1 comments about Sony DSC-W330 14.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Wide Angle Zoom with Digital Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 3.0 inch LCD (Silver).

1. I bought this camera from best buy and the camera is so worth it. the pictures are bright and clear and its so easy to use.

No comments about Sony DSC-W330 14.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Wide Angle Zoom with Digital Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 3.0 inch LCD (Blue).

No comments about Sony DSC-W350 14.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Wide Angle Zoom with Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 2.7 inch LCD (Silver).

No comments about Sony DSC-W350 14.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Wide Angle Zoom with Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 2.7 inch LCD (Pink).

No comments about Sony DSC-W330 14.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Wide Angle Zoom with Digital Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 3.0 inch LCD (Red).

3 comments about Sony DSC-W350 14.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Wide Angle Zoom with Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 2.7 inch LCD (Blue).

1. I had the camera now for two days. There is nothing really negative about this camera. The pictures are sharp, great colors, it's easy to use, all important features are there and work as advertized. The display is great, the build quality is solid, it is small and lightweight. The objective with a 35mm equivalent zoom from 26 to 105 is great. I often found with my old camera that I can't get all people in the picture and there is not enough room to back away to get a larger field of view. The 26mm wide angle helps a lot. In addition you can use the sweep panorama function. It works very good and is very fast. It just needs some practice to get good subjects beyond the usual panorama sceneries. Super Steady Shot is great.
   
   So to help in a purchase I write about missing features. This doesn't mean the camera is bad. For $200 it's a steal!
   
   -In camera HDR would be great
   -No exposure bracketing mode (but you can shoot from -2EV to +2EV manually).
   -Panoramas are limited to 1080pixel height x 7500 pixel wide. I had hoped to get higher resolution from a sensor that has 3000 pixel vertical resolution.
   -No remote control
   -Unfortunately Sony offers no waterproof cameras.
   -Video is 720p max. 1080p would be nice but is not necessary either
   -more colors would be great
   
   As you can see it's hard to find something negative about this camera at all.
   
   The only negative I found so far is that the camera has one slot that takes either SD cards or Memory sticks. This means that inserting the memory stick is a bit tricky compared to older cameras that have only a dedicated memory stick slot. But it's not a big problem either.
   
   All in all highly recommended.



2. Overall this is a great compact camera, I agree with the last reviewer. It has a ton of options, and several settings that simplify things (and take a more than decent picture) if you are a beginner and don't want to mess with the settings. 720p movies is a great feature as long as your expectations aren't too high. Resolution isn't everything- you're not going to see the kind of higher bitrate clean bright picture you would with a proper digital video camera or that you see on TV or anything, but that should be obvious with a compact camera where video isn't the primary fuction. The image/coor/motion handling are still very good though.
   Pictures are clear, great color, good performance in low light for a compact. My only real gripe is the "auto orientation" mode. It works in the camera's display (rotates the picture to the orientation in which you took it), but the feature is meant to save this information with the picture so that when you download to your computer the images also display in the correct rotation. Now, I believe it IS saving the information with the picture, but it isn't displaying them correctly in windows picture viewer (i'm guessing this is the case because the manual says that some software will not use the orientation information correctly and display as it should). I can understand that for 'some software', but... windows picture viewer?! Come on... other than iPhoto or whatever it's called on mac, that's the only software people are going to be using to view their pictures! I mean- I know there are others, but realistically probably 95+% of people are looking at their pictures in mac or windows native picture viewing apps...likely far more in windows just based on OS market share...so seriously that seems like a pretty big miss to me, making the function almost pointless. And that was one of the features that I was using to narrow down my search, so...kind of a disappointment.
   
   It's still a great camera though, I can't give it anything less than 4 stars.



3. I've had this camera for a few weeks now and I'm still tinkering with all the settings so I know there's more this camera can do. I'm just an amateur but I love taking pictures and am trying to use this camera not only for personal use but for artistic photography as well. My main comparison though is an old 7MP Cybershot DSC P200 so it's better than that.
   
   The good:
   
   - The automatic settings work pretty well for me so far. I like the advanced scene recognition mode which will automatically take 2 pictures in lower light, one with the foreground more lit up and one with the background more lit. Produces some fun results(see customer shots).
   
   - Decent low light pictures, not too much noise.
   
   - Face recognition is great, it even picked out my dog's face a couple times hehe.
   
