The NTSC video out connector is the only I/O port on the entire camera.
There is no serial port or external DC power plug on this camera.
A cushioned eyecup and diopter adjustment control completes the SLR
viewfinder. There's a hot shoe flash mount on top of the viewfinder.
The view "inside" of the D770's viewfinder. Like an expensive 35mm SLR,
it has a digital display readout of camera
settings. You don't need to take your eye out of the viewfinder to know
what the camera is doing.
The "heart" of the D770's user controls, the Auto/Manual Focus switch
and the Mode Dial. You turn it to the desired function and then press
and hold the Shift Button in the center while rotating the Shift Dial to
change the settings which are displayed on the LCD.
The controls on the back of the camera.
At the top is the Power/Mode
dial that turns the camera on in "CAMera" or "PLAY" mode.
The Menu button brings
up the main menu on the LCD.
The Up and Down arrows to
navigate it and make selections with the Execute button and when you're
through, you Exit.
The top data LCD displays the ISO speed, focus mode, shutter speed,
aperture, battery condition, CAMera/PLAY mode, number of pictures taken,
flash status, image size,
picture quality, white balance settings, interval / selftimer /
single picture / continuous picture modes.
Top view of the hand grip shows the shutter release button, the EV
compensation button, the Spot metering button and the Shift Dial.
To change EV values or to go in or out of Spot metering you hold down
the appropriate button and rotate the Shift Dial with your thumb.
Images are stored on PC ATA Type II cards which means that any
CompactFlash, SmartMedia or MemoryStick card may be used if it is
placed in its PCMCIA adapter. You can not use a Microdrive, the D770
will not recognize it, sorry.
The D770 comes with an 8MB Sony MemoryStick, the Type II PCMCIA adapter,
and the Sony MSAC-PR1 External PC-Card Reader that hooks up to your
parallel port.
If you've used any of Sony's camcorders or Mavica still cameras then you
probably recognize this InfoLITHIUM battery. It's a 7.2v rechargable
battery with a "brain" that actually tells the camera how many minutes
of operation are left at the current consumption level.
The D770 comes with a rapid charger to charge the NP-F550 battery
in about 170 minutes. The camera may be powered directly from the
AC wall socket if you buy the optional AC-V700 charger, it comes with
a DC power unit that replaces the battery.
Steve's Conclusion
The Sony D770 is an amazing camera, it offers serious digital
photographers everything you can get from the 35mm film world
with the exception of interchangeable lenses. The fixed mount lens
is a 5X optical zoom that covers from wideangle to moderate telephoto
(28-140mm in 35mm equiv) and includes automatic macro capability.
The D770 has shutter (4 secs to 1/2000 sec) and aperture (F2-F11)
priority modes, a fully automatic mode and a full manual mode. It can
shoot in single frame or continuous mode (640x480 @ 2fps in CONT2 mode)
- also in High quality JPG, see last paragraph below. It's
got auto or manual white balance and center-weighted or spot metering
options..
And what really makes a digital camera a digital camera? You bet,
a color LCD to see your picture seconds after you take it and the
D770 has got a HUGE, 2.5-inch screen that rivals any found on Sony's
latest digital camcorders. It isn't as good as the one they just
put on the new F505 but it's a beauty all the same. Useable
anywhere but in the high-noon sunshine and even then just a little
shading from your hand and voilla!
It comes with one of Sony's new 8MB MemoryStick cards and an
appropriate PCMCIA adapter. I'm sure that I am not the only one
who tossed it back in the box and used a large CF card instead. Besides
being too small capacity-wise, the current crop of
MemorySticks are incredibly slow devices, both at reading and writing.
The D770 performed fantastically with my Lexar 8X 80MB CF card. It also
worked flawlessly with every other CompactFlash card that I put in it.
I can't say enough about the Sony InfoLITHIUM batteries, they're just
great! I've been using one in my Sony TRV10 digital camcorder,
my Sony DKC-ID1 still camera and in several Mavica cameras. They just
keep going and going, even when running a power-hungry 2.5-inch color
LCD. You get a readout in minutes of remaining battery time on the
LCD and it is extremely accurate. After being completely discharged,
the NP-F550 battery only take about two and a half hours to charge
in the supplied BC-V615 rapid charger.
Using the D770 is just like operating any semi-pro 35mm SLR except with
digital you get to see your pictures immediately on the LCD screen.
After using dozens of the less expensive digicams it's so nice to grab
a lens and twist it to zoom in and out or to focus manually. Some
people may like it done for them automatically, but I'm a control freak
and like doing it manually -- the D770 lets you do as much
as you want.
Almost forgot to mention that Sony included one of my favorite
things with the D770, a wireless remote control. Every digicam
maker should include a remote, it doesn't cost that much and it really
adds to the value of the overall package. There's no substitute for
a wireless pushbutton shutter release when doing tripod-mounted
macro shots!
The older CyberShot Pro DSC-D700 and DSC-D770
The D770 has replaced the older D700 CyberShot Pro. It uses
the same CCD imager and lens, improvements are a histogram display
like the Kodak / Canon / Nikon pro cameras, a faster autofocus system
plus an improved optical viewfinder for manual focusing, image sharpening
refinements and as you can see, they made the case a darker gray color
so that white lettering around the buttons and
knobs is now much more readable.
One of our reader wrote me to let me know about another improvement that I
did not have time to test for myself, nor did I even know about it.
"One thing you might want to add concerns the continuous shoot
capabilities. I know the manual only discussed shooting continuously in
640
x 480, but you can shoot continuously at about 1.5 frames per second with
high quality JPG if you use a Lexar 8x card. I have both the D700 and D770
and can fill a 96 meg Lexar 8x card shooting continuously without
interruption. Apparently the file size plus the buffer and speed of the
Lexar card combine to let you shoot high resolution shots continuously.
Undocumented, but works wonderfully."
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