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Back to Full Sony Cyber-shot DSC-V1 Review
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Manufacturer Overview
Sony Electronics Inc. has long held a dominant position in the digicam marketplace, delivering a wide range of models that enjoy enormous popularity with consumers. Currently, they offer what's arguably the broadest line of digicams in the industry, with multiple models in several distinct product lines. Last year, they made waves with the DSC-F717, an impressive update to the F707 model. This year, Sony brings many of the ground breaking features offered by the F717 to a (much) more compact form factor, with the stylish new DSC-V1.

The new V1 model is boxy and compact, shaped like a familiar 35mm rangefinder models of years past. The V1's 5.0-megapixel CCD captures high resolution images, and its full complement of exposure modes provides as little or as much control as you might want. Looking at the "compact rangefinder" form factor, Sony decided that the market need a camera that size with both a 4x zoom lens and a 5-megapixel CCD, and the V1 was born, a compelling combination. But what's most impressive about the V1 is its inclusion of Sony's NightShot, NightFraming, and Hologram AF technologies, which greatly add to the camera's flexibility and usefulness in low-light shooting conditions. An expanded Scene exposure mode also now offers Snow and Beach settings, increasing preset options beyond the standard Twilight, Portrait, and Landscape offerings. Finally, the V1 also offers Sony's new "Smart Zoom" technology, for better image quality with digital zoom, as well as their new MPEGMovie VX format, allowing movie and sound recording at VGA quality, to the capacity of the memory card. Finally, the V1 features true Through-The-Lens (TTL) flash metering.

Taken as a package, the DSC-V1 offers one of the most compelling feature sets of any camera on the market, expanding the definition of what a true "enthusiast" camera can offer, while still maintaining a very competitive price and trim form factor. If they'll just take the time to look at it objectively, I think the V1 could really open the eyes of the enthusiast crowd, showing Sony's true capability as a camera company.

• 5.0-megapixel CCD delivering image resolutions as high as 2,560 x 1,920 pixels. (4.94 million effective pixels.)
• 1.5-inch color LCD monitor.
• Real-image optical viewfinder.
• Optional "live" histogram display in viewfinder.
• 4x optical zoom with up to 4x Smart Zoom.
• 7-28mm Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar lens.
• Auto and Manual focus option and adjustable AF area.
• Hologram AF assist light for low-light and low-contrast focusing.
• NightShot and NightFraming IR modes for "no light" framing and shooting.
• Adjustable apertures from f/2.8 to f/8, depending on zoom position.
• Full Auto, Program AE, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, and Manual exposure modes, plus six preset Scene modes.
• Shutter speeds from 1/1,000 to 30 seconds.
• Adjustable ISO with sensitivity equivalents of Auto, 100, 200, 400, and 800.
• White Balance setting with six presets and a manual setting.
• Multi-Pattern, Center-Weighted, and Spot metering options.
• Contrast, Sharpness, and Saturation adjustments.
• Built-in, pop-up flash with four operating modes.
• External flash hot shoe as well as proprietary connection socket.
• True Through-The-Lens flash metering.
• MPEGMovie VX mode with sound recording. (Full VGA-resolution movies, recording time limited only by memory card capacity.)
• "Burst 3," Auto Exposure Bracketing, E-Mail, Voice, and 10-second Self-Timer modes.
• Uncompressed TIFF, GIF, and JPEG image file formats (movies saved as MPEG).
• Image storage on Sony Memory Stick.
• DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) compatibility.
• Power from Sony NP-FC11 lithium-ion battery pack or AC adapter (included).
• AV Cable with NTSC and PAL format options
• USB cable and software CD for quick connection to a computer.
  
  

Executive Overview
Sony's Cyber-shot line of digicams includes a wide range of sizes and body styles, from the "lens-centric" design of the DSC-F717 to the slim, trim dimensions of the "Compact P" series. The newest addition to the Cyber-shot line, the DSC-V1, presents yet another design style, this time based on a more traditional 35mm rangefinder aesthetic. While the earlier S75 and S85 models arguably fit this mold as well, the boxy shape of the new V1 is much more reminiscent of the film-based rangefinders of yesteryear. The V1's rectangular shape and compact size will be comfortable and familiar for many newcomers to digital, and add to the camera's portability as well. While a little chubby for a standard shirt pocket, the V1 fits larger coat pockets and purses well, and the built-in protective lens shutter makes it easy and safe to simply slip it into a pocket as you're heading out the door. Best of all, the V1 offers a truly exceptional array of features, from full manual exposure control to a selection of preset Scene modes to Sony's unique NightShot technology.

