Sony has today announced a new digital camera for the American market, the Cyber-shot DSC-P7. Featuring a 1/1.8" 3.2 megapixel CCD imager and a 3x optical zoom lens, the P7 follows the company's tradition of compact cameras that you can take anywhere with you - ensuring you don't experience the problem of a camera that gets left at home and misses the spontaneous photo you weren't expecting. Other features include 3-point autofocus, movie and "clip motion" functions, USB connectivity, Sony's long-life batteries and of course Memory Stick storage. Pricing and availability haven't been announced in the launch material we have; look for the official press release to follow shortly.

Courtesy of Sony, you can find highlights and full specifications below:

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P7 digital camera

FEATURES

• 1/1.8" 3.2 MegaPixel Effective Super HAD™ CCD, 3.3 MP Gross
  Super HAD (Hole Accumulation Diode) CCDs provide excellent image quality by allowing more light to pass to each pixel, increasing sensitivity and reducing noise.
• Ultra Compact Design
  Slim and sleek, the DSC-P7 is small enough to fit most any pocket or purse. Even so, its optimized proportions and well placed controls make it easy to use.
• 3X Optical/2X Digital/6X Total Zoom
  3X Optical zoom helps you frame your shots for better digital pictures. And Sony’s Precision Digital zoom provides an additional 2X magnification without the jagged edges of other designs, resulting in smoother images.
• 3 Area Multi-Point Auto Focus
  By evaluating 3 separate focus areas of the frame, Sony’s Multi-point AF system can intelligently focus on the subject and avoid focusing on the background.
• AF (Auto Focus) Illuminator
  Briefly illuminating the subject in low- or no-light conditions, AF Illuminator helps establish a positive focus lock.
• Multi-Pattern Measuring
  Independently light-metering 49 points of the frame, Multi-Pattern measuring establishes the optimum exposure value, even in scenes where highlight and shadow are not centered in the frame.
• Pre-Flash Metering
  With a momentary pre-flash, the camera illuminates the subject and calculates exposure through the lens directly from the CCD. Adjustable flash level and redeye reduction insure great flash shots.
• Memory Stick® Media
  Digital. Powerful. Transportable. Memory Stick media is compact, portable and rugged—connecting a variety of hardware and software applications.
• Scene Selection Mode
  With 3 Scene Modes, camera parameters can be matched to the shooting conditions. Twilight slows the shutter to as long as 2 seconds for available light, Twilight Portrait adds flash to illuminate foreground subjects, and Landscape optimizes distant focus.
• Slow Shutter Noise Reduction
  During long Twilight mode exposures, Slow Shutter NR captures the scene, and then the CCD noise pattern with a dark frame exposure. By subtracting the two, even long exposures can be clear.
• 14-Bit DXP A/D Conversion
  Sony's 14-bit Digital EXtended Processor captures and shadow with up to 16384 values, for extended dynamic contrast and detail.
• 1.5" LCD Monitor
  Monitors the scene for accurate framing. 123K pixel and anti-glare coating help provide excellent viewing and image playback clarity, even outdoors.
• Auto Bright Monitoring
  To help framing in low- or no-light situations, CCD gain is briefly increased to provide an extra bright display on the LCD viewfinder just before exposure.
• True Zoom Optical Viewfinder
  Provides accurate framing at eye level, great for added stability and following fast moving subjects.
• 3.2MP (2048 x 1536) Image Size
  With its high resolution CCD, the DSC-P7 captures in 4 different image sizes, with selectable Fine or Standard JPEG compression.
