New Sony Cyber-Shot Digital Camera is a Megapixel Powerhouse

Sony’s new Cyber-shot® DSC-W300 digital camera is expected to be among the industry’s most pocket-able, high-resolution point-and-shoot digital cameras featuring niche performance options.

The camera announced today integrates an ultra-high 13.6-megapixel CCD imager along with a Carl Zeiss® Vario-Tessar 3x optical zoom lens, a 2.7-inch LCD screen and an eye-level viewfinder in a compact size. With its ultra-hard titanium coating, the model offers a premium look and finish that is highly-resistant to scratches and messy fingerprints.

Enhanced Operation for Better Performance

The W300 camera newly features an “extra high-speed” burst mode that can shoot three-megapixel photos at five frames per second, ideal for fast-action shooting of sports, pets or children.

In addition to the blur-reducing effects of Super SteadyShot® optical image stabilization, the camera also has a new “extra high sensitivity” mode (up to ISO 6400 in this mode only) to help minimize blurry photos when shooting in challenging lighting conditions, such as indoors or at twilight, even without a flash.

Noise reduction is now a user-selectable option, with high, low and standard settings, for greater control over the final look of images. For example, a low setting can help reduce noise without sacrificing resolution, making it ideal for landscapes and detailed subjects.

Sony Ericsson K770i

Sony Ericsson’s latest midrange offering is sleek-looking bar-shape handset that fits easily in the pocket thanks to its rounded edges and slim dimensions (just 14mm thick). It’s flush all over, with no protrusions, including the keypad, whose buttons sit just slightly proud, though they’re tactile enough to keep you on track.

It’s one of the slimmest Cyber-shot phones available and exudes minimalist cool, though the Truffle Brown version we tried (it also comes in beige, violet, bronze and black) gave it a bit of a business feel (in a good, serious kind of way).

The camera lens cover is built into the design as an elongated slide on the back that stretches over most of the back panel. While this makes it easy and quick to access the camera, we also found it to be prone to accidental opening in the pocket (this can happen even when the keypad lock is switched on).

The smallish screen offers 262,000 colours which is as good as anything Sony Ericsson is currently offering but feels a little cramped at 29x34mm. Incidentally, the D-pad is a joy to use, feeling firmer than the plasticky keypad buttons, and offering one-press shortcuts to camera album, messages, contacts and another destination of your choice.

The 256MB Memory Stick Micro supplied fits into a slot on the side of the phone, but you’ll need to take the back off to get to it. And if you want to use your phone to carry music or video, you’ll probably need to upgrade to a bigger card (it’ll take up to 2GB cards).The camera certainly isn’t the most sophisticated in Sony Ericsson’s impressive Cyber-shot range, but it’s pretty good nonetheless. The BestPic feature (on the likes of the range-topping K850i), which allows you to take nine pics in quick succession, four before and four after you’ve pressed the shutter button, is missing, though there is a more conventional four-shot burst mode.

Still, it does have Autofocus, very useful for quick snaps which, let’s face it, is the primary function of a cameraphone, and Photo fix, which enhances underexposed pics by adjusting brightness, light and contrast to make them clearer and more vibrant before you transfer them to your PC or your blog.

Fortunately, if you don’t like the results of this rather crude one-touch operation, you can go back to the original version, or edit with more detail thanks to the PhotoDJ application.There’s a 3x digital zoom, but this is only available on the camera’s lowest, VGA, setting and while there’s no Carl Zeiss-style designer lens, it does have a flash, of sorts, though again it suffers by comparison with its brighter Xenon-packing cousins since it’s only an LED flash light, and is only really effective within a metre or two of your subject.

Connectivity-wise it’s tri-band with 3G (though it’s standard, not faster HSDPA 3G) and lest we forget, despite its lack of HSDPA, this is a fully fledged 3G phone, with video calling offered by a minute VGA camera just above the screen.

Sony’s new flagship SLR

Sony announced its forthcoming “flagship” Alpha-branded SLR on Thursday at the Photo Marketing Association trade show in Las Vegas.

