Sony Mavica CD500 Review

Click on the CD500 to take a QuickTime VR tour

Sony is the only manufacturer producing digital cameras that store still images and movie clips on CD-R/RW media. The Mavica CD500 is the year 2003 flagship of the CD Mavica line and features a 5-megapixel imager and a high quality Carl Zeiss 3x optical zoom lens. Lighter in weight and less expensive than last year's four megapixel Mavica CD400 and now sporting a professional looking all-black exterior. New features include the improved MPEG-VX movie mode with 640x480 resolution at 16 frames per second with audio. Six minutes of continuous VGA resolution motion video can be recorded on each disc. The hot shoe has dedicated TTL contacts for the new Sony HVL-F32X programmable flash unit.

The CD500 also features the Sony-exclusive Hologram AF laser assisted focusing system that was made famous on the Cyber-shot F707. To insure accurate focus in low or no light the camera uses a safe Class 1 laser to project a grid pattern on the subject. In addition to the Hologram AF system, the CD500 has a Five-area Multi-Point auto focus system which displays the selected AF point. The camera automatically selects the AF point or it can be manually selected by the user. Multi-pattern exposure metering uses 49 points in the frame to establish the optimum exposure. A full range of exposure control including Program AE with Shift, Aperture priority, Shutter-speed priority, Full Manual, AE Bracketing and six Scene modes.

Other CD Mavica camera features include the large 2.5-inch, solar-assisted, color LCD monitor that is used for framing and image review. Pre-Flash exposure metering and Auto Daylight Synchro Fill Flash insure the best possible pictures in all sorts of lighting conditions. The world famous Sony InfoLITHIUM rechargeable battery system using the high- capacity NP-FM50 battery pack. A fully charged battery can yield up to 220 shots or a continuous recording time of 110 minutes. The included charger can also be used as an AC power adapter.

Maximizing the benefits of writable CD photography, Sony's CD500 Mavica digital still camera incorporates focus, exposure and archiving features that help make every picture worth keeping. CompactDiscs are easy-to-use, long-lasting, and allow instant archiving of pictures - a lot of pictures. The CD500 Mavica can be used with either the write-once CD-R or the re-writable CD-RW type discs.

Mavica CD500 Features:

• 5.0 Megapixel Sony Super HAD CCD imager
• Still images in JPEG or TIFF format up to 2592x1944 pixels
• 14-bit DXP A/D conversion for extended dynamic range
• Carl Zeiss 3x optical (34-102mm) F2.0 lens
• 4.0X Smart Zoom (at VGA size)
• Five-area AF w/user selectable AF point
• Multi-Point AF and 13-step manual focus
• Hologram AF laser-assisted focusing system
• Multi Pattern, Center-weighted or Spot metering
• Pre-Flash Metering and Auto Daylight Synchro Fill Flash
• 156MB 3-inch CD-R / CD-RW storage
• Program AE w/Shift, Shutter priority, Aperture priority or Manual
• 3-Shot Auto Exposure Bracketing
• Slow shutter speed Noise Reduction
• 6 Scene modes: Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Landscape, Portrait, Snow and Beach
• 2.5-inch, 123,000 pixel color LCD monitor w/solar assist
• MPEG VX movie mode, 640x480 @ 16fps w/audio, up to 5:54 per 156MB disc
• 3-Frame Burst and Multi-Burst (16 frames saved as one 1280x960 image)
• White balance - 6 presets plus manual one-push
• Dedicated Hot Shoe for new HVL-F32X programmable flash
• Sony InfoLITHIUM NP-FM50 1180mAh rechargeable battery
• USB 2.0 connectivity for Windows and Macintosh users

The Sony CD500 is available now with a suggested retail price of $699.95.

Physical Views

The MVC-CD500 and the compact Cyber-shot DSC-P8.

The MVC-CD500 compared to a standard CD disc.

MVC-CD500 Specifications