The DSC-V1 is somewhat unique at this point in the market, being the first camera to combine a 5-megapixel CCD with a 4x optical zoom lens. (There are five-megapixel cameras with 3x zooms, and four-megapixel models with 4x zooms, but the V1 will be the first 5MP/4x design that's hit the shelves.) As with other high-end Sony digicams, the V1 features a high-quality, Carl Zeiss lens for capturing sharp details. The 4x, 7-28mm lens offers a maximum aperture of f/2.8 - f/4.0, depending on the zoom position. In addition to optical zoom, the V1 offers Sony's new "Smart Zoom" digital zooming technology, designed to preserve image quality when digitally enlarging images. (Smart Zoom avoids loss of image quality by limiting the digital zoom range to only that which can be achieved without interpolation, based on the currently selected resolution setting.) While Sony has coined the term "Smart Zoom" for this feature, the V1 is hardly the first camera to employ this approach. (This is how digital zoom works on many of Fuji's consumer digicams.) Still, I heartily support this approach to digital zoom, as it seems a little less deceptive, and in any event will avoid interpolation artifacts.) With Smart Zoom enabled, the V1 can digitally enlarge images up to 4x, depending on the resolution. (The highest digital magnification is only available at the camera's lowest, VGA resolution setting. Larger image sizes result in proportionately lower digital zoom ratios.) The V1 offers manual focus in 14 distance presets and an autofocus whose target can be widened or narrowed and moved around to five different positions within the frame. Focus mode options include Single, Continuous (continuously adjusts focus), and Monitor. (This last mode appears to be something between normal on-demand autofocus and fully continuous AF, "monitoring" the focus status to permit slightly faster shutter response, perhaps with less battery drain than full continuous AF.) There's also a Macro mode for shooting close-up subjects. A unique, Sony-only feature the V1 shares with the F717 that went before it is Hologram AF, which uses a laser diode and a holographic diffraction grating to produce a crosshatched autofocus-assist pattern of bright red lines on the subject. This projected pattern stays more or less "in focus" almost irrespective of subject distance, so there's always a sharp pattern for the camera to focus on. Hologram AF isn't just for low light. You'll see the pattern projected in fairly normal lighting when there's not enough contrast in the subject for the contrast-detection AF system to focus effectively.

Sony again included their trademark NightShot and NightFraming modes, which are infinitely useful in composing photos under low- (or no-) lighting situations. NightShot mode physically removes the infrared (IR) filter from the front of the CCD and projects IR beams from two small LEDs on the front of the camera. The resulting image is monochromatic, similar to the view through night vision goggles, but the camera can literally "see in the dark." NightFraming mode uses the same technique, allowing you to frame dark subjects using the IR beams, but once focus is determined, the camera replaces the IR filter and makes the exposure with normal flash.

For composing images, the V1 features both a real-image optical viewfinder and a 1.5-inch color LCD monitor on the back panel. A detailed information display on the LCD monitor reports battery power, Memory Stick capacity, flash status, focus mode, and the number of images taken, plus various exposure settings, such as aperture, shutter speed, exposure compensation, image size, and quality. The LCD display also features an optional histogram, viewable in all record modes as well as in Playback mode.

The V1 offers a full range of exposure modes, and a nice complement of creative options besides. Aperture is adjustable from f/2.8 to f/8, and shutter speeds range from 1/1,000 to 30 seconds. The Mode dial on top of the camera offers Manual, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Program AE, Full Auto, and Scene exposure modes. Aperture Priority lets you select the lens aperture, while the camera chooses the best shutter speed. Alternatively, Shutter Priority lets you select the shutter speed, while the camera determines the appropriate aperture. Program AE places the camera in control of both aperture and shutter speed, while you control the remaining exposure parameters, and Full Auto mode places the camera in charge of everything (except for resolution, flash, zoom, and Record mode). The Scene exposure mode provides six preset shooting modes -- Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Landscape, Portrait, Beach, and Snow -- designed to obtain the best exposure for specific shooting situations. New to the V1 is a variable-program capability, which means that the camera will determine the exposure, but you can choose from among different, equivalent combinations of aperture and shutter speed. - This accomplishes much the same thing as Aperture or Shutter Priority modes, but gives the camera more latitude in determining the correct exposure. (Very handy.)

