Full-length Preview posted for Sony DSC-F828!
By
Dave Etchells
(Friday, August 15, 2003 - 07:04 EDT)
A couple of years back, Sony really rocked the digicam world when they introduced the DSC-F707, their original 5-megapixel camera.
The big sensor was noteworthy, although Minolta had just months before announced their 5-megapixel DiMAGE 7, but the F707 incorporated a range of unique, Sony-only technologies, including Hologram Autofocus and Night Framing and Night Shot exposure modes that let you literally shoot in total darkness.
This time around, Sony's not willing to let anyone steal the megapixel crown before them, and so are the first to announce a prosumer digicam with an 8(!) megapixel sensor. But the sensor resolution is just the tip of the figurative iceberg with the new DSC-F828, as myriad other features have been taken to the next level, and once again there's some new, Sony-only technology on display.
The F828 has a new Carl Zeiss "T*" 7x optical zoom lens, with an equivalent range from 28-200 mm, and fast f/2.0-2.8 maximum aperture. The new camera supports direct print via the new PictBridge standard, has a RAW format for the first time on a Sony camera, and is the first Sony digicam in a long while to support CompactFlash (Type II) memory cards. (It has a Memory Stick slot as well.) Sony has also cranked up the autofocus speed, giving the F828 the best shutter lag times I've seen yet in a prosumer digicam.
Perhaps the biggest news though, is that the F828 uses Sony's new "RGB+E" four-color CCD technology for superior color rendition and accuracy. The sample I have to work with is an early prototype, so color isn't final (and I'm not allowed to share any photos from it), but even at this early stage of development, the color quality from the camera looks very encouraging.
Full details are in my review, so check it out!
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