Sony DSC-W5
Review

Sony DSC-W5 Review

Equipped with a new "stamina" battery system, the Sony W5 can apparently shoot up to 420 shots on a single charge! The Sony W5 is a follow-up to the CyberShot DSC-W1. I like the design of the W5, fits well in your hand and easy access to controls.

The large 2.5 LCD screen is great. Once you’ve tried such big LCD, you will find difficult to use a digital camera with a smaller display. I was also surprised by the movie capability of this digital camera, only disadvantage is you will achieve better result with the Memory Stick Pro which can be pricy.

The W5 includes 32 Megabytes of built-in flash memory, so you’ll have room for additional photographs if you are ever without a Memory Stick media.

Sony DSC-W5 Review - Specs

Resolution: 5.1 Megapixels

Optical Zoom: 3x

Digital Zoom: 6x

Memory: Memory Stick and Memory Stick PRO

LCD: 2.5 inches LCD Screen

PictBridge Compliant: Yes

Sony DSC-W5 Review - Pros

• Fast, excellent shutter speed
• Great large 2.5 LCD screen
• Nice movie capability
• Very well designed

Sony DSC-W5 Review - Cons

• Limited manual modes
• Image noise higher than average
• Expensive memory stick
• Movie mode works better with memory stick Pro which is more expensive

Sony DSC-W5 Review – Final Word

Great digital camera, easy to use, fits well in your hand. This Sony digital camera that should please the whole family. The Sony DSC-W5 is the little sister of the DSC-W7. With pretty much the same features and quality photo, I believe the W5 is better choice.

For $100 less you get 5 megapixels instead of 7. Unless you are planning to print lots of large photograph, the W5 is better deal.

Click here for Sony DSC-W5 Review best price online.

Sony DSC-W5 Review – Memory

Most digital cameras come with very low capacity memory cards or memory stick for Sony cameras and the DCS W5 is no exception. A 32 MB Memory Stick PRO Duo is included in the box when you purchase the Sony DSC-W5.

There is no fixed rule for the number of photos you can put on one card because different image file types, different amounts of compression, and image content all affect the size of each file.

As a general rule, I'd recommend at least 256 megabytes or two 128 megabyte cards if you're buying a 3-5 megapixels compact digital camera.

If you want to shoot lots of high resolution TIFF or RAW files, then you'll probably want to look at 512 megabyte and 1 gigabyte cards. It's also a good idea to not save all of your photos on one card.

Click here for more information on memory.

With the 32 MB memory stick included with the Sony W5, you will take approximately 12 pictures before having to empty the memory stick! You need to budget for another memory card.

Another good reason to get several memory cards is there's always the possibility that cards can get corrupted, lost, or stolen. Using more than one and switching during a shoot protects your valuable photographic data.

The type of memory card for the Sony DSC-W5 is Memory Stick PRO Duo.

Sony DSC-W5 Review – Features

3X Optical/2X Digital

Optical zoom helps you fill the frame with your subject for better pictures. And Sony’s Precision Digital Zoom helps bring your subject closer with an extra 2X magnification.

0 – 12.0X Smart Zoom™ Feature (at VGA Resolution)

The Smart Zoom feature intelligently uses the full CCD to let you zoom into the portion of interest by cropping the image size – thus avoiding the image degradation of Digital Zooms.

Carl Zeiss® Vario-Tessar® Lens

The Vario-Tessar lens is specially produced for very compact cameras. This specialized design allows quick auto-focus, appealing zoom range while still maintaining a compact design.

Real Imaging Processor™ Technology

The innovative Real Imaging Processor in the DSC-W5 not only improves picture quality and clarity but also improves camera response time, decreases shutter lag and improves battery stamina.

2.5" LCD Monitor

The extra-large high-resolution 115K LCD Monitor makes framing shots and reviewing pictures easy.

Available in capture and playback the Live Histogram Displays the concentration of pixels at each luminosity value making it easy to evaluate correct exposure.

14-Bit DXP A/D Conversion

Sony’s 14-bit Digital EXtended Processor captures the range between highlight and shadow with up to 16,384 values, for extended dynamic contrast and detail.

5 Area Multi-Point Auto Focus

By evaluating 5 separate focus areas of the frame, Sony’s Multi-Point AF system can intelligently focus on the subject and avoid mistakenly focusing on the background.

Manual Exposure Mode

Manual Exposure Mode provides extended control with 46-step adjustable Shutter speed (30 – 1/1000 sec.), and 2-step Aperture control.

AF (Auto Focus) Illuminator

Briefly illuminating the subject, in low–or no-light conditions, the AF Illuminator helps establish a positive focus lock.

Selectable Focus Mode

Monitoring AF (Auto Focus) helps you anticipate the action by focusing even before you press the shutter release.

Multi-Pattern Measuring

Independently light-metering 49 points of the frame, Multi-Pattern Measuring establishes the optimum exposure, even when highlight and shadow isn’t centered in the frame.

Scene Selection Mode

With 7 Scene Modes, parameters can be matched to the shooting conditions. Choose from one of the following: Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Soft Snap, Landscape, Beach, Snow, Candle.

Pre-Flash Metering

With a momentary pre-flash, the camera illuminates the subject and sets exposure through the lens for accurate flash metering. Adjustable flash level and red-eye reduction ensure great flash shots.

Slow Shutter Noise Reduction

During long exposures, Slow Shutter NR captures the scene, and then the CCD noise pattern with a dark frame exposure. By subtracting the two, even long exposures can be clear.

Memory Stick® Media and Memory Stick PRO™ Media

Digital. Powerful. Transportable.™ Memory Stick® media is compact, portable and rugged—connecting a variety of hardware and software applications.

32MB Internal Memory Included3

Shoot without a flash memory card with 32 MB internal memory; Slot for optional Memory Stick®, Memory Stick PRO™ media. Full 32MB of internal memory can be copied to optional Memory Stick media.

5 Shot Burst Mode

Capture up to five 5MP shots (fine) or 100 shots VGA (standard) at 0.9 frame/sec. Perfect for high speed subjects or fast moving action such as sports or small children.

Sony DSC-W5 Review: PictBridge™ Compatibility

Connect to any PictBridge™ compatible printer with the supplied USB cable and print directly from the camera. Images can be viewed and selected for printing right on the camera’s LCD, with menus for print quantity, date and index print.

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