Photography

Sony updates Cyber-shot camera range

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The Sony Cyber-shot HX400V is the new flagship mega-zoom and boasts Wi-Fi with NFC and GPS
The Sony Cyber-shot HX400V is the new flagship mega-zoom and boasts Wi-Fi with NFC and GPS
The Sony Cyber-shot HX400V features a 20.4 megapixel 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor (6.17 x 4.55 mm) along with a 50x F2.8-F6.3 optical zoom
The Sony Cyber-shot WX350 has an 18.2 effective megapixel 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor (6.17 x 4.55 mm)
The Sony Cyber-shot WX350 is a new pocketable compact camera which squeezes in a 20x optical zoom lens (24-480-mm equivalent)
The Sony Cyber-shot H400 has an almost ridiculous 63x optical zoom giving a 35-mm-format equivalent of 24.5-1550-mm
The Sony Cyber-shot H400 will be available in March for US$320
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Sony has revealed the latest cameras to be added to it Cyber-shot line-up including its new flagship mega-zoom HX400V, which adds Wi-Fi with NFC and GPS to its 50x optical zoom capability. Other notable new cameras revealed include the compact WX350, and the 63x optical zoom H400.

Cyber-shot HX400V

The Sony Cyber-shot HX400V features a 20.4 megapixel 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor (6.17 x 4.55 mm) along with a 50x F2.8-F6.3 optical zoom

The latest update to the Sony mega-zoom HX-series is the HX400V which, while looking a lot like its HX300 predecessor, adds Wi-Fi with NFC and GPS. There's also the addition of Sony's Bionz X processor which has previously impressed in higher end models like the RX10 and the Aplha A7, and should keep things moving along quickly.The HX400V features a 20.4 megapixel 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor (6.17 x 4.55 mm) along with a 50x F2.8-F6.3 optical zoom which offers the 35-mm-format focal length equivalent to 24-1,200-mm. With that sort of zoom onboard, it's also good to know that the camera features optical image stabilization to control the inevitable wobbles.

Measuring 129.6 x 93.2 x 103.2 mm (5.1 x 3.7 x 4 inches) the HX400V is DSLR-like in both appearance and size. On the rear is a three-inch tilting LCD with 921,600 dots and an electronic viewfinder for composing photos or video – which can be recorded at full HD 1080p 60/50/24 fps. Wi-Fi and NFC connectivity allow for easy sharing and remote shooting, and the camera is compatible with the Sony PlayMemories camera apps platform.

The Cyber-shot HX400V will be available in March for US$500.

Cyber-shot WX350

The Sony Cyber-shot WX350 is a new pocketable compact camera which squeezes in a 20x optical zoom lens (24-480-mm equivalent)

The Sony Cyber-shot WX350 is a new pocketable compact camera which squeezes in a 20x optical zoom lens (24-480-mm equivalent). There's an 18.2 effective megapixel 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor (6.17 x 4.55 mm) along with the Bionz X image processor for producing quality images with low noise.

While the WX350 only has 460k dot three-inch LCD, it does boast built-in Wi-Fi and NFC for easy image sharing and remote control functions. It can also record full HD video at 1080p 60//50 fps.

Available in back or white from March, the Cyber-shot WX350 will retail for around $320.

Cyber-shot H400

The Sony Cyber-shot H400 has an almost ridiculous 63x optical zoom giving a 35-mm-format equivalent of 24.5-1550-mm

While the H400 has a considerably larger optical zoom than the HX400V (it stretches to an almost ridiculous 63x, giving a 35-mm-format equivalent of 24.5-1550-mm F3.4-F6.5) it sits below it in the Sony line-up and is aimed at more budget market.

The camera uses a 20.1 megapixel 1/2.3-inch CCD sensor (6.17 x 4.55 mm) and has a relatively small ISO range of 100 to 3,200. It's rear three-inch LCD also only has 460k dots, video recording is only possible up to 720p and continuous shooting has a maximum speed of just 0.71 fps. On the plus side, it does have an EVF and is considerably cheaper.

The Cyber-shot H400 will be available in March for US$320.

Product pages: Cyber-shot HX400V, WX350, H400

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1 comment
Gadgeteer
The megapixel race has slowed down somewhat, with cameras now having more pixels than any regular person needs. The zoom race is at its peak, but this may be approaching the limit, unless Sony thinks we won't be satisfied until we get 100x optical zooms. So the next frontier would seem to be a race for either low-light performance or lens aperture. I would put my money on the former, since lens performance hasn't changed appreciably in decades. F2.4-2.8 seems to remain about as fast as a non-interchangeable zoom lens can attain. With a large, ultrasensitive, low noise sensor, lens speed really wouldn't be as important in low light conditions. And with digital processing, the very shallow depth of field that only a very fast lens could achieve can be simulated.