   - The panoramic feature is neat just practice using it a couple times to get everything in (or stop) right where you want to.
   
   - The LCD screen is big and bright enough to see if the pictures are blurry or anything like that so that helps a lot.
   
   - It starts up super fast, well I don't have much to compare it to but it's great for me. If something's going on I can get the camera out and press the power button and it's ready to go as long as I have it on the right settings before I turned it off.
   
   - Light weight and very slim. Even in a case I can fit it in my small purse and carry it wherever I go. Sometimes I have to double check that the camera is even in the case because it's really light.
   
   The not so good:
   
   - Washes out often. I took a trip to the park on a lovely sunny day and it seemed like every other picture I took was washed out. Also if I was even partially pointed towards the sun (not directly at it) I would get large lens flares. The flash really washes out the foreground as well, I'm not sure if it's just because you can get so close to your subject with the wide angle lens or if it's because the flash is overpowered.
   
   - Can't zoom in much. The 4x optical zoom is great but that's as far as you can go at the full 14 MP fine picture setting. If you want/ need to zoom in more you have to go down to 10MP and then it gets a bit blurry.
   
   - No zoom with the panoramic feature. You also have to just practice and get a feel for how long the panoramic is going to be with this feature so it may take a few trys to get the picture to start and stop right where you want it to.
   
   - The power button is tiny and flush with the body of the camera. I have small fingers so I can usually press it when I want but I've had to resort to using my finger nails sometimes to turn the camera on. Someone with large fingers might have troubles getting the button to fully depress.
   
   - Only pressing the shudder button halfway is sometimes a challenge. It's very easy to accidentally take a picture when you were still trying to just hold it halfway to focus.
   
   Overall for the price and for being a point and shoot it's a nice little camera. I'm sure once I figure out more of the settings I'll get some better results and the automatic settings have been pretty good to me so far. My complaints aren't enough to make me want to take the camera back I think I just need to get used to it a bit more.
   I hope this helps :)

5 comments about Sony DSC-TX7 10.2MP CMOS Digital Camera with 4x Zoom with Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 3.5 inch Touch Screen LCD (Silver).

1. I love the camera but i'm unable to use any of the drivers because i have Windows xp x86. I spoke to Sony and there reply was to upgrade my windows. Poor customer service for driver support.



2. this is the best and only ultra portable in the market that can record hd movies at 1080i 60 frames per second which is truly amazing for a device this small. camera has a lot of great features which include amazing picture quality, amazing flash and amazing features . if you are thinking on buying a camera , I suggest you spent the extra cash and get this one , you will not regret it .



3. This camera will get plenty of rave reviews and I agree with most of them. However, based on Sony's own specs for this camera (available at Sony's website) the battery life is likely less than one hour when in video mode.
   
   Your old Sony batteries won't work with this new model. Since each new Sony battery will cost $50, you will need to spend at least another $100 in spare batteries just to go on a long trip or videotape a wedding longer than 3 hours. Even then you can not re-charge them all at the same time at the hotel, so you need to spend even more money on extra battery chargers.
   
   Short battery life is also a problem for scuba divers since you will run out of power shortly after your start your dive.
   
   I personally do not want to spend $400 plus $200 in accesories for a total of $600 on just one still camera, there are plenty other products with better battery life available on Amazon which offer even better quality.



4. Sony DSC-TX7 10.2MP CMOS Digital Camera with 4x Zoom with Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 3.5 inch Touch Screen LCD features 10.2 megapixel "Exmor R" CMOS image sensor that brings out the full resolving power of the camera's Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens to deliver extremely fast speed, high resolution, and stunning low-light sensitivity with improved image clarity and drastically reduced grain. In addition, the combined "Exmor R" CMOS sensor and BIONZ image processor delivers extremely fast 10fps, Anti Motion Blur, Hand-held Twilight and 1080i movie modes.
   
   the Sony DSC-TX7 has 3.5-inch Xtra Fine LCD touch screen display1 w/TruBlack technology (921K pixels), the largest of Sony's Cyber-shot DSC line makes it easy for viewing and sharing images with simple and fun touch screen operation. With its Ultra AR film coating, which reduces reflections and increases contrast and brightness, viewing images on the LCD even in bright light is possible.
   
   The DSC-TX7 offers intuitive functions to the multi-purpose touch screen, such as the ability to select the focus point with a simple touch, scroll through images by sliding your finger across the screen and one-touch access to the MENU. The display also features improved readability with list view and index view.
   
