Feb 16, 2006
Those who know me, know that I don't often endorse products unless I'm really impressed by them on a whole variety of levels.
Today, Sony really impressed me.
In June '05 I bought a Sony DSC-W5 digital camera. It is easily one of the most amazing sub-$350 cameras out there. Check out my Flickr page & you'll see virtually every shot there was taken with this camera. Below I write about the quality of the camera... which isn't the focus of this entry.
I've traveled with the camera quite a bit, and it's taken a beating. While I was in Australia I slept on several beaches with it & got sand in it, etc... When I got back to the States, the lens stopped working. It wouldn't come out & the camera wouldn't work. I went to Sony's web site & found the repair section. It was very simple to fill out the basic information, and get a document to include with my camera, along with an address to mail the camera to. In less than two weeks, the camera was back in my possession, with a new lens & was completely checked out. They even updated the firmware! Best of all: they didn't charge me a penny. Not even for return shipping.
THAT is customer service.
As for the camera itself... it's a remarkable device. Below is my take on it:
While I like to think I'm a good photographer, most of the photos I've taken with it wouldn't be possible with other point & shoot digital cameras in the 3-5mp range. Why? Two features:
1. Remarkably easy to use manual controls. I can manually focus at really short focal lengths, and my ability to control the shutter and aperture is strikingly similar to my experience using my Canon EOS Elan (one of my favorite 35mm cameras ever - I bought it when I was 15 with my hard earned cash). The ability to control the shutter/aperture easily allows me to adjust the camera on the fly in changing situations to capture the moment instead of tinkering with the camera. Most point & shoot digicams have several menus you need to go through to adjust shutter & aperture & ends up wasting lots of your time.
2. I'll copy what was written in the Crutchfeld review, as he said it most concisely:
"Real Imaging Processor produces remarkably fast response, minimizing shutter lag and maximizing battery life." What this means is I can keep pressing the button to take the picture and I don't have to wait to take the next one, the camera is ready instantly.
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