At first look at the Sony DSC-P1 Cybershot, I was very impressed. It's very small (smaller than it looks in the pictures) and it is more durable than I thought it would be.

It comes with an 8MB memory stick (not smart media) which, granted, is not very much... but it is expandable. With the 8MB stick, it can hold roughly 8 of the HIGHEST quality images, which believe me, are gigantic... or to about 200 of the lowest quality, which are still very very very nice.

Even the movies this thing can record are very nice, with sound and fluid motion, although... they are space eaters. Surprisingly, though... movies over 1 minute with sound can be recorded onto the 8MB stick. Not bad at all.

One thing I could do with out is the quickly dying battery. It doesn't last long at all. From a full charge, through intermittent use, it lasts about half an hour. I'd like a camera to last a few hours at least... so obviously, this one is lacking in that catagory.

Another thing is the lightness of the pictures. Everything is fine unless you try to take a picture too close. The closer you get to an object, the darker the picture gets. Although, if you'd still like to focus in on the specific part of the object without the loss of light, you can take a larger picture, and simply crop out the area you would like... and it looks beautiful.

The software for this camera is horrible. I tried to find the drivers for my Windows ME machine... couldn't find them until I went to driverguide.com. Then, an even bigger problem, they DO NOT SUPPORT Windows 2000. Drivers for it simply do not exist. That is a BIG minus in my book.

Other than that, the camera is a good buy for the price, and I do recommend it. I use it all the time, and its just great.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 800