Its chief defining feature so far is its use of a 24.8-megapixel sensor that’s unusually large–the size of a full frame of 35mm film. That move makes Sony only the third digital SLR (single-lens reflex) maker, along with Canon and more recently Nikon, to aim for that part of the market. Sony’s flagship is geared toward advanced amateurs, but Sony hopes professional photographers will like it, too. The camera is scheduled to go on sale later this year.

Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET News.com

Sony Intros 2 DSLRs at PMA 2008

At the PMA 2008 trade show in Las Vegas, Sony unveiled two new DSLRs; the 10.2 mega pixels Alpha 300 DSLR, and the 14.2 mega pixels Alpha 350 DSLR.

Both Alpha 300 and Alpha 350 DSLRs deploy Sony’s Live View system, which allows users compose images on screen rather than through the optical viewfinder only. The Live View system uses two sensors; one for LCD imaging, and the other for photo capture. It promises potential reduction in focusing times in dark indoor situations.
Both cameras feature Sony’s SteadyShot sensor-shift image stabilization, an anti-dust system, a 2.7-inches 230,000 pixels display which tilts out to make for easier shot composition when holding the camera above or below eye level, and a lithium ion battery that boasts 750 shots between charges.

Of the two DSLRs, the Alpha 300 will be available in two versions: the Alpha 300K and the Alpha 300X. The Alpha 300K has SAL-1870 DT 18-70mm (27 – 105 35mm eq) f3.5 Zoom lens, while the Alpha 300X comes with two lenses — the SAL-1870 and the SAL-55200 DT 55-200mm F4-5.6 Telephoto Zoom lens.

Both variants of the Alpha 300 feature dynamic range optimizer to automatically adjust shots to make them more natural looking, fix back-light effects, and brighten shadowy shots. The Alpha 300K and 300X have two levels of anti-dust protection for the CCD; one, a physical anti-dust coating on the CCD filter, and the other, a shaking mechanism to shake dust off of the sensor.

The other camera introduced by Sony, the Alpha 350 DSLR, has almost the same specifications as the Alpha 300 DSLR, except that the resolution is bumped up to 14.2 mega pixels.

Sony Ericsson cuts deals with 10 music labels

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson said it had signed deals with 10 music labels to add content to its PlayNow service, which lets users download music via their mobile phones.

Sony Ericsson, owned by Ericsson and Sony Corp., said the deals added 5 million new tracks to its catalogue.

The venture said in a statement late on Sunday it had signed deals with Sony BMG, Warner Music Group, EMI, The Orchard, IODA, The PocketGroup, Hungama, X5Music, Bonnier Amigo and VidZone.

Sony Ericsson, which made the announcement at a trade show in Cannes, France, said it was negotiating further deals with regional labels.

The company introduced PlayNow in February 2004 as a way to listen to and then purchase ringtones for mobile phones. Since then, it as expanded the service, allowing full music tracks and games to be downloaded and other features. It said PlayNow was available in 32 countries.

Sony Ericsson K770i

Sony Ericsson’s latest midrange offering is sleek-looking bar-shape handset that fits easily in the pocket thanks to its rounded edges and slim dimensions (just 14mm thick). It’s flush all over, with no protrusions, including the keypad, whose buttons sit just slightly proud, though they’re tactile enough to keep you on track.

It’s one of the slimmest Cyber-shot phones available and exudes minimalist cool, though the Truffle Brown version we tried (it also comes in beige, violet, bronze and black) gave it a bit of a business feel (in a good, serious kind of way).

The camera lens cover is built into the design as an elongated slide on the back that stretches over most of the back panel. While this makes it easy and quick to access the camera, we also found it to be prone to accidental opening in the pocket (this can happen even when the keypad lock is switched on).

The smallish screen offers 262,000 colours which is as good as anything Sony Ericsson is currently offering but feels a little cramped at 29x34mm. Incidentally, the D-pad is a joy to use, feeling firmer than the plasticky keypad buttons, and offering one-press shortcuts to camera album, messages, contacts and another destination of your choice.