Multi-Pattern, Center-Weighted, and Spot Metering options are available in all shooting modes except Full Auto, selectable via the Record menu. (A crosshair target appears in the center of the LCD monitor in Spot metering mode). White Balance options include: One Push (manual setting, using a white card), Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Incandescent, Flash, and Auto. Exposure Compensation is adjustable from -2 to +2 exposure values (EV) in one-third-step increments, and the camera's ISO value can be set to Auto or to 100, 200, 400, or 800 equivalents, increasing performance in low-light shooting situations. The V1's built-in flash features Auto, Red-Eye Reduction, Forced, and Suppressed operating modes, with a variable flash intensity adjustment and true TTL metering . As an added bonus, the V1 offers an external flash connection and hot shoe mount, which let you connect more powerful flash units (like the recently-announced Sony HVL-F32X) to the camera.

The V1 also provides an MPEG Movie VX mode with sound recording, which permits movies to be recorded at VGA resolution. A Clip Motion option, available through the Setup menu, works like an animation camera, allowing you to capture a series of up to 10 still images, which the camera records as an animated GIF file for sequential frame playback. Multi-Burst mode captures 16 images in rapid sequence and saves them as a single image, which plays back as a slow-motion sequence. A Picture Effects menu captures images in Solarized, Sepia, and Negative Art tones, and Sharpness, Contrast, and Saturation adjustments are also available.

The Record menu options include a TIFF mode for saving uncompressed images; a Voice mode for adding sound clips up to 40 seconds long to accompany captured images (great for "labeling" or annotating your shots); and an E-Mail mode that saves a 320 x 240-pixel image small enough to transmit by email in addition to your normal-sized image. An Exposure Bracketing mode captures three images at three different exposures, so you can choose the best overall exposure after the fact, while the Burst 3 mode captures three images in rapid succession with one press of the Shutter button (shot-to-shot frame rates vary with the pixel resolution and the amount of image information being recorded). Finally, there is a Normal setting for standard JPEG compressed images.

Images are stored as uncompressed TIFFs, JPEGs, MPEGs, or GIFs (depending on the Record mode) on Sony Memory Sticks, supporting the new Memory Stick Pro format. (Cards are currently available in capacities as large as 1GB.) The V1's expanded Memory Stick capabilities also let you create and manage individual image folders on one card. A video cable is also provided with the camera for connecting to a television set. (You can choose between NTSC or PAL video standards via the Setup menu.) For downloading images, a USB cable provides high-speed connection to PC or Macintosh computers. Software supplied with the V1 includes Pixela ImageMixer for Windows (98, 98SE, Me, 2000, XP) and Macintosh (OS 8.5-9.2) systems, as well as any necessary USB drivers for these operating systems.

The V1 uses an NP-FC11 InfoLITHIUM battery pack and comes with an AC adapter that doubles as a battery charger. I like the InfoLITHIUM batteries because they communicate with the camera, which in turn tells you how much operating time remains, via a small readout on the LCD screen. This is really valuable in avoiding lost shots because your batteries die unexpectedly. (I have to say though, that I'm less enthusiastic about the tiny InfoLITHIUM pack that the V1 uses: I'd have greatly preferred a larger pack, and a slightly larger camera as a result, in exchange for longer run times.)

Sony continues to impress me with their innovative camera designs and attention to the needs of the marketplace and feedback from current users. Thus far, they've had a hard time convincing the "enthusiast" crowd to take their cameras seriously, but the DSC-V1 could very well change that. It's a serious, no-excuses photographic instrument with more useful features than anything else currently on the market. Anyone looking for a full-capability "prosumer" digicam should definitely give the DSC-V1 serious consideration.

Design
Stepping out on the digicam scene with a new, boxy body style, the DSC-V1 resembles more traditional 35mm rangefinders in its looks. With its rectangular body, the V1 has a more angular appearance than its more streamlined Cyber-shot cousins. Still, the V1 is compact and portable, and maximizes its external real estate with a healthy number of external controls. Just about the right size for larger coat pockets and purses, the V1 is handy for travel and comes with an extra wide wrist strap.

The large lens barrel dominates the front panel of the V1. When powered on, the lens extends from the barrel five-eighths of an inch into its operating position. A shutter-like lens cover automatically slides open and closed, eliminating the need for a separate lens cap. Filter threads inside the lip of the lens barrel accommodate an adapter that makes available a range of Sony accessory lenses, which extend the camera's zoom capabilities at each end of its focal length range. Aside from the lens, the optical viewfinder window, microphone, and self-timer/IR LEDs are on the front of the camera. A finger grip protrudes from the camera front as well, providing a firm hold for your right hand as it grasps the camera.

The right panel of the V1 (as viewed from the rear) features only one of the eyelets used for attaching a neck or wrist strap. At the bottom of the right panel, the edge of the Memory Stick / battery compartment door is visible.

