Sony DSC-F505V "CyberShot"

Click to see a QuickTime tour of the F505V

The new Sony DSC-F505V CyberShot looks almost identical to the original DSC-F505 on the outside, the difference is mainly on the inside. The F505V features a 3.3-megapixel imager but only uses a portion of that to generate a 2.6-megapixel (1856 x 1392) finished image. It can also record a larger, pre-JPEG interpolated 2240 x 1680 image if desired. Image quality has been improved by a 12-bit A/D that gives you more dynamic range and the image processing is now more robust thanks to a single-chip solution engineered by the Sony folks.

It features the same swiveling 5x Carl Zeiss optical/2x digital zoom lens, the hybrid 2-inch color LCD display and the highly durable, die-cast magnesium alloy body as the F505. And the same exposure options too including Programmed AE with 6 modes; Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, Programmed Automatic, Landscape, Panfocus, Twilight and Twilight+.

The CyberShot F505V stores its still images in 2240 x 1680, 1856 x 1392, 1856(3:2), 1280 x 960 or 640 x 480 pixel sizes in JPEG compressed format or 1856 x 1392 in TIFF uncompressed format.

It also has:

• MPEG Movie mode (up to 60 secs @ 160 x 112, up to 15 secs @ 320 x 240 or 320 x 240HQ)
• Voice Memo mode, capture short (5 sec or up to 40 secs) audio clips to accompany video, stills or to use separately in your PC.
• E-Mail mode automatically reduces file size to simplify transmission of your favorite images.

The F505V CyberShot features a 2-inch hybrid LCD with 122,980 pixels and a reflective backlit design to achieve superb clarity and brightness.   In sunny or bright indoor conditions, turn off the backlighting and use the hybrid light reflective properties for illumination.  Using the large LCD it's easy to access all of the advanced functions displayed on the menu overlays.

See pages 3 and 4 for record and playback screens and menus.

This animated view shows the LCD swiveling through its range of +90 to -50 degrees.

There's been a lot of talk about this hybrid LCD and how well it works in direct sunlight. This photo shows the LCD screen facing directly into the afternoon Florida sun, backlight turned off and partially blocked so you can see how it goes totally black when there's no sunlight shining on it. This is truly the kind of LCD display that we've been waiting for!

This is the first digicam I have seen that has both a (metal) tripod socket and a guide pin hole.  Sony has paid a lot of attention to even the smallest details on this camera.

That's a speaker on the left for playback of your voice memo notes.

The view from the top, is that a BIG lens or what ?   I think it was designed by the marketing people so they could stick even more labels on this camera :-)

That's the manual focusing ring out there on the end.

Looking at the F505 from this angle about all you can say is, "Would you like some camera with your lens?"

The left side affords plenty of room for camera controls, see the next page for a closeup look and description of these buttons.

And speaking of lenses, here is one of the world famous Carl Zeiss, all-glass Vario-Sonar zoom lenses.

• 5x optical (35mm equiv. 38 - 190mm)
• 10x (digital)
• F2.8 - 3.3
• High-speed scan auto focus (2cm to infinity
• Manual focus via the ring (2cm to infinity)