a cloudy sky

Zeiss ZX1 | Under a white-brick-pillared arcade, a black-and-white chequered tile floor stretches into the distance, sunlight casting alternating light and shadow, a few pedestrians at the far end

Zeiss ZX1 | A black CUMAR ITALY sign on an orange shopfront wall dappled with tree shadows, two people walking side by side on the pavement to the right, streets and high-rises in the distance

I love photographing people mid-stride, leaning this way and that — I call this style "floaty people", and this time I shot so many floaty people, I was thrilled~

Zeiss ZX1 | Beneath a large spreading tree, a person with a white hiking backpack stands with their back to the camera, looking toward misty mountains amid lush greenery

After all this field testing I still rarely photographed people — but I was too eager to share before the camera had even warmed up in my hands, so here are just a few for reference.

Zeiss ZX1 | A wide waterfall cascading down a rock face in several streams, a person in an orange knit hat holding a bright red umbrella standing before the dark wooden railing

I meant to share a brief pros-and-cons summary, but ended up posting a huge gallery anyway. Here's a quick list of pros for reference:

⦿ Pros

1. Zeiss colors; Distagon lens design with minimal distortion

2. USB charging supported

3. Beautiful packaging and co-branded PD strap

4. Fully touch interface

5. Built-in 512GB storage

6. Built-in LR with custom style presets and one-tap editing

7. Base ISO 80

8. 4.3" curved touchscreen

⦿ Areas for improvement

1. Contrast-detect AF is a bit too slow

2. The body's only button is poorly placed; no thumb rest possible

3. Only 3 fps continuous shooting

4. Overly small viewfinder

5. Overly minimal UI, easy to accidentally change settings

6. Editing design isn't intuitive (one-tap edit should be assignable to a button)

7. High-ISO performance is rather ordinary

8. Very expensive price

⦿ Fan wishlist

After this short time with it, here's what my ideal ZX-1 would look like:

1. Design inspired by the Zeiss Ikon ZM, in retro silver-black

2. Drop the EVF; let users choose accessories like a thumb rest, external flash, or OVF/EVF add-ons

3. Fast phase-detect AF is a must

4. Touch UI needs a physical button lock against accidental touches

5. Clear, intuitive one-tap editing and skin-smoothing

6. Slightly smaller body

7. More pleasing straight-out-of-camera colors

[Final Verdict]

Sharpness ★★★★☆

Color ★★★★

Bokeh ★★★

Overall ★★★☆

Whatever else, a first-generation model always carries both significance and regrettable little flaws. But out of love for Zeiss, I still hope this camera sells well — and that Zeiss keeps going, releasing the next one, even the next generation of cameras and lenses.