The V1's left panel features the other strap attachment eyelet, as well as the "ACC" Sony accessory connection jack, and the connector compartment. A hinged, rigid plastic door covers the connector compartment, where the USB, A/V Out, and DC In connector jacks are located.

The camera's top panel would be flat except for the protruding Mode dial, NightShot / NightFraming switch, and external flash hot shoe. A matte-silver Shutter button is located in the center of the Mode dial, and a small Power button sits just to the left. A small green LED to the left of the Mode dial and below the Power button indicates both the Power status and the Mode selection. The camera's pop-up flash closes flush with the top panel, and is automatically released depending on the flash mode you've chosen. (You have to manually close the flash, however.)

The remaining camera controls are located on the V1's rear panel, along with the LCD monitor and optical viewfinder eyepiece. Three LEDs are aligned along the left side of the eyepiece, and light or blink to indicate camera status (such as autofocus trouble, charging flash, memory card access, etc.) On the left side of the eyepiece are the AE Lock, Focus, and Exposure Compensation / Index buttons, just above the LCD monitor. A Zoom rocker button is in the top right corner. The Display button is beneath the lower right corner of the eyepiece, adjacent to the Command dial that adjusts several exposure settings. Below these is the Four Way Arrow pad and OK button, the arrow keys of which perform multiple functions. Finally, the Menu and Image Size / Erase buttons are at the bottom of the panel.

The bottom panel of the V1 is nice and flat, with an all-metal tripod mount just off-center, the camera's speaker, and the Memory Stick / battery compartment on the far right. A hinged, plastic door covers the compartment, and slides out before opening. One of my few complaints about the V1 is that the Memory Stick / battery compartment is too close to the tripod mount to allow quick changes without dismounting the camera. (I always notice this, given the amount of studio work I do, and find it particularly important with feature-laden cameras like this one.)

An obvious comparison to make with the DSC-V1 is Canon's very popular PowerShot G3. Since I happened to have a G3 on hand as I was writing this review, I thought readers would find the comparison photos above interesting. The V1 is clearly the smaller of the two by a good bit, a fact somewhat offset by the more flexible tilt/swivel LCD and longer battery life of the G3.

Viewfinder
The V1 offers both a real-image optical viewfinder and 1.5-inch, color LCD monitor. Three tiny LEDs line the left side of the optical viewfinder, and indicate the status of camera functions by blinking or lighting solid. For example, the middle LED lights green when focus is set, and the bottom blinks orange when the flash is charging. The top LED lights red to indicate that the camera is accessing the card, or that there is an error with the camera (an explanation of which appears on the LCD monitor).

The Display button on the back panel controls the LCD monitor's detailed information display, with a choice of full or partial readings in Record mode. The basic information display reports Flash mode, metering mode, exposure settings (aperture and shutter speed), and Focus mode. The detailed display also shows the remaining battery power and image quality and resolution. A third mode includes a live histogram display, which graphs the tonal distribution of the scene (useful in determining under- or overexposure before snapping the shot). You can also shut the display off entirely. An adjustable brightness function offers Dark, Normal, and Bright settings, and the Backlight setting is particularly helpful when shooting in bright, sunlit conditions.


In Playback mode, the histogram is also available, as well as an Index Display mode that shows as many as nine thumbnail images at a time. Pressing the Index button a second time displays exposure information about the selected thumbnail, including aperture, shutter speed, exposure compensation, ISO, metering mode, flash, and white balance (in two screens). The Zoom control on the rear panel controls the playback zoom, enlarging captured images as much as 5x.


The V1's LCD monitor offers NightShot and NightFraming modes, controlled by a switch on the camera's top panel. Both modes take advantage of the CCD's sensitivity to infrared (IR) light, which is normally filtered out because it tends to skew color rendering in bright sunlit scenes. Sony's NightShot technology uses a movable IR filter that lets the camera takes advantage of IR sensitivity in low-light situations while blocking it out at other times.

In NightShot mode, the camera flips the IR filter out of the way for both framing and exposure. Any natural IR light in the scene is augmented by two powerful infrared LEDs on the front of the camera, which project IR beams onto the subject. The built-in illuminator lamps let you shoot in total darkness, but the pictures you capture will be monochromatic, with the majority of light areas of the subject showing a green cast (as is typical with Night Vision goggles). Some colors will render as different shades of gray than they would in a normal black-and-white photo. This is because the reflectance of objects is often different in IR than in visible light, so a "dark" color in daylight may actually appear quite bright in IR. (Note that when shooting reflective surfaces close-up, you'll be able to see the glow of the camera's IR lamps in the center of the image.)