   The DSC-TX7 features 12 convenient scene modes: High Sensitivity, Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Soft Snap, Landscape, Beach, Snow, Fireworks, High Speed Shutter, Underwater, Gourmet, Pet.
   
   Included lithium-ion battery provides added convenience with longer lasting power than alkaline batteries (capacity of 230 images or 55 minutes of still image viewing with the DSC-TX7).



5. Let me start this review with saying that I have owned quite a few digital cameras in the past. Sony (W50, W250), Canon (SD750, SD760IS) and Nikon (S5 or something) are amongst the brands I have tried. All of them were compact point-shoot cameras.
   
   My ideal digital camera is one where the following conditions are met:
   1. I don't have to think of the environment I am in (day or night)
   2. It MUST be compact so I can carry it around easily, fit it in my pocket, etc.
   3. It should just work without changing settings all the time.
   
   This is exactly that!
   
   Good Points:
   -> Best low-light pictures (finally!!!)
   -> Amazing Panaromic mode. It is sooo easy to use.
   -> So many modes, but auto is the best mode.
   -> Tap to focus certain areas of the screen! Very cool.
   -> The most compact camera I have seen that has a solid build to it. Nothing cheap about it (including the price!)
   -> Ability to zoom while recording HD movies! A huge plus.
   -> 29 minutes of continuous video recording. (most cameras only allow 10)
   -> The touch screen has an 'easy mode' (aka idiot mode), which hides away all the advanced features and makes it very easy to use
   -> My SDHC card works (min 8gb recommended)
   -> Made in Japan (no offense, but to me this says alot about the build quality)
   
   Minor Points:
   -> Battery is not the best, but is not horrible either. Would recommend trying it out first. For most people, it should not be a problem, However, it is so tiny that you can easily carry a couple of them with you. Wait for the prices to come down on the battery and snag a couple of them.
   -> The silver is actually dark silver. You could even say its dark grey. Looks much better in reality than in pictures. Having said that, I think the Red would be sexy as well!
   
   Verdict: Definite Buy!

5 comments about Sony DSC-TX7 10.2MP CMOS Digital Camera with 4x Zoom with Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 3.5 inch Touch Screen LCD (Blue).

1. I am actually a Canon fan, but the TX7 is a small compact that takes good stills *and* video, as well as having a bunch of special features (panorama, HDR, etc). Canon currently has no feature match for the TX7 in a P&S style camera this small.
   
   I think other reviews have done a great job of running down the pros and cons, but I have to say that, besides the slew of interesting features in such a small package, the thing that got me interested was that this is the first Sony camera that takes regular SDHC cards (it also can use the proprietary Sony Memory Sticks).
   
   Summary:
   
   Pros:
   
   - Great camera features in a small package!
   - May be the best low-light performer for its size
   - AVCHD *and* MP4 video formats (your choice)
   - SDHC *and* Sony Memory stick compatible (your choice)
   
   Cons:
   
   - Short-ish battery life and longer-than-average recharge time
   - Poor lens cover design
   - No audio leveling of any kind (not even a distortion light)
   - Only one physical connection port and it's proprietary
   
   As others have mentioned, the slide-down lens cover is the biggest ergonomic gaffe, though it's probably not going to be a dealbreaker for most folks (just adding a couple of little metal ridges to the cover would have significantly improved it). It's easy to run your thumb over the lens when pushing the cover down. People with large hands may also find the tiny buttons and skinniness of the camera a bit daunting.
   
   The "blue" camera, by the way, is actually "dark blue" and is so dark that it looks like it's black - my friend and I could barely see any blue in it. (Is there also a "blue" as well as a "dark blue"? The photo on Amazon looks like a considerably lighter shade of blue than my camera).
   
   The video capability has been heavily touted, but I haven't read much about the accompanying audio. Unfortunately, the camera provides no way to control the volume levels at all. You get whatever comes in the stereo mic on the front of the camera (Sure, it's just a tiny P&S, but if you're going to put high quality video formats into the camera, why not basic audio level control too?). There's not even a distortion light.
   I tried recording a very loud band, and, of course, it did distort, but, overall, it definitely handled audio better than my Canon TX-1.
   
