 Digital Camera Review by: Katrina Putker
This is one classy looking camera. It just is. With a super sleek brushed metal finish, slim dimensions, a 3.5-inch touch-screen LCD that devours the entire back of its body and an impressive list of features to boot, the Cyber-shot DSC-T700 is everything a style-conscious happy snap lover could want.
One simply cannot help but initially be struck by the sophisticated and streamlined appearance of this unit but there is one other significant attention-grabbing point to note: the T700 has a 4GB internal memory capacity capable of storing hundreds or even thousands of images (depending on the image size selected) in a personalised database.
In effect, this means the T700 doubles as a highly portable digital photo frame, with music playing ability, perfect for those wanting to have their library of images easily available at all times and the ability to share it with others at the push of a couple of touch-screen buttons.
The feature is ideal for people travelling or recently travelled looking to share the adventures of their trip/s, for parents and grandparents wanting to have a digital brag book, teenagers who enjoy sharing their photos with friends, and even business owners or professionals working in fields where the ability to quickly and with minimal fuss preview images to clients and potential clients.
Choose from eight generic music tracks included on the T700 or download any songs from your personal collection onto the unit to accompany your slideshow/s. There are eight different transition effects to choose from as well, which alter the way the camera displays images and changes from one to the next and so on.
While the T700 is certainly not the first camera to offer a slideshow function, it is likely to be the only one offering 4GB of internal memory for users to store favourite images on at all times regardless of whether or not a memory card is or was previously in use.
Plus, with a large 3.5-inch LCD on such a small camera, the T700 allows for extreme portability and maximum viewing experience in a tiny 160g (with accessories), 95.0 x 58.4 x 16.4mm unit.
The only foreseeable downfall of the mass internal storage offered is that perhaps it will allow users to become lazy with transferring their images onto other media (hard drive, computer, CD etc.) in which case all photos would be gone forever should you lose your camera or have it stolen.
In terms of its specifications, the T700 has 10.1 effective megapixels, 4x optical and 8x digital zoom, and a focus range of 8cm to infinity at wide zoom and 50cm to infinity at telephoto.
Sony’s optical Steadyshot acts as the primary anti-blur solution for the unit by automatically compensating for detected shake by shifting the lens unit internally.
When shooting while telephoto zooming, the effect of Steadyshot becomes obvious as the amount of blur and movement in the resulting images is minimal, if present at all.
General operation of the T700 is fairly straightforward as a result of its comprehensible diagrams and layout. Widely recognised and logical symbols are used to identify various functions and features and where they aren’t used, succinct descriptions are used in their place.
While the T700’s touch-screen is slightly delayed in its reaction time to touch, it is fairly accurate in discerning what virtual button has been pushed and users will rarely have to deal with the frustration of being directed to a sub menu etc. where they didn’t intend to go.
Image quality isn’t fantastic especially when pushing beyond ISO 400 but in truth, you’re unlikely to find a compact camera in this price range that offers outstanding image quality.
However, for what this camera is and the price you can expect to pay for it, it does a solid job and besides, it looks so sexy you can forgive any other limitations!
You point and it will shoot, which is always a bonus, plus the T700 offers automatic scene recognition to help achieve optimum results for detectible shooting conditions including macro, portrait, landscape, backlight, backlit portrait, and three different twilight situations.
While this function may not recognise the given scene or do so correctly one hundred percent of the time, it does produce some pleasing results when successfully in identifying a scene and adjusting settings to best suit.
The same goes for smile shot, which can be set to one of three sensitivities: low, standard or high, but is unable to always identify smiles. When it does however, it proves to be both a handy and novelty feature bound to generate further smiles!
Once the T700’s delightfully snappy lens cover is released, it starts up quite quickly while shot-to-shot time is around three seconds.
In summation, it may be true that the T700 looks better than the photographs it actually produces but that being said, it’s a tough standard to live up to.
This camera’s stylish simplicity and contemporary touch-screen operation has outstanding general appeal and overall, the Cyber-shot DSC-T700 is a great little point-and-shooter that successfully doubles as a digital photo frame and/or album.
In reality then, you’re essentially getting two digital products squeezed into the size and cost of one and that is difficult not to recommend to amateur photographers everywhere.
| Appearance rating |
5 stars |
| Functionality rating |
4 stars |
Image quality
|
3.5 stars |
Lens quality
|
3.5 stars |
| View finder / LCD screen |
4 stars |
| Value for money |
3.5 stars |
| RRP (AUD) |
$599 |
 |
|
| Effective Pixels |
10.1 Million mega pixels |
| Image Sizes |
6 Sizes |
| Lens - zoom wide [mm] |
35mm (35mm equivalent ) |
| Lens -zoom tele [mm] |
140mm (35mm equivalent ) |
| Lens - Optical Zoom |
Yes, 4x |
| Resolution Settings |
From 640 x 480 to 3648 x 2736 |
| Shooting Modes |
16 Scene options |
| Face Detection |
Yes, up to 8 Faces - with Touch Priority / Auto Priority / Child Priority / Adult Priority |
| Manual Focus |
No |
| Auto Focus |
Yes |
| Focus Range [cm] |
W: Approx. 8cm to Infinity, T: Approx. 50cm to Infinity |
| Aperture Range |
f/3.5 (W) - f/4.6 (T) |
| Aperture Priority |
No |
| Macro |
Yes |
| Macro Range [cm] |
W: Approx. 8cm to Infinity, T: Approx. 50cm to Infinity |
| Shutter Speeds |
Auto(1/4 - 1/1,000) / Program Auto(1" - 1/1,000) |
| Shutter Priority |
No |
| ISO |
Auto / 80 / 100 / 200 / 400 / 800 / 1600 / 3200 |
| LCD Monitor |
Yes |
| LCD Size |
3.5" Xtra Fine LCD 921k |
| Viewfinder |
No |
| Flash |
Auto, Flash On, Flash Off, Slow Synchro |
| Hot Shoe |
No |
| White balance |
Auto / Flash On / Slow Syncro / Flash Off |
| Self Timer |
Yes (10 seconds, 2 seconds, Off) |
| HD Movie Option |
Yes, Output (1080i) |
| Movie Sizes |
640 x 480 30fps, 640 x 480 16.6fps, 320 x 240, 8.3fps |
| Video Out |
Yes |
| Audio Out |
Yes |
| Other Out |
|
| Storage Type |
Memory Stick™ Duo, Memory Stick PRO Duo™. Memory Stick PRO Duo™ High Speed, Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo (same speed as PRO Duo) |
| Storage Included [Mb] |
4GB internal
|
| Still Image Formats |
JPEG
|
| Audio Formats |
No stand alone feature
|
| Movie Formats |
MPEG1 |
| Connectivity |
Yes, Multi-use terminal (AV / USB / DC) |
| Power Source |
3.6V / 2.4wh(680mAh) |
| Battery Options |
LITHIUM ION / InfoLITHIUM D type 3.6V |
| Dimensions |
(W) 95.0 x (H) 58.4 x (D) 16.4 mm |
| Weight |
135g |
|