In NightFraming mode, the camera also flips the IR filter out of the way and turns on the illuminator lamps, but only while you're framing your shots. As soon as you half-press the Shutter button, the IR filter flips back down, and the camera takes a normal visible-light photo, using the built-in flash. This is particularly handy for nighttime flash shooting, when you couldn't otherwise see (or focus on) the subject.

Trimming
This isn't really a "Viewfinder" function, but I didn't know where else to mention it. Since it at least uses the LCD display, I figured I'd go ahead and talk about it here.

One of the best things most amateur photographers could do to improve their photos would be to simply crop them a little, cutting out distracting objects, and filling more of the frame with their primary subject. It turns out that virtually all Sony digicams let you do this right on the camera! (No computer required.) Zoom in on an image in playback mode, and use the Four Way Arrow pad to adjust the framing to your preference. Then hit the Menu button, and you'll see options labeled Return and Trimming. Select Trimming, and you'll see further options to select an image size. (Keep in mind that blowing the image back up to full size after cropping it down only softens the detail, since no detail is added to the photo.) Select a size option, and the camera will save the image as zoomed/cropped on the LCD display into a separate file on the Memory Stick. Very slick!

Optics

Exposure

ISO can be adjusted to 100, 200, 400, or 800 sensitivity equivalents, or set to Auto, letting the camera adjust it to match the shooting conditions. The V1's White Balance adjustment offers seven settings: Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Incandescent, Flash, and One-Push (manual). The One-Push reading is set by placing a white card in front of the lens and pressing the up arrow to set the reading. Through the Record menu, the V1 also lets you adjust sharpness, saturation, and contrast, offering low/normal/high options for each. (Kudos to Sony for including these features: Now, I'd like to see them go a step further, and offer both a wider range of adjustment and more/smaller steps for contrast and saturation. I've found fine-grained contrast and saturation adjustments on some other cameras highly useful in "customizing" the camera's basic response to suit my personal preferences.) A versatile Picture Effects menu offers three creative options: Negative Art, Sepia, and Solarize. Negative Art reverses the color and brightness of the image. Sepia translates the image into brown, monochromatic tones. The Solarize option is really more of a level-slicing or posterizing function, dividing the image into areas of fairly "flat" color. (It's not really a "solarization" effect as old-line film types would understand the term.) These effects are "live" in Record mode, so you get a preview of the effect on the LCD monitor before you record the image.

The Self-Timer mode is activated by pressing the Down arrow button on the Four Way Arrow pad. Once in Self-Timer mode, a full press of the Shutter button starts the timer, which counts down 10 seconds before firing the shutter. The camera beeps and flashes a front-panel LED to mark the countdown interval. After recording an image, the Quick Review function provides instant playback of the picture if you don't release the Shutter button. Pressing the left arrow button also activates the Quick Review mode, giving you the option of deleting the most recently recorded image.


Flash
The pop-up flash on the V1 operates in Auto (no icon displayed on LCD screen), Forced, Suppressed, and Slow Sync modes, with a Red-Eye Reduction mode enabled through the Setup menu. Auto mode lets the camera decide when to fire the flash, based on existing lighting conditions. Forced means that the flash always fires, regardless of light, and Suppressed simply means that the flash never fires. The Slow Sync setting combines the flash with a longer exposure, recording more ambient light to balance out light from the flash. Red-Eye Reduction mode tells the camera to fire a small pre-flash before firing the full flash to reduce the effect of red-eye. Once enabled through the Setup menu, the Red-Eye Reduction flash fires in both Auto and Forced modes. Flash intensity can be manually controlled via the Record menu with choices of High, Normal, and Low (except in Full Auto mode). If required, the flash pops up on its own once the Shutter button is halfway pressed in all flash modes except Suppressed. - But you have to snap it shut manually.

The V1 also features a true hot-shoe external flash connection on top of the camera. This greatly increases the options for connecting an external flash. Additionally, an ACC Sony accessory flash input socket is on the camera's left side, but is proprietary to the Sony HVL-F1000 external flash unit. (The new HVL-F32X flash unit is a much better match for the V1's capabilities though.)

All flash exposures -- whether from the built-in flash or a TTL-compatible external flash -- are metered through the V1's lens, providing true TTL metering. Sony's new HVL-F32X external flash unit, for example, is one external unit that takes advantage of the camera's TTL metering system. (Note that the earlier HVL-F1000 external flash unit does not provide TTL metering.) The addition of TTL metering (using the camera's pre-flash to precisely establish exposure) is particularly useful when the subject is significantly brighter or darker than its background and the lens is set to the telephoto end of its focal length range. TTL metering determines exposure from just the part of the subject that appears in the camera's field of view, ignoring foreground or background objects outside the frame. The F32X also does an excellent job of throttling down for macro shots, something many external flash units have difficulty doing.