   By the way Mac users, MP4 videos files show up in iphoto9, but AVCHD files do not. However, the SDHC card mounts as a disk on your desktop, so you can simply drag the AVCHD files to your hard drive when USB connected. There is also Sony's PMB software, but I didn't feel like installing it. There is the option of using TransferJet, but I don't feel like paying for the expensive TransferJet card and I don't have any TransferJet-compliant devices anyway.
   
   Speaking of USB, one thing that bugged me is that the only I/O port on the camera is a proprietary Sony port. Sony supplies a little dock with the camera and your standard cables (HDMI, USB, etc) plug into the dock. Some may like that, but I prefer just plugging a USB cable directly into the camera. Fortunately, you can buy a USB cable that has USB on one end and the Sony proprietary connector on the other (I've seen a 6ft long one for $15 or so, but is there a short one?). The dock has a DC-in port but you have to buy an AC adapter for that. The manual says that the AC adapter does not charge the battery (I assume it just maintains the battery level at its current level).
   
   The slide-down lens cover is a bad enough design (in an all too-important place) to give 1/2 or 1/3 of a star off. The lack of audio control is also problematical (at these prices, anyway). Battery life isn't that great, especially when shooting video. The proprietary connector port is a nuisance. I'm going to have to give this 4 stars though it does have a very nice feature set in a very small package.



2. I DON'T REALLY KNOW WHERE TO START, THIS CAMERA IS THE BEST PURCHASED I MADE IN A LONG TIME . I HAD A SONY CYBERSHOT T-20 8.1MP AND IT WAS ALSO A GREAT CAMERA AND WANTED TO UPGRADE TO A CAMERA THAT CAN RECORD MOVIES IN HD. WELL AT FIRST I ENDED UP BUYING THE 12.1MP W/ 4.6X OPTICAL ZOOM PANASONIC TS1 WATERPROOF CAMERA AND IT WAS AN OK CAMERA , IT HAD MANY FLAWS AND THE BATTERY COMPARTMENT FELT CHEAPLY MADE SO IT WAS NOT AS WATERPROOF QUALITY AS THE OLYMPUS ONES. ANYWAYS I ENDED UP RETURNING IT BECAUSE OF THE QUALITY PICTURES AND THE FACT THE CAMERA HAD MANY FLAWS IN TERMS OF QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE. SO I DID A LOT OF RESEARCH LOOKING FOR THE BEST COMPACT CAMERA OUT THERE THAT COULD FIT MY NEEDS. I WANTED TO TRY TO BUY THE CAMERA BUT THE PRICE WAS THE ONLY THING HOLDING ME . ANYWAYS AFTER CAREFUL CONSIDERATION AND COMPARISON BETWEEN THIS CAMERA AND THE OTHER ONES OUT THERE , I FINALLY REALIZED WHY THIS CAMERA WAS THIS EXPENSIVE. THIS IS A TOP QUALITY BUILD CAMERA WITH A GREAT LENS, GREAT SCREEN AND PICTURE QUALITY AND OUTSTANDING HD RECORDING . I WAS ALSO WAITING FOR CNET TO GIVE A PROPER REVIEW ABOUT THE CAMERA BUT AFTER GOING TO YOUTUBE AND SEEING VIDEO RECORDING QUALITY AND PICTURES AROUND THE INTERNET , I DECIDED TO GO FOR IT . WHEN I FIRST TESTED IT , I WAS AMAZED BY THE WHOLE EASE OF USE AND ALL THE DIFFERENT FEATURES. BOTTOM LINE IT IS AN AMAZING CAMERA AND ITS A GREAT REPLACEMENT TO MY OLD SONY CYBERSHOT T-20 . I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THIS SAME CAMERA SOMEDAY WITH THE WATERPROOF/SHOCKPROOF FEATURE.
   
   GREAT THINGS ABOUT THE CAMERA:
   PARONAMA PICTURE : AMAZING FEATURE AND WORKS WAY BETTER THAN PREVIOUS MODELS WITH THIS FEATURE .
   
   DIGITAL ZOOM : DOESNT JEPORDIZE PICTURE QUALITY AS MUCH AS OTHER CAMERAS OUT THERE , IT LOOKED PRETTY MUCH LIKE OPTICAL ZOOM THE WHOLE TIME. GREAT DIGITAL ZOOM.
   
