Review posted for Sony Cyber-shot DSC-M2
By
Mike Tomkins
(Sunday, April 30, 2006 - 19:36 EDT)
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-M2 is about as unique a digital camera as could be imagined.
It packs a 3x zoom lens and high-resolution five megapixel sensor into a reasonably compact body, and offers generally good image quality as well as movies that are much better than average. The interface has been improved from the original DSC-M1, but still has quirks that could be ironed out.
Just as important as the interface of any digital camera is its image quality. Here, while the M2 was sometimes a bit of a mixed bag (with occasionally inconsistent white balance and exposure metering), the Sony M2 takes photos that consumers will likely find appealing. Images were snappy, with buckets of saturation and contrast and mostly accurate color, coupled with good resolution.
We found significant evidence of heavy noise reduction blurring in hair at ISO 64 on the Sony M2, so be aware. Movies were better than average for a still camera, thanks both to the MPEG4 compression (which helps save space without drowning the clip in artifacts), and to the inclusion of a stereo microphone; something that's very rare on still cameras.
Sony's improved slideshow mode will make sharing images with family and friends more enjoyable, and the album mode is an excellent idea, ensuring you always have copies of your favorite images on hand to share on the camera's lovely LCD panel.
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-M2 shows clear potential; come read the review to see what we found after our full battery of tests.
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