New (optional) External Flash!
Astute readers will have noted the hot shoe atop the DSC-V1, and particularly its multiple contacts. This new shoe is set up to work with a brand-new external flash, announced by Sony at the same time as the V1. The HVL-F32X flash unit is an optional accessory for the DSC-V1, but should be on the short list of accessories to add for any photographers seriously interested in flash photography.

The new HVL-F32X flash has a host of new features relative to the earlier HVL-F1000, not the least of which is the support for true TTL (through the lens) flash metering when used with the DSC-V1. This is a huge benefit whenever you're taking telephoto shots of subjects that are significantly brighter or darker than the background. With a typical area-metered flash, the background will dominate the exposure, with the subject coming out either over- or underexposed, depending on whether the background was darker or lighter than it. With true TTL metering, only the part of the scene that's visible to the camera's CCD will affect the ultimate exposure. Also worth mentioning is that the F32X does an excellent job of throttling down for macro shots, something that many external flash units have difficulty doing.

Here's a list of features of the new HVL-F32X flash unit:

• Guide number of 32 meters - This is pretty powerful, translating to a range of 10 meters with an ~f/3.2 lens aperture.)
  
  
• Autofocus Assist Illuminator - A set of 6 bright LEDs under the flash head cast a surprising amount of light, greatly extending the range of the camera's low-light autofocusing ability.
  
  
• Two-brightness AF Illuminator - The AF illuminator has two brightness settings, letting you conserve battery power (not to mention your subject's eyesight) when working at closer range.
  
  
• Modelling light - This is a common feature on high-end professional flash units, but the first time we can recall seeing it on a prosumer-grade external flash. There's a button on the back of the F32X that triggers the flash head to deliver a very fast series of strobe pulses lasting about a half a second. The effect is to turn the F32X into a moderately bright modeling light, letting you preview how your flash setup will light the scene you're shooting.
  
  
• Manual flash strength setting - For use in conjunction with external "dumb" slave strobes, or for other situations requiring purely manual control, you can set the F32X to fire a single pop with each shot, and set the strength of its output manually.
  
  
• Backlit control readout LCD - A nice touch for a strobe, which by definition will generally be used in dim lighting conditions that would make it hard to read the control display otherwise.

I haven't worked extensively with the HVL-F32X yet, but first impressions (from a very rough prototype) were very good. The TTL capability worked great, and the powerful AF illuminator was great for photographing more distant subjects in total darkness. I don't yet have a projected selling price for the US, but if it's at all reasonable, I expect Sony to sell a lot of these. (For a little more detail on the unit, as well as a few more product photos, see our news article on it from the Spring 2003 PMA show.)


Special Recording Modes
Like many Sony digicams, the V1 offers a number of special recording modes, including TIFF, Voice, E-Mail, Exposure Bracketing, and Burst 3. The TIFF option saves a 2,560 x 1,920-pixel uncompressed TIFF version of each image, in addition to the standard JPEG version, at whatever image size you've selected. Voice mode lets you record a five-second sound clip to accompany a still image, with the audio recording starting immediately after the image capture. The E-Mail option records a still image at the 320 x 240-pixel JPEG size for easy e-mail transmission, again in addition to a full-resolution file, at whatever image size you've selected in the menu system. This lets you capture full-resolution images for storage and printing, while at the same time recording smaller versions that you can just drop into an e-mail to share with others. Exposure Bracketing captures three images with one press of the Shutter button (one at the normal exposure, one underexposed, and one overexposed). The variation between exposures is adjustable through the Setup menu, with options of 0.3, 0.7, and 1.0 EV steps. "Burst 3" mode captures a rapid series of three images, at approximately two frames per second. (The the number of images in the series may be limited by available Memory Stick space, and the actual frame rate may vary somewhat, depending on the resolution and quality settings.)

Movie Mode
The Movie mode is accessed by selecting the film frame icon on the Mode dial on top of the camera. You can record moving images with sound at either 640 x 480 (VGA) or 160 x 112 (Mail) pixels. Sony's new MPEGMovie VX mode lets you record full VGA resolution movies for as long as the Memory Stick has space. (The amount of available recording time varies with the quality setting and resolution.) Recording begins with a single press of the Shutter button, and ends with a second press. A timer appears in the LCD monitor to let you know how long you've been recording and approximately how much recording time is available.

