Sony DSC-W50 Review


Features & Controls
![]() The Cyber-shot W50 features a Carl Zeiss 3x Zoom, 6.3 - 18.9mm (38 to 114mm equivalent), F2.8 - F5.2 zoom lens. It is constructed of 6 elements in 5 groups with 3 Aspheric elements. When powered down, the lens retracts into the body and is protected by a built-in shutter, no lens cap is necessary.
Equipped with a low-light AF-assist lamp (effective range up to 11 ft / 3.5 m Wide, 8 ft
2 1/2 in. / 2.5 m Tele), the 5 Area Multi-point, contrast detection
autofocus system has a range of 19.7" (50cm) - infinity in normal mode and from 0.74"
(2cm) - infinity in Macro focus mode. There is a 5-step manual focus adjustment with
infinity available as well.
![]() The Cyber-shot DSC-W30, DSC-W50 and DSC-W70 are Conversion Lens Compatible with the optional VAD-WB 30mm lens adaptor, you can add telephoto conversion lenses for greater magnification or protective and special effect filters.
Compatible with the Sony VCL-DH1730 1.7x Telephoto Conversion Lens, the
Sony VCL-DH2630 2.6X Super Telephoto Conversion Lens and filter VF-30CPK S, VF-30NK
and VF-30SC.
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The speedlight has modes for: Auto, Red-eye Reduction, Fill-in and Slow-sync.
The working range at ISO Auto: 6" to 13' 8" (0.2-4.2m) (W) and at
ISO 1000: 2' 7" to 24' (0.8-7.3m) (W).
The flash squelches down nicely for macro exposures and
has 3 power output settings.
![]() Brighten up your photographs like never before with the optional HVL-FSL1B slave flash from Sony. It is designed to operate in sync with your Cyber-shot digital camera's internal flash without having to connect a cable.
The HVL-FSL1B is equipped with a light control switch and is compatible with the
red eye reduction and pre-flash functions of your digital camera. It includes a bracket
to make installation a snap.
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The eyelevel optical viewfinder provides ~85% frame coverage but lacks dioptric
adjustment. The two LEDs indicate flash and focus status.
![]() The high resolution 2.5-inch color LCD has 115,000 pixels and can be used for preview, review and accessing the camera's menu system. The monitor can display a realtime histogram in record mode if desired.
Controls on the back:
The playback mode "arrow" button. The Mode Dial has positions for: AUTO, Program AE,
High ISO, Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Snow, Beach, Landscape, Soft Snap and Movie.
The MONITOR button turns the color LCD on/off and controls the amount of information
displayed.
The MENU button calls up and dismisses menu screens.
The 4-WAY CONTROLLER
is for navigating menus, changing settings and selecting playback images.
The center button accepts menu selections. In record mode the 4-way buttons are
used for: "Up" change flash modes, "Down" enable selftimer, "Left" is
Exposure Compensation and "Right" is for Macro focus mode.
The TRASHCAN button is for image deletion in review mode and is used to select the
Image Resolution in record mode.
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Top controls: The Power on/off button. The shutter release button is in the center of
the Zoom lens control for Wide and Telephoto - also functions as Index and Magnify
when in review mode.
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The I/O port on the bottom is connected to a cable that
provides an A/V output (video is NTSC or PAL, audio is monaural) and
a USB 2.0 (high speed and PictBridge compatible) data port.
On the side is a DC IN jack for an AC power supply.
![]() The W50 stores its data on ~32MB of internal memory and optional Memory Stick Duo and Memory Stick Duo PRO Cards. Memory Stick PRO media is required for capturing the MPEG-VX Fine mode 30fps motion video clips.
Number of Storable Photos (approx.)![]()
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The W50 is powered by a Sony Lithium-Ion NP-BG1 3.6V, 950 mAh. Sony's Stamina
technology provides power for up to 390 shots with LCD on and 500 shots with
LCD off (CIPA standard). Movie recording time is approx. 190 minutes with LCD on
and approx. 240 minutes with LCD off. Viewing time is approx. 400 minutes.
![]() Built for the DSC-W30, DSC-W50 and DSC-W70, the optional SPK-WA sports pack not only protects your camera from unexpected splashes or downpours, it also allows shots to be taken from depths up to 10 feet. The SPK-WA also acts as a protective case for use in sleet and snow. Designed with ease-of-use in mind, this case allows you to operate all basic camera functions with ease. |
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