Re: Don't hear much about Sony DSLRs anymore

RichA wrote:
Since the intro of the impressive A900 and subsequently that lot of
three drab entry level cameras, nothing interesting from Sony. I'm
wondering if the cookie-cutting cheapos they put out is their new
grand strategy? To appear interesting to whatever soccer mom is
cruising the aisles at Best Buy or Walmart? Sony's days of innovation
and experimentation could be over. The powers that be could have
said, "Well DSLR division, you had your chance, we aren't making a
profit, time to wind it down." Is Sony going the way of Fuji, who
once nearly controlled the P&S market? No more DSLRs, or just same,
same, same, dull, dull, dull packages with different numbers??
Well Sony, congrats on producing two great cameras, the A700 and A900,
very innovative in many areas...in their day.
Now this? Yeesh!
http://www.letsgodigital.org/images/artikelen/55/sony-alpha-330.jpg




I've got a 380 here. My first reaction was one of remorse/disappointment - £600 for what is clearly a £399 kit. I bought a Nikon D5000 for a similar price in May, and felt very happy with it. The A380 offers no image quality improvement over the earlier A350 (have tested it now) and is very cut-down in feel and ergonomics.

However, the small body and almost grip-less shape is liked by some users, especially women. And after using the apparently clumsy rear control pad interface to get to adjustments, I find that it's actually more intuitive than the old array of buttons placed randomly on the body. Example, I now have it in my head that ISO change is the bottom pad, flash control the right pad, drive control the left pad (without looking I can't remember the top pad function). Now if you asked me to draw where these controls were on the A900, A700 and A350 all of which I have, I bet I would get it wrong from memory.

The new tiny ordinary-motor focusing lens feels horrible (18-55mm) and it is pretty poor at 18-28mm focal length range. However, it's very good indeed from 35-55mm and it focuses even closer than the Nikkor 18-55mm VR - closer, in fact, than any other lens in the entire Sony system except the 100mm and 50mm 1:1 macros. You can get 0.34X and on APS-C that is as good as a half-life-size macro on full frame.

They did some bad stuff, like deciding no-one needs a lens shade, and removing the remote control socket. But at least the camera is compatible with my existing A900 and A700 wireless remotes (earlier entry levels models are not) and the Chinese are already selling a £5 shipped simple IR remote for them all. In Venice in June, I saw loads of Sony (and other) DSLRs in use and it was amazing how many people were firing way with their lens hoods still in reversed storage position - I see this all the time. So if people don't use the hood, maybe a history of 25 years of providing a lens hood with every lens sold (Minolta AF legacy) deserves to be broken.

And with no hood, the built-in flash with its extra pop-up height (compared to the A350) can illuminate that 0.34X, 25cm focus close-up shot fully - no cast shadows.

I still think the camera, lacking HD video and really very basic in feel, is not a £600 kit (my last new A350 body cost only £300 new in February and it's a better camera in many ways). But this may just be 2009 pricing at work. When the A500, 550 and 850 arrive later this year I guess they will be very expensive - I just hope they offer something I actually want.

David

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