The V1 also provides limited movie editing capabilities right in the camera. While most digicam users don't expect to find full A/B roll video editing in their cameras, I've often wanted to trim off material from the beginning or end of a video I've recorded, or extract an interesting bit of action from the middle of a much longer clip. The V1 let you do just that via the Divide option on the Playback menu. As its name suggests, Divide works by splitting movies into two segments. Do this once to trim away spurious material at the front of the clip you're interested in, and do it a second time to remove unwanted footage at the end. Once you've split the movie into parts like this, you can throw away the segments you don't need.

After enabling the Divide function through the Playback menu, the V1 starts to play the movie. You simply press the OK button on the Four Way Arrow pad to stop the playback where you want to make an edit. From there, you can scroll backward or forward frame-by-frame until you find the point where you'd like to divide the movie. You can then either delete the unwanted portion of the movie or keep it on the Memory Stick. As noted, the Divide function is great for "editing" the part of a movie file you want to save, given that you can make an unlimited number of divides. You just can't put the pieces back together again in the camera. For that, you'll have to use MPEG editing software on a computer.


Clip Motion
Through the Setup menu, you can set the movie recording format to "Clip Motion," which turns the V1 into an animation camera, recording up to 10 frames of still images to be played back in succession as an animated GIF. Frames can be captured at any interval, with successive actuations of the Shutter button. When you've captured as many photos as you need, you just press the center of the Four Way Arrow pad to tell the camera to finish the sequence by assembling the images into a single animate GIF file. Available image sizes are Normal (160 x 120 pixels) and Mobile (120 x 108 pixels). The number of captured frames may vary with image size and available Memory Stick space. (You have a maximum of 10, but could be constrained to fewer if your memory is nearly full.) Files are saved in the GIF format, and are played back with approximately 0.5-second intervals between frames. Unlike Movie mode, the flash is available with Clip Motion.


Multi-Burst
Also accessed through the Movie option under the Setup menu, the V1 features a Multi-Burst mode, which captures a very rapid burst of 16 images arranged in rows and columns in a single file. Once captured, the images may be played back in sequence on the camera. Because image capture is so fast, the effect is of a slow-motion sequence. Three frame interval rates are available through the Record menu, 1/7.5, 1/15, and 1/30.

Shutter Lag/Cycle Times
When you press the shutter release on a digital camera, there's usually a lag or delay before the shutter actually fires. This represents the time required for the autofocus and autoexposure mechanisms to do their work and can amount to a significant delay in some situations. Since this number is rarely reported by manufacturers or reviewers, and can significantly affect the picture-taking experience, I routinely measure these times with a proprietary electronic test system I designed and built for the purpose. (Timing is crystal-controlled, and accurate to 1/1000 of a second.) Here are the times I measured for the DSC-V1:

NOTE: My qualitative characterizations of camera performance below (that is, "reasonably fast," "about average," etc.) are meant to be relative to other cameras of similar price and general capabilities. Thus, the same shutter lag that's "very fast" for a low-end consumer camera might be characterized as "quite slow" if I encountered it on a professional model. The comments are also intended as only a quick reference: If performance specs are critical for you, rely on the absolute numbers to compare cameras, rather than my purely qualitative comments.

Operation and User Interface
The V1's user interface is similar to previous Cyber-shot designs, most closely resembling the control structure of the DSC-F717, with a range of multi-functional external controls and an on-screen LCD menu overlay. I always appreciate having as much external control as possible, as it saves having to scroll through menu items for common settings, and the V1 definitely provides that. The Mode dial on top of the camera controls the main exposure mode, while things like Flash mode, Macro mode, Exposure Compensation, etc. are all controlled via small buttons on the rear panel. The Command dial, located on the right side of the rear panel, lets you quickly adjust aperture and/or shutter speed without accessing a menu system. Overall camera operation is smooth and efficient, with an easy-to-navigate LCD menu system and a user interface that doesn't require a long learning curve. You may spend a few minutes reading through the manual, but once you get the hang of things, the user interface is quite intuitive.


Control Enumeration


Shutter Button: Located on the right side of the top panel, in the center of the Mode dial, this button sets focus and exposure when pressed halfway. Fully depressing the button fires the shutter. When the Self-timer is enabled, fully depressing the Shutter button begins a 10-second countdown before the shutter fires.

