jamiegor's Full Review: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-W12 Digital Camera
Ease of Use:
Durability:
Battery Life:
Photo Quality:
Shutter Lag
Pros
Good Size Great screen Fast startup Great Camcorder mode Excellent pictures
Cons
Weak batteries supplied, may be caused by jumbo screen Main photo mode may overprocess pics
The Bottom Line
A good versatile everyday camera and camcorder. Trust Sony with technical gadgets with nice features and intuitive ease of use, and of course above average quality
Full Review
I was just ready to buy a Canon 4 MP camera (actually the guy made up the invoice), when I passed the cash to see the Sony display area the agent had failed to show to me. I saw the thin one (T1), the larger model, the rectangular models, then this model. I liked the look, feel and size (Not the thin spy camera or the overly chunky V1 model) that may have some extra features, but none applicable to me
I was first impressed by the products availability in different colors (Black, silver and red perhaps) I opted for black. As well, I was looking for a larger zoom, and although 3X optical is regular power, ther is a nice ring that surrounds the lens area, and reinforced a protection type role to me, that i liked, opening possibilitites of lens attachments/filters. The case is some metal-alloy, perhaps magnesium. I am sad to announce that I had my camera in its shoulder strap case, but neglected to zip it up so it fell onto the floor and hit the corner of the case, denting it a bit. Glad to say no change in usage, although i was scared for a moment.
The battery was charged for the 12 hour startup charge. Included are be 2 AA 2100+ Sony NIMH batteries. When attending any sort of photo taking experience, it is always prudent to take another 2-3 charged sets. Batteries can last approx 70 snaps (turn on/off, move lens, using screen)
After taking some snaps, the colours are really really rich, but not oversaturated. Sometimes there is some lack of sharpness around edges, but it is mostly vestigial of the picture processing programming. Perhaps a grey filter would help here.
The 32 MB card is piddly. I have a 256 card, and it too gets filled. Next stop: 1 GB
NOTE: I wonder if there is a max size card that can be used by the camera. If one day there comes to be a 20 GB card, this camera would be unstoppable, The video mode states it can take videos so long as there is space on the card re: NO LIMIT
I was fully impressed with the video mode of the camera. It gets 30 fps under high mode, and outputs to any RCA connections on tv. I believe you could load a MPEG movie onto the card and play it on the tv. I have made high quality videos, and on my 40 INCH tube tv, the quality is better than most except the best camcorders. The only bad thing is that sound is mono, but is pretty good with the mic that picks up most everything and balances it pretty good too. All good qualities considering the mic is the size of a pinhead or something.
The flash is excellent, and the redeye does its duty well. There is also a night red (infrared?) spotlight that is useful in low light to help you make sure you are snapping the right picture. It is neat, but it is a matter of choice. My cat make funny faces at it, so it helps spruce up snapping the cat.
All in all I am happy with this unit. The menus are easy to use, it powers up quickly has many function (Multiple burst mode, mini burst mode, outstanding movie mode (Note: at highest quality, my card gets filled in about 3.5 minutes recording time). Thus, a 1 GB should last 14 minutes. If there was a 10 GB card, it should last therefore over 2 hours (batteries being the limiting factor). Lowering quality one notch should increase video time substantially, but it is at cost of quality of video taken. Lens is of Carl Zeiss (nice to have fancy names on lenses I guess), and seems to be all glass construction)
I look at it as a pretty good digital camera (8.7/10) with a free camcorder (10/10) thus it gets 9/10 for me, or 4.5 stars.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 333 This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts
5-megapixel sensor captures enough detail to create photo-quality 13-by-17-inch enlargements 3x optical zoom plus 2x digital zoom for 6x total Carl Ze...More at Amazon Marketplace
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