As I mentioned the other day, my slim digital camera was kidnapped by my sister some time ago and the likelihood of getting it back is slim to none. She might as well hold onto it!
While my Nokia N95 does have a camera it’s a real pig to operate. The delay between when you fireup the camera and are actually able to take a shot is really frustrating (admittedly I’m not a very patient person at the best of times either!) and the quality of the shots in low light environments isn’t that great.
So I decided to take the plunge and get a reasonable spec compact camera.
I’m fairly clueless when it comes to digital cameras, but I knew more or less what I wanted:
- something quite small and slim (preferably as slim as my Sony Cybershot)
- something easy to use (do you really want to mess about with settings when you’re in a pub or restaurant? I know I don’t)
- at least 8 megapixels
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W170 may not be as slim as the T7, but it’s a nice little camera all the same.
It comes with a variety of usage “modes” and would appear to be almost completely “idiot proof”.
The one thing to be careful of, however, is that, in common with a lot of cameras, it doesn’t come with any memory sticks, so you’ll need to buy at least one. I opted for a 4 gigabyte memory card, as that should be more than enough for “normal” usage.
I’ve already taken a few shots with it and was impressed with the general responsiveness and speed, so I think it will suit my needs. The real test, however, will be in bad lighting in a pub or restaurant, so I may have to wait until the weekend to see how well that works out.
Full spec below:
CCD 1/2.3″ Super HAD CCD sensor
10.3 megapixels of which 10.1 effective
RGB filter
Interlaced scan
Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens
Resolution (in pixels) 3648 x 2736
Optical Viewfinder Optical
LCD display 2.7″ LCD screen (6.7cm)
230,000 pixels
Macro Distance 10 cm
Normal Distance From 50 cm upwards
Optical Zoom 5x
f (equivalent to 35mm): 28-140mm
Digital Zoom 10x
ISO range ISO Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200
Aperture and Shutter Speed Diaphragm aperture: F3.3-5.2
Shutter speed: 1/4-1/1600 in Automatic mode
Shutter speed: 1″-1/1600 in Programme mode
Delay: 2 or 10s
Focal length (in mm) 5-25
35 mm equivalent focal length (in mm) 28-140
Stabiliser Optical
Flash (built-in) Flash: automatic, manual, slow synch, red-eye reduction
Flash range from 0.5 to 2.7m in telephoto and ISO Auto
Flash range from 0.2 to 4.2m in wide angle and ISO Auto
Flash range up to 8.4m in wide angle and ISO 3200
Flash range up to 5.3m in telephoto and ISO 3200
Storage Image formats JPEG
Memory Card Type Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick Pro Duo, Memory Stick Pro Duo High Speed, Memory Stick Pro HG Duo
Included Memory Card No
Internal Memory 15MB
Video Video mode Yes, with sound
Video Sequence VX Fine MPEG video: 1640×480 pixels at 30 fps15MB
TV Output HD output with optional VMC-MHC1 component cable
AV output
Webcam No
Computer InterFace Port USB 2.0 and Pictbridge
Wireless function No
Compatibility PC and Mac
Included software Picture Motion Browser 3.0
Picture Package Music Transfer
Extras Power sources Lithium batteries
Other features Focal distance: 5 – 25 mm
Super SteadyShot optical stabiliser
BIONZ image processor
14-bit analogue/digital conversion
Noise reduction system and colour optimisation (Clear RAW NR)
D-Range Optimizer Standard / Plus
Focusing: 9 points, semi-manual, centred, spot
White balance: Automatic, Cloudy, Daylight, Fluorescent 1, Fluorescent 2, Fluorescent 3, Incandescent, Flash
Exposure metering: centred, spot, matrix
Scene modes: Beach, High Sensitivity, Landscape, Snow, Soft Snap, Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Fireworks, Smile Shutter, and Underwater
Automatic face detection (child/adult)
Automatic smile detection (child/adult)
Automatic scene recognition
Musical slideshow mode with 8 transition effects and 8 customisable music modes
In-camera editing: Trimming, Red Eye Correction, Soft Focus, Partial Color, Fisheye Lens, Cross Filter, Retro, Radial Blur, Unsharp Masking, and Happy Face.
Colour mode: vivid, sepia, black and white
Size 9.4×5.8×2.4cm
Weight (in grams) 142
Included accessories NP-BG1 lithium battery, battery charger, multifunction AV and USB cable, strap