The 256MB Memory Stick Micro supplied fits into a slot on the side of the phone, but you’ll need to take the back off to get to it. And if you want to use your phone to carry music or video, you’ll probably need to upgrade to a bigger card (it’ll take up to 2GB cards).

The camera certainly isn’t the most sophisticated in Sony Ericsson’s impressive Cyber-shot range, but it’s pretty good nonetheless. The BestPic feature (on the likes of the range-topping K850i), which allows you to take nine pics in quick succession, four before and four after you’ve pressed the shutter button, is missing, though there is a more conventional four-shot burst mode.

Sony Ericsson announces T270, T280

Sony Ericsson today announced the launch of the T270 and T280, a stylish duo of affordably priced phones set to appeal to differing audiences.

“We have developed two phones that meet the needs of two distinct audiences,” said Howard Lewis, Vice President and Head of Entry Level products at Sony Ericsson. “The T270 and T280 build on the appeal of iconic Sony Ericsson phones like the T610. They are good looking and tick all of the right boxes; whether it’s for the business user wanting a compact work phone or the everyday user looking for a classic, stylish camera phone.”

At home on the catwalk or in the boardroom

The T270 and T280 offer classic pocket-sized style. At less than 13mm slim and built using brushed light metal with a glass finish, they offer premium design without the premium price tag. Take the T280 to the fashion mall and snap a picture of a possible new purchase or use the T270 at work to send a calendar appointment to a colleague via Bluetooth technology.

Sony Ericsson T280 – In Touch and In Fashion

Minimum fuss
Fast texting and a simple navigation key to switch-on the FM radio or access your contact list. Easy access to the 1.3 megapixel camera and just one click to begin writing a new text message.

Maximum exposure
As well as its good looks, the T280 lets you take and send a photo in just a few clicks. Browse through your pictures on the phone’s screen or send them via Bluetooth to a friend’s phone.

Multitask effortlessly
Both the T280 andits sister-product, the T270, are compatible with Bluetooth Headsets such as the newly announced HBH-PV770. The HBH-PV770 headset sits discretely in your ear and offers remarkably clear audio, even in noisy environments, thanks to its Digital Noise Cancellation and fast Automatic Volume Adjustment features.

New Sony Cams Will Know When You Smile

With PMA just a week away, Sony announced a slew of new Cyber-Shot digital cameras that range from entry-level point-and-shooters to ultracompact cams with high-end features. In all, eight new Sony cameras were unveiled today.

Four new additions to the Cyber-Shot W series are on tap in the coming months. The 10.1-megapixel Cyber-Shot DSC-W170 ($300) and 8.1-megapixel Cyber-Shot DSC-W150 ($250) will both offer wide-angle Carl Zeiss lenses and 5x optical zoom.

oth the W170 and W150 have 2.7-inch LCD screens and are slated to ship in April. The lower-end Cyber-Shot DSC-W130 (8.1 megapixels, $230) and DSC-W120 (7.2 megapixels, $200) instead offer 4x optical zoom, 2.5-inch LCD screens, and no Carl Zeiss lens, and will be available in March.

For all the new W series cameras, Sony is highlighting the “smile shutter” mode, which senses when someone in the frame smiles and automatically takes a picture. The advanced face-detection technology can recognize up to eight faces per shot and lets the user prioritize the “smile shutter” to trigger when a specific person smiles.

At the entry-level end are two new additions to the Cyber-Shot S series. The slim 8.1-megapixel DSC-S780 ($180) and five-megapixel DSC-S750 ($150) are both one inch thick and offer 22MB of on-board memory for out-of-the-box shooting. Both cameras boast facial detection for up to three people per shot, as well as seven pre-set scene modes. Both the S750 and the S780 are slated for release in April.

Also announced by Sony today were the 8-megapixel Cyber-Shot DSC-H10, a compact high-zoom camera that’s geared towards families. The DSC-H10 boasts a 10x optical zoom, a long-distance flash for faraway shots, a Carl Zeiss lens, and a high shutter-speed mode for rapid-fire sports or action shots. The DSC-H10 also has some on-board image-editing apps, as well as face detection for up to eight people per shot. The $300 camera will be available in May.