Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-S500 Digital Camera
- Digital Zoom: 2x
- Camera Type: Standard Point and Shoot
- Weight: 0.33 lb.
- LCD Screen Size: 2.4 in.
- Resolution: 6 Megapixel
- Optical Zoom: 3x
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Great Pictures - Slow Response - Eats AA Batteries for Breakfast
Pros
Small, lightweight, fantastic pictures, great value.
Cons
Eats batteries, weak flash, weak LCD viewscreen, slow response.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
I only recommend this camera if it is being used for portraits/landscapes and such. Not for professional use.
I bought the Sony Cybershot DSC S500 to take with the family to Disney World instead of having to lug around my Canon Digital Rebel. The camera has everything I was looking for at the time, big display, compact size and lightweight, 6 megapixels, built-in flash, readily available batteries, USB and A/V outputs, and a mini-movie mode.
This camera takes excellent detailed and rich pictures with high definition and great color details (like my other Sony Camera - I'm always impressed by their pictures). With 6 megapixels, the pictures this camera takes can be blown up to 16 by 20 inches.
One drawback to this camera is that it does not respond quickly enough to be useful at sporting events or when the shot is critical. On more than one occasion while we were in Disney World, I lost a shot that I thought the camera was prepared to take because it decided to refocus or adjust for lighting again or whatever reason. For my uses of this camera, this was a mild (and manageable) irritant. If needed for fast action or critical shots, something other than the S500 is warranted.
Like other Sony cameras I've worked with, it has a user selectable dial for determining the camera settings. The AUTO setting works great in most situations, but the camera has other settings that work better for different lighting levels and uses.
Unlike my previous Sony camera, the movie-mode is locked at a size of 320 by 240 pixels, but still has the options for black & white and Sepia modes. The movie recording works well in that it records in 30 frames per second, but the resolution is very weak and the audio can be terrible depending on what is recorded.
The night setting works well, and if used with a tripod (yes, this camera has a tripod mount), then excellent night shots are possible with background objects visible and foreground objects lit up nicely by the flash.
The internal (included) memory is only 25 MB, which is very limited, but if the only reason for the camera purchase is emailing pictures and not printing, then a comfortable 152 JPEGs can be taken using the internal memory alone. Otherwise, there is a memory stick pro duo slot under the battery access door. I bought a 1.0 GB memory stick pro duo for my uses, and over six days at Disney World filled this right to capacity and took every shot I wanted (about 270 6 MP shots and a few movies of varying times). I don't know if there is an upper limit for the capacity of the memory media, but Sony offers a 2 GB item of the web page for this camera as an accessory, so presumably it will handle at least that much.
I found the flash to be somewhat limited in its power. Three or four feet was the limit of it's ability to illuminate the subject effectively in poorly lit areas. As a fill flash, it is unacceptable, meaning its important to keep the subject lit up from the side being photographed.
The LCD display is also a little weak and difficult to see in bright sunlight (compared to other cameras I've used). There is an option to increase the backlight level, but this wastes more battery power and it is not very effective.
Speaking of battery power - WOW - this camera goes through AA batteries faster than I would have believed. I was using Energizer Titanium Alkaline batteries (better than standard alkalines) and went through 8 batteries in six days and 1 GB of shooting. The manual specifies that lithium batteries are not supported, though I'm not sure if they are referring to the AA lithium batteries, which I would expect to work (I don't know if they would be worth the expense for anyone using this camera). My recommendation is to get the 2500 mAh Nickel-Metal Hydride batteries available in most retail stores and have spares charged and ready. The manual also specifies that the NiMH batteries will also provide many more images before requiring replacement than the alkaline batteries (I have not tested this).
This camera takes excellent detailed and rich pictures with high definition and great color details (like my other Sony Camera - I'm always impressed by their pictures). With 6 megapixels, the pictures this camera takes can be blown up to 16 by 20 inches.
One drawback to this camera is that it does not respond quickly enough to be useful at sporting events or when the shot is critical. On more than one occasion while we were in Disney World, I lost a shot that I thought the camera was prepared to take because it decided to refocus or adjust for lighting again or whatever reason. For my uses of this camera, this was a mild (and manageable) irritant. If needed for fast action or critical shots, something other than the S500 is warranted.
Like other Sony cameras I've worked with, it has a user selectable dial for determining the camera settings. The AUTO setting works great in most situations, but the camera has other settings that work better for different lighting levels and uses.
Unlike my previous Sony camera, the movie-mode is locked at a size of 320 by 240 pixels, but still has the options for black & white and Sepia modes. The movie recording works well in that it records in 30 frames per second, but the resolution is very weak and the audio can be terrible depending on what is recorded.
The night setting works well, and if used with a tripod (yes, this camera has a tripod mount), then excellent night shots are possible with background objects visible and foreground objects lit up nicely by the flash.
The internal (included) memory is only 25 MB, which is very limited, but if the only reason for the camera purchase is emailing pictures and not printing, then a comfortable 152 JPEGs can be taken using the internal memory alone. Otherwise, there is a memory stick pro duo slot under the battery access door. I bought a 1.0 GB memory stick pro duo for my uses, and over six days at Disney World filled this right to capacity and took every shot I wanted (about 270 6 MP shots and a few movies of varying times). I don't know if there is an upper limit for the capacity of the memory media, but Sony offers a 2 GB item of the web page for this camera as an accessory, so presumably it will handle at least that much.
I found the flash to be somewhat limited in its power. Three or four feet was the limit of it's ability to illuminate the subject effectively in poorly lit areas. As a fill flash, it is unacceptable, meaning its important to keep the subject lit up from the side being photographed.
The LCD display is also a little weak and difficult to see in bright sunlight (compared to other cameras I've used). There is an option to increase the backlight level, but this wastes more battery power and it is not very effective.
Speaking of battery power - WOW - this camera goes through AA batteries faster than I would have believed. I was using Energizer Titanium Alkaline batteries (better than standard alkalines) and went through 8 batteries in six days and 1 GB of shooting. The manual specifies that lithium batteries are not supported, though I'm not sure if they are referring to the AA lithium batteries, which I would expect to work (I don't know if they would be worth the expense for anyone using this camera). My recommendation is to get the 2500 mAh Nickel-Metal Hydride batteries available in most retail stores and have spares charged and ready. The manual also specifies that the NiMH batteries will also provide many more images before requiring replacement than the alkaline batteries (I have not tested this).