   3.5 LCD SCREEN.
   
   1080i 60fps hd recording . amazing feature to record fast moving objects.
   
   ease of use.
   
   reads both memory stick pro duo and sd cards alike. (new feature from sony cameras)
   
   
   
   CONS:
   
   Expensive
   
   Blue camera is a fingerprint magnet. ( I recommend to get the gray one , it looks like a dark gray instead of silver color)



3. well - i am a regular consumer and perhaps own a ton of electronics that my wife hates me for (wires all over our little appartment :-) ....
   
   i got to say...this camera is so terrific that it inspired me to pull open my keyboard and do something which I have never done before - write a product review...perhaps my first ever on net..though i research a lot and benefit from all the reviews people take time to write..hmmm..feel a bit selfish right this moment..he he
   
   Ok let me take that back...i am not writing any extensive review or jot down all the pros and cons and comparisons etc...others have already done a pretty good job there..just what i like the most..
   
   Bottom line observation - this camera is the first ever compact digital P&S camera i have come across in its times that ACTUALLY brings amazing pictures to life in Low light conditions with its "HandHeld Twilight" mode...its amazing how Sony has made huge progress over others in capturing and rendering clear NO-FLASH pictures achieved not just by focusing over the lens and aperture hardware but also employing software algorithms which combine multiple snaps into a single picture and eliminate noise/darkness from the pics..[disclaimer - i have no technical in-depth knowledge of how their technology works..just found a whole lot of videos on youtube saying the same thing..]
   
   The hardware ability of this camera to take multiple pictures in a short time frame and then using microprocessor/software/hardwired algorithms to give out variety of image patterns has been utilized to add all the bells and whistles this camera exhibits.
   
   Panoramic mode is great..Burst mode is great..Drawing and painting pics right inside the camera is great..but the single feature that separates camera in THIS category is its ability to take clear No-Flash pics in low light..because guess what..on an average..i concluded that many of our pics are taken indoors and thats why it matters so much..
   
   Also worth mentioning is that this camera records HD video better than my present camcorder (2.5 years old though...) Videos are very sharp, non-shaky and I recommend downloading the K-Lite Full codec pack that includes codecs to play the video format generated by this camera right inside windows media player.
   Also if you want to see a smooth video without any frames getting skipped, get a Class 6 or higher speed card..because camera needs to write a large amount of data per second to the card while recording continuous stream...
   
   Cons - relatively short battery life...I can live with small details or flaws like this one that any critic could point out in any product under the sun, as long as it does what its supposed to do best - take good pictures..
   
   A dozen Good pics you wanna print each and frame them is worth more than perhaps several hundred snaps you could take with some camera with better battery life and stuff 'em as usual in your hard drive along with thousand others..right?



4. I am not going to list all the features of this camera; you can read the details in the description. I will only write a review from my personal experiences.
   
   I have an older Olympus 4mp camera and wanted to update to a better one. After reading all the positive reviews, I decided on this Sony DSC-TX7. I was hoping for a simple point-and-shoot that I did not have to think about, but just use. Well, it did not quite turn out that way with this camera.
   
   I discovered that the Intelligent Auto Mode worked well under normal lighting conditions. However, when I used it indoors under low light, or outside on a cloudy day or late evening, then the Auto Mode only worked sometimes. So, I began to experiment and I suggest you do the same thing.
   
   I used the camera under less than perfect circumstances by first using the Auto Mode. Then I took 2 or 3 more photos of the same scene using different manual modes. I did this on indoor low lighting, back lit objects, cloudy days, night time, etc. What I found is that most of the time you have to use a certain manual mode to get the right picture. Plus, the manual mode to use was different in each lighting condition. This may sound time consuming and complicated, but it really is not. After just a few hours I had most of the optimal settings memorized.
   
   Once you figure out the best setting, the camera takes great pictures. With the micro mode you can get extremely close to the subject and the photo is super clear and sharp. The panoramic mode works well, once you figure it out. The manual just says not to move the camera too fast or too slow, but does not give you any idea just how fast or slow that is. I found the best way is to count from 4 to 7 seconds. Depending on how fast or slow you count, that should give you a good panoramic photo.
   
   I like the touch screen. It is easy to use and responsive. The battery life is a little short compared to other cameras. I just ordered another battery so that I would always have a charged battery ready to go. The video mode quality is average at best. I tried using the video on the highest HD setting indoors under normal lighting conditions and the video was grainy. My older video camera actually did a better job under the same conditions, but the Sony video shinned in brighter light.
   