• Multi Burst Mode
  Captures 16 320 x 240 frames as part of a single 1280 x 960 image which plays back sequentially in the camera. Selectable 1/7.5 or 1/15 or 1/30 second frame intervals provide convenient motion analysis.
• MPEG Movie HQX Mode
  Captures full frame playback, high frame rate (16 frames per second) audio/video clips with length limited only by the capacity of the media. MPEG Movie Video Mail and Presentation modes capture smaller sizes suitable for email.
• Clip Motion Mode
  Capture up to 10 images and convert them to an animated GIF with 2 frames per second playback. By varying the interval between shots you can create animations not possible with other motion capture modes.
• Playback Zoom, Trim and Resize
  During playback, magnify any portion of the image up to 5x and trim to the area of your interest. Then, save the new image as a new file in any of the image sizes available from the menu.
• Rechargeable Infolithium® Battery
  Provides reliable, long-lasting power for continuous shooting, and avoids the “memory effect” common to other batteries. AC-LS1 adapter/charger provides stable power for USB download.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P7
SPECIFICATIONS
Imager	1/1.8" 3.2 MegaPixel Effective Super HAD™ CCD 3.3 MP Gross
Recording Media	Memory Stick® Media
Zoom	3X Optical/2X Digital/6X Total
Filter Diameter	N/A
Focal Length	8 - 24mm
35mm Equivalent	39 - 117mm
Aperture	f2.8 - 5.6
Focus	3 Area Multi-Point AF, 5 Step Manual Preset
Minimum Focus Distance	3.9" (10 cm) Macro Mode
Macro	Selectable
Shutter Speed	Auto, 1/30 – 1/2000 sec, Twilight 2 sec – 1/2000
Manual Exposure	±2.0 EV, 1/3 EV Steps
Color LCD	1.5" 123K Pixels Low Temperature Polysilicon TFT
Flash Modes	Auto / Forced On / Forced Off, Red-Eye Reduction On / Off
Flash Effective Range	1.3 – 12.5 ft (0.4 – 3.8m)
White Balance	Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Incandescent
Picture Effects	Black & White, Solarize, Sepia, Negative Art
ISO	Auto, 100, 200, 400
Scene Modes	Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Landscape
Self Timer	Yes, 10 seconds
Video Output	NTSC/PAL Selectable
Still Image Modes	JPEG (Fine), JPEG (Standard), Email
MPEG Movie Modes	MPEG HQX (320 x 240, 16 fps, Full Screen Playback) MPEG EX Presentation (320 x 240, 8 fps) MPEG EX Video Mail (160 x 112, 8 fps)
Clip Motion	Normal (160 x 120), Mobile (120 x 108)
Microphone/Speaker	Yes/Yes
USB Terminal	Yes
Supplied Software	Pixela® Image Mixer for Sony v1.0 USB Driver SPVD-008
OS Compatibility	Microsoft® Windows® 98 / 98SE / Me / 2000 Professional / XP Home / Pro, Macintosh® OS 8.5.1 / 8.6 / 9.0 / 9.1 / 9.2
Supplied Accessories	NP-FC10 InfoLithium® Rechargeable Battery, AC-LS1 AC Adapter / In-Camera Charger, A/V and USB cables, Wrist Strap, MSA-16A 16MB Memory Stick® Media; Software CD-ROM
Dimensions	4 1/2" x 2" x 1 7/16" (114 x 51.5 x 35.8mm)
Weight	7.5 oz (206g) (with Battery, Memory Stick Media, Strap)
ADDITIONAL FEATURES
MPEG1 Cue, Review and Divide
5 Mode White Balance
3:2 Aspect Ratio mode
Video Output (PAL/NTSC Selectable)
4 Mode In-Camera Picture Effects
5 Step Manual Preset Focus
OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES
LCS-CP2 Soft Carrying Case
LCM-PX Semi-Soft Carrying Case
NP-FC10 InfoLithium® Battery
ACC-CSP2 Starter Kit (LCS-CP2, NP-FC10, MSAC-A8)
BC-VC10 AC Dual Battery Quick Charger
MPK-P9 Marine Housing
MSA-16A, MSA-32A, MSA-64A, MSA-128A Memory Stick® Media
MSAC-HGA8 Memory Stick® Media Carrying Case
MSAC-PC2 Memory Stick® Media PC Card Adapter
MSAC-US1A Memory Stick® Media USB Adapter
MSAC-US5 Memory Stick® Media USB Adapter/Mouse
VCT-TK1 Miniature Tripod
VCT-R640 Tripod
HVL-FSL1 Slave Flash
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