Sony DSC-S50 CyberShot

Click to take a QTVR tour of the s50

The Sony DSC-S50 CyberShot features a 1/2.7" 2.1-megapixel Super HAD CCD image sensor that yields 1600 x 1200 uncompressed TIFF or finished JPEG still images. For optimum printing there is a 3:2 (1600 x 1072) aspect ratio setting. The DSC-S50 can capture 15 secs of 1/4 VGA (320x240) or up to 60 secs of 1/8 VGA (160x112) motion video with sound. Special recording modes are also available for Text, Email and Voice.

The DSC-S50 has a Sony 3x (equivalent to a 35mm 39-117mm) optical zoom with a 2x digital zoom option. High-speed scan autofocus with 5 manual focus presets plus macro mode. To insure the best possible image quality there is a 12-bit A/D conversion, 4-step adjustable sharpness and 4-mode white balance. Exposure control can be any one of seven Program AE modes with Aperture priority (F2.8 - F11) or Shutter priority (8 - 1/750 sec).

On the back is a 2-inch EX-Bright TFT color LCD with 123,000 pixel resolution. It serves as the camera's viewfinder, picture review, menu and data display.  The backlight is adjustable via a switch on the side as well as a finer adjustment in the setup menu.

The LCD swivels up and down 180 degrees and can rotate around 280 degrees to face backward, sideways or forward for self-portraits.

When the camera is not being used you turn the LCD around backwards and latch it up against the back of the camera to protect the screen.

On top we find the speaker, microphone, mode dial and the shutter release.

The only thing on the bottom is a metal tripod socket.

Here's the left and right side views, a little farther down and we'll open up the door on the right side and show you what's in there.

The S50 sports a 3x optical zoom equivalent to a 35mm 39-117mm lens. It has a 2x digital zoom option but this is a crop and magnify operation that results in a somewhat degraded image. The lens is threaded for 37mm filters and add-on lenses. Unlike other 3x zoom lenses this one does not extend or retract.

Focus range is 10 inches to infinity in normal mode and down to 1.2 inches in the macro mode. The focus is either automatic or manually controllable via presets for 0.5m, 1.0m, 3.0m, 7.0m or infinity.

The built-in intelligent flash has Auto, Red-Eye Reduction, Forced and Suppressed modes plus variable intensity adjustment (high, normal, low) via the menu. The working range is from one to just over eight feet. .

FOCUS: Autofocus, Macro or one of the five preset distances. LCD BACKLIGHT: Bright or Normal. FLASH:  Auto, On, Off, Redeye). 4-Way Jog Switch: Push UP to enable onscreen menu, Up / Down / Left / Right to navigate menus. VOLUME: Controls output to the speaker. DISPLAY: Turns on/off the data overlays on the LCD. PROGRAM AE: Automatic, shutter, aperture, panofocus, landscape, twilight, twilight plus.

The zoom lens control is on the top, in the middle is the power switch and the AC adapter/battery charger plugs into the DC IN port on the bottom.

On the left side of the camera are the I/O ports: A combination video and audio output port. The video signal is user-selectable for NTSC or PAL formats. Next to that is the high-speed USB data port.

On the right side is the combination battery and memory compartment.

The battery is a Sony "M" series NP-FM50 InfoLITHIUM rechargeable 7.2v "battery with a brain" -- it tells you on the LCD exactly how many minutes of runtime is left.   Additional NP-FM50 batteries are available for $60 - it's always a good idea to have a second battery.

The storage media is the Sony Memory Stick, an 8MB module is supplied.

Memory Sticks are now available in 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64MB capacity and 128MB and 256MB size are scheduled in the next year.   I recently purchased a 64MB stick for less than $100 so the prices are now less than comparable sized CompactFlash cards.   For latest Memory Stick pricing click here

The Sony DSC-S50 and the DSC-S30 Cybershot are almost physically identical.   The major difference is the S30 is only a 1.3 megapixel camera and does not have movie or sound recording capabilities.

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