   Overall this camera does a great job if you take the time to figure out how to use it. But, it is not perfect. My 2mp camera in my cell phone does almost as good on a panoramic photo. And my Olympus 4mp photos look almost as good as this Sony. I took a few pictures with the Olympus and Sony of the same scene and I was hard pressed to tell any difference in quality until I zoomed in on the pictures. That was when I could tell that the Sony was a little clearer. I also ask a friend which photos looked better. Most of the time he picked the Olympus photos as being better. I am use to the Olympus and I think once I spend more time and practice more, then I will be able to get better results with the Sony.
   
   So, here is the bottom line with my experiences:
   The good:
   1. Several manual modes come in handy under less than ideal conditions.
   2. Picture quality is great when settings are correct.
   3. The large touch screen makes previewing much easier.
   4. The touch screen is about as responsive as the iPhone and easy to use.
   5. The compact size of the camera make is very convenient to carry.
   6. The panoramic mode works well and has 2 size settings.
   7. Outdoor night time photos with very little light are amazing with the right setting.
   
   The bad:
   1. Be aware this is not as simple to use as you might think except under normal conditions.
   2. The latch cover holding the battery comes open easily.
   3. The touch screen gets smudged quickly so get a screen protector.
   4. Photo quality is mostly noticeably if cropping or zooming in. Otherwise, a 4mp camera's photos look almost as good.
   
   The Sony has many more features that I like compared to my old camera. And the Sony does take good photos. Therefore, I am going to keep learning and keep taking dozens of pictures until I get it right. For example, I played with different modes and was able to get much clearer pictures indoor without any noise at all. Practice and experiment is the key.



5. This camera has delivered what it has promised, great hand held low light shots, clear hd video and 10fps bursts. The battery dies quickly when shooting video. When shooting video in low light the frame rate got choppy, but I only have a class 4 sdhc card, so I'm going to try a class 6 and see if that helps. The video is perfect in sunlight. When taking burst shots it takes a while for them all to process, but again, probably has something to do with card speed.
   
   The slide down lens cover is a plus for me, as I have broken two telescoping lenses, one from it accidentally getting turned on in my pocket.
   
   I've owned a few Sony video cameras, but only Canon still cameras. My opinion of Sony stuff was that they would pack every bell and whistle they could manage, whether it made sense or not, but I have used pretty much every setting on this camera in the two weeks I've had it and been happy with the results.

3 comments about Sony DSC-W330 14.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Wide Angle Zoom with Digital Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 3.0 inch LCD (Black).

1. I purchased this camera as a gift for my younger sibling and was shocked at how well it performed from a beginner's point of view. I was pleasantly surprised to see the camera recorded video (albeit SD) since there was no mention of it on Amazon or Sony Style. I have the Sony DSC-HX5V 10.2MP CMOS Digital Camera with 10x Wide Angle Zoom with Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 3.0 inch LCD on pre-order for myself and can't imagine how impressive the image quality will be since I don't see a point and shoot getting much better than this Sony DSC-W330 from a technical standpoint.



2. I just got this camera to replace my Canon Powershot SD1000. I love the fact that I'm able to crop and trim pictures in the camera. I coudn't do that with the Canon. It has a big screen and it's very light. Love it!!!



3. Cant beat it for the money. Nice big display. Easy to use. Takes great pictures.

3 comments about Sony DSC-W350 14.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Wide Angle Zoom with Optical Steady Shot Image Stabilization and 2.7 inch LCD (Black).

1. I was looking for a small camera to keep with me when I didn't want to lug my big and heavy pro grade DSLR, and I'm finding the Sony generally works out for me pretty well. It's easy-to-use and relatively high performance for a compact point and shoot camera, and it's capable of producing good images under a wide range of conditions when used properly.
   
   I usually start my camera shopping by paying close attention to the lens, and the Sony comes with a Carl-Zeiss 4x zoom, biased towards the wide-angle end of the spectrum. I generally favor less zoom range if it means getting a higher quality picture, and this is exactly the approach Sony implements. Yes, you can get 5x - even 10x - zooms in camera like these, but in my experience, the sacrifice in image quality isn't worth it. Sony's 4x tends to mean I get pretty solid lens performance in a useful zoom range. To be clear, any DSLR with a good quality lens will beat the pants off the small lens on this sort of compact camera, but that's the nature of the beast...besides, if I'm doing something where absolute best performance is a requirement, I'm carrying my heavy-duty DSLR and lenses that cost ten times what this Sony does - that's not the mission I have in mind for the Sony anyway.
   
