| Product: |
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T1 |
| Date: |
07/12/04 (456 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Small, good build quality, Good range of features, Excellent image quality.
Disadvantages: Expensive, Requires extras
The Sony DSC T-1 is a very small camera. Not James Bond, hide-in-your-shoe small, but small enough to easily fit into your trousers pocket. It has a satisfying weight to it, too, giving off the impression that it's quite sturdy. Indeed, mine's still working despite the combination of a clumsy oaf and gravity.
Priced in America at $499 (which equates to approximately £260 according to http://www.xe.com), you might think that it's quite a lot to pay for a digital compact camera, but there are many reasons why this is a good choice for the fun/serious amateur photographer.
Perhaps the three most important aspects that made me choose this camera over others with similar price and specifications were the fact that it was a 5 megapixels (i.e. pictures can contain up to 5 million pixels) and that I'd seen pictures from one and was greatly impressed with the image quality over any digital camera I'd used previously and the fact that, looks-wise, it was nearly as sexy as myself.
The DSC T-1 comes with a huge array of technical bits and pieces for use with the camera, but not all of them are needed. Amongst the bits and bobs in the bundle, you get your docking port (you set your camera into this and it enables you to transfer your pictures and movies to your PC as well as charge the battery), the power lead, USB connection leads etc. as well as the obligatory battery and insufficient memory card.
The memory card is the first set-back. While you can use it (it's 32MB) to take pictures as soon as your battery is charged (first charge was around 150 minutes), at full resolution, you'll get maybe 20 pictures on it. If, however, you're planning on taking some video, you'll need to fork out some extra hard-earned. I bought 256MB of SanDisk memory from www.flashmemorystore.com for $64.95 which is plenty for what I need, but be warned that Sony MemoryStick Duo memory (which the T-1 uses) is more expensive than generic memory cards.
The video is taken at 640 by 480 pixels and has sound too. With 256MB of memory, you'll get around 11 minutes of video - plenty of time for anyone (twice in most cases, plus a ciggie). Quality of the video is very good I believe its taken at 30 frames per second which means the picture is smooth and the sound is clear too, although you do need to use it in a well lit environment.
Basic use of the camera is simplicity in itself, although there is a slightly longer than usual delay between pressing the button and the camera taking the picture (although you do get a cool 'shutter' type sound when it does). There are many different shooting modes to suit whichever circumstances you might find yourself in, and all of the features are accessed via the simple menu on the large LCD screen (although most settings are done via little icons/pictures so reading the instruction manual to see what's what is essential). You'll find that there are options to increase shutter speed for action shots, slow shutter speeds for low light shooting etc. and picture resolution is easily changed on the fly, too.
The large 2.5 inch LCD screen on the rear of the camera also provides a minor problem. The lens on the front of the camera is protected by a nifty slide-down protector thingy, but the rear screen has no protection at all and it's probably wise to invest in some sort of carrying case to prevent damage to the screen (which is fairly important as the T-1 doesn't actually have a view finder and you have to rely on the screen to position your shots).
The T-1 has all the usual features you've come to expect of a digital camera these days ability to delete pictures directly from the camera, various resolutions of pictures, red eye reduction etc.
As stated earlier, I'm more than pleased with the quality of the pictures and video (though the video isn't used very often). It's taken quite a while to get the hang of the various shooting modes and other various settings on the camera, but the results have been worth it. It's hard to describe who the camera is aimed at the simplicity of use (it's described as a point and shoot camera) mean that anyone can pick it up and use it, but the range of features are surely too many for most people. It's certainly a camera for those who are serious about their photography, even if they are amateurs, and is capable of producing quality pictures under most circumstances.
If you're out and about travelling, you don't need to take the docking port with you the charger unit is capable of plugging directly into the camera, allowing you to recharge the battery when you need to. A fully charged battery, according to the readout on the LCD screen, gives you around 80 minutes of constant use more than enough for a day's use. The transformer allows you to take it with you to foreign countries, as long as you have the correct wall plug adapter. Sadly, the T-1 doesn't cater for tripods there's no method of setting the T-1 on a tripod, which is probably the only design flaw it has once you take into consideration the delay between clicking the button and the camera recording your shot.
I love the camera. Its size (credit card size and half an inch thick) makes it easy to carry it around more often and make use of it more than I did with other cameras. It's easy to use and the results are fantastic. However, I am aware that it is expensive, that the extra memory (which is a must) is also expensive and that yet more expense in the form of a carrying case is a must. That means that you could be spending easily an extra £60 on top of the cost of the camera itself, which could mean that some people are put off by the price, which would be a shame.
Please note: all prices correct as of posting date. Detailed technical specification of the camera can be found at: http://www.sonystyle.com.
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