Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-T1 Digital Camera

I first submitted this review on February 9th, 2004 and with a great deal of excitement and enthusiasm but this is an *UPDATE* with this portion written on February 24th, 2004 as a VERY IMPORTANT follow-up and yet in fairness, I have left the original review intact below.

The Sony DSC-T1 I purchased (direct from Sony) failed this week with its internal zoom unable to focus and thus all photos with flash or outdoors being blurred. Red-Eye also failed despite our attempts to try and circumvent the Sony menus via a reset.

I did contact Sony Customer Service ( 1 888 449-7669) but Sony has just 'out-sourced' their customer service to India operators that know little about the product line and are very slow as they attempt to look up answers via their computers. They only offered 'repair' after two weeks of ownership but said they do not 'exchange' but attempted to offer web-based customer support as well.

While I am not attempting to persuade you to buy another product, I am offering caution in that any customer support you may need will be via out-sourced India operators and that Sony will not exchange their product but only 'service' it. Also, as with any new product line, there often are growing pains associated with initial production and hopefully Sony will remedy both the internal zoom and red-eye situation but one may consider waiting a bit until corrections are indeed made.

ORIGINAL REVIEW:::Sony's DSC-T1 digital 5.0 megapixel camera (just released February 2004) is an amazing piece of electronic amazement. So feature packed and loaded in such a small space, this camera will often be out-of-stock during its initial release.

For details and specs, see WWW.Sony.Com and click-on electronics and then click-on digital cameras. Professional reviews are now on such sites as CNET (WWW.CNET.COM) and also on TECH TV's website or better yet, on television as their pick during the recent CES Show (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Out of thousands of items at the CES Show, TECH TV made this camera a subject of two of their broadcasts.

We've only had ours for two weeks now so 'experts' we are not but this is our fifth digital camera and we did know what to look for and what our needs were in performance so because this is a new and very in-demand digital camera and I wanted to share this on Epinions right away while readers are anxious for user reviews.

This camera really is small! Just over a 3X5 index size card and about as thick as a television remote (actually even thinner), this camera will fit in any purse or pocket with ease. Weight is just 7-8 ounces with battery! Start-up of the camera can be accomplished by using the power button or simply by sliding the lens over away from the lens to expose a Carl Zeiss lens and start the camera at once. Total start-up time is just about 3-5 seconds and that's impressive.

I mention the Carl Zeiss lens which this time doesn't move when you apply the 3X optical for close-ups. The optical lens is all internal with no moving parts and therefore no moving parts means fewer repairs. However, this lens is placed so far to the left of the camera that it is with ease that any user can accidently cover the lens with a finger and you'll need to train yourself to use the camera with that in mind. We went outside and shot 10 identical pictures with the Sony DSC-T1 and our other upscale digital camera (Canon's 10-D SLR) and found Sony's DSC-T1 good to very good at producing excellent color and detail in a very small package. While certainly not on par with Canon's 10-D, it did an amazing job of detail with flowers, fences, bright sunlight (with intent) and speed. I was very impressed indeed.

A key quality in any digital camera is 'Shutter Lag'. Digital cameras have had a tendency to be somewhat slow in preparing for the next shot and waiting several seconds has been common. Not so with Sony's DSC-T1! The camera was always ready for the next shot before I was in the outdoor mode and a few seconds more with indoor/flash photography mode. The camera is even faster with the newer PRO DUO Memory Stick (the camera is shipped only with a basic DUO Memory Stick of just 32MB size and more on Memory Sticks just below).

A key feature is Sony's 2-plus inch LCD screen on the cameras back. EXCELLENT!!! Even in outdoor use you can see the screen with ease and the camera allows you to change brightness to accommodate bright sunshine. This LCD screen is the best I have ever seen on any digital camera but the LCD screen is all you can use to frame and shoot your pictures as Sony has left out a viewfinder nd that takes getting use to. The less bright and the less use of this LCD screen means better battery life so conserving use is essential. Worth noting here is that caution needs to be used because the battery falls right out when changing it or changing a Memory Stick as Sony has no locking tabs for the battery.

The camera ships with the worst possible charger one could ask for with a charger the size of a brick. Plus cords for attachment and then a charging base as well! So the wonder of this cameras size is totally defeated by all the baggage you have to ship with it for use. Thankfully, Sony has made an 'optional' (more $$$) charger (the size of a cell phone charger) for $60.00. Buy it...

Battery life is superior considering the battery is about the size of a matchbook. With the LCD screen always 'on' we still pushed a full hours use from it but carrying another battery is essential so get ready for a few more dollars as batteries cost $60 each as well.

But wait! Still more money is needed... Sony's sub-standard Memory Stick (memory format for storage of your photos) is about as exciting as BETA (remember Beta vs. VHS?) and this camera requires that your older Memory Sticks be tossed away because they don't fit! Yes, you'll need Sony's new 'Memory Stick Duo Pro' sticks and a 512MB stick is another $300.00!!! And yes, this is a 5 megapixel camera so a 512MB stick is essential or you can opt for a 256MB stick for $124.00 but will need several.

What else is missing? No camera strap mounts but then again this is a pocket or purse camera and Sony does include a wrist strap and just one drop means this camera is done, over and history despite its nicely designed metal case so do use that strap. Also missing is a tripod mount but a timer is included in case you want to place that camera in a unique position on a table or somewhere else for that group or couple shot.

Sony has always had a superior menu system and the typical Sony toggle buttons are also evident again as well as direct buttons for quick changes for the cameras operation without having to go into the menu system. This camera feels solid with switches and controls just where they should be. The 2-inch LCD screen adds to easy navigation
of all menus as well.

Finally, in retrospect, you have a camera of 5 megapixels at $549.00. Plus another battery for $60.00 and another $60.00 for a charger. Plus at least $300 for a Memory Stick and with possible shipping and/or taxes, your Sony DSC-T1 comes to $1000.00 in reality... For a pocket camera with just a 3X optical, that's an expensive camera yet I defend its cost because its performance and design are exceptional and this small camera travels anyplace with such ease. Based on weight and size, there is no reason ever to not have this camera with you at all times. For travel, this makes packing even easier and that is our main reason for having bought this camera. Yes, it is 'cool' but it is also a performer and if size is essential, this is the best answer to those needs at this time. Yet if size isn't important, this is indeed the wrong camera for anyone considering Sony's DSC-T1 and better choices would be Canon's Digital Rebel SLR ($999) or Sony's newer 8 megapixel DSC-828 (also $999) as both of those cameras take the ever popular CF (compact flash) cards for memory of photos.

Sony's DSC-T1 is still very impressive despite a few drawbacks and worth its cost factor.