   The 14.1MP sensor seems to be high quality, so long as you're using the camera in well and evenly lit conditions. Where the camera struggles somewhat is low light (high ISO), or when there is substantial dynamic range (difference between brightest and darkest parts of an image). Under good conditions - bright and evenly lit - the sensor provides excellent detail, certainly way more than adequate for email, web sites or prints up to maybe A3 (13x19 inch) size. Still, under more challenging lighting, the Sony may be a bit disappointing...where a large DSLR can capture details in highlights and shadow, the Sony tends to blow out the highlights or will transform shadows into a sea of black. Again, this is really normal for cameras with small image sensors - the Sony's performance is very good indeed considering the small form factor and product price point.
   
   The camera's built-in software is also very good, helping to capture lots of detail even as images are compressed to manageable sized JPG files. In Photoshop, I compared a Sony-compressed image to a similar image taken by a pro grade DSLR, and there are few if any differences due to the image processing. Noise reduction and sharpening is handled well, and there are few digital artifacts visible. This is really the best performance I've seen for a camera in this price range.
   
   In terms of construction quality, the camera is solid and seems to be well built. Most of the controls are easy to use, and you don't get the sense of "fighting" against it. The 2.7" LCD display is sharp and easy to use, although it can be a bit difficult in bright sunlight or for those like me with aging eyes that struggle with small text on the screen. Performance is generally quick, and you're not waiting for the camera to figure out what to do next. The camera is small, and one thing that helps me is Sony's well-designed image stabilization feature. I tend to have a hard time holding small cameras steady, and image stabilization helps me get sharp photos in most conditions.
   
   Sony adds a number of cool features, such as Sweep Panorama, that allows you to take multiple pictures of a scene, and then have them "stitched" together in the camera for a wide panorama view. I have similar software in Photoshop to do this, but it's cool to see it implemented right in the camera. Sony also provides a workable HDR (High Dynamic Range) capability in the camera, giving you a way to handle certain otherwise difficult scenes. Both of these features make up for camera limitations, such as low dynamic range capabilities of small sensors and the limited zoom range. Sony also makes it easy to upload photos and videos to popular sharing sites, saving you a few steps from doing this on the computer.
   
   The camera can also record HD (720p) video clips up to half an hour long. I rarely use this feature, so other than to say it works, I'll leave that one to other reviewers.
   
   I considered several other choices from Nikon, Canon, Pentax and even the new Leica X1. I like Nikon because the software and menus are the same as my DSLR (also a Nikon). Canon seemed to produce slightly better image quality. I've owned several Pentax point-and-shoot digital cameras and found them rugged and long lasting. And of course, the Leica is in a class by itself in terms of quality. Still, while all of these competitors offered unique advantages, the overall package of price and performance seemed to be best with the Sony - at least today.
   
   Overall, considering the price, I'm happy with the Sony DSC-W350 and would recommend it to anyone wanting a low-cost, easy to use digital camera that gives good quality images under a wide variety of conditions.



2. Took a chance on this camera as it was just released by SONY and no reviews were available. But I really like this camera. The pictures are sharp. Color reproduction and exposure is accurate and all of this is done automatically. This camera has 14 mega pixels but I shoot with an aspect ratio of 16 X 9 which uses 10.5 mega pixels. The camera has a panorama feature that with a little practice takes cool panoramas that could definitely come in handy for some landscape shots. This camera has a 26mm wide angle lens with 4X zoom. I love the wide angle which works beautifully with the 16 X 9 aspect ratio. Indoor low light performance has been very good. In bright rooms with the camera on auto flash it often chose not to flash and still the pictures were very good. My other cameras always flash indoors no matter how brightly lit the room was. Indoor shots without a flash create more natural colors. Of course this is probably only possible due to the really good anti shake technology built into the camera. The camera can also shoot hi def movies but I haven't taken any movies yet. One other thing that I like is that this camera can easily fit into any pocket. It is slim and light.



3. I bought this camera recently as I found my old one not upto the mark from sony itself. This camera is really amazing with its features, image qualities under various conditions and pricing. I will vote 10/10 for this awesome item from Sony.