Camera Modes and Menus

• Metering Mode: Sets the exposure metering mode to Multi, Center, or Spot.
• White Balance: Adjusts the color balance for specific lighting. Options are Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Incandescent, Flash, and One-Push (manual setting).
• ISO: Sets the camera's light sensitivity to Auto or 100, 200, 400, or 800 ISO equivalents. (Not available in Scene mode.)
• Scene: (Scene mode only.) Determines the preset shooting scene. Choices are Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Landscape, Portrait, Snow, and Beach.
• Picture Quality: Changes the JPEG compression level to Fine or Standard.
• Record Mode: Enables the V1's special recording modes. Choices are TIFF, Voice, E-Mail, Exposure Bracketing, Burst 3, and Normal. (See the earlier portions of this review for descriptions of these options.)
• Flash Level: Adjusts the flash brightness to High, Normal, or Low.
• Picture Effect: Accesses the V1's creative effects menu, with options for Solarize, Sepia, and Negative Art.
• Sharpness: Adjusts the overall image sharpness with settings of Plus, Normal and Minus.
• Saturation: Lets you increase or decrease the level of saturation with settings of Plus, Normal and Minus.
• Contrast: Controls the level of contrast with settings of Plus, Normal and Minus.
  

Movie Mode Menu: The following limited menu is available:

• Metering Mode: Sets exposure metering to Multi, Center, or Spot modes.
• White Balance: Adjusts the color balance for specific lighting. Options are Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Incandescent, Flash, and One-Push (manual setting).
• Flash Level: (Clip Motion mode only.) Adjusts the flash brightness to High, Normal, or Low.
• Interval: (Multi-Burst mode only.) Sets the interval between successive frames in the Multi-Burst sequence. Options are 1/7.5, 1/15, and 1/30 second. (That is, available frame rates are 7.5, 15, or 30 frames/second.)
• Picture Quality: (Multi-Burst mode only.) Changes the JPEG compression level to Fine or Standard.
• Picture Effect: Accesses the V1's creative effects menu, with options for Solarize, Sepia, and Negative Art.
  

Playback Mode: Indicated on the Mode dial with the traditional green arrow Playback symbol, this mode allows you to scroll through captured images on the Memory Stick. Images can be deleted, protected, copied, resized, rotated, or set up for printing on DPOF devices. Movie files and Clip Motion animations can also be played back. Pressing the Menu button displays the following options:

• Folder: Selects which folder is to be used for playback, and displays the number of files, creation date, and folder name for each.
• Protect: Write-protects the current image, preventing it from being erased or manipulated in any way (except from card formatting). Also removes protection. A set of arrows appears on the LCD display, letting you scroll through captured images and mark others for protection as well.
• Print: Marks the current image for printing on a DPOF device, or removes the print mark. Like the Protect option, lets you scroll through other images on the card.(Only works for still images.)
• Slide: Activates an automated slide show of captured images. You can set the frame interval and whether or not the show repeats. (An interesting note: Slide shows will play back movie files stored on the memory card too, so you can mix movies with still images in a slide show.)
• Resize: Resizes the currently displayed image, with all resolution settings available.(Only works with still images.)
• Rotate: Rotates the currently displayed image 90 degrees clockwise or counterclockwise. (Only works with still images.)
• Divide: Activates the in-camera movie editing function. (Only works with MPEG movie files.)
  

Setup Mode: This mode lets you change a variety of camera settings. The Setup menu is displayed immediately upon entering the mode. Five separate screens of options are available, selected via a tabbed interface running down the left hand side of the screen.

• Camera 1:
  
  • Moving Image: Sets the type of file that will be recorded in Movie mode. Options are MPEG movies, Clip Motion animations, or Multi Burst sequences.
  • AF Mode: Choices are Single, Monitor, and Continuous.
  • Smart Zoom: Enables or disables the Smart Zoom digital zoom.
  • Date / Time: Determines whether the Day and Time or Date is overlaid on the image.
  • Red-Eye Reduction: Enables or disables the Red-Eye Reduction flash mode.
  • Hologram AF: Enables or disables the Hologram AF system.
    
    
• Camera 2:
  
  • Bracket Step: Determines the amount of exposure variation in an Exposure Bracketing series. Choices are +/- 0.3, 0.7, or 1.0 EV steps.
  • Hot Shoe: Turns the external flash hot shoe connection on or off.
  • Zoom Lever: Determines the direction of operation for the Zoom lever, whether wide angle is up and telephoto is down, or vice versa.
    
    
• Memory Stick Tool:
  
  • Format: Formats the Memory Stick, erasing all files (even "protected" ones).
  • File Number: Determines whether the V1 continuously numbers files from one Memory Stick to the next, or resets numbering with each new Memory Stick.
  • Create Record Folder: Creates a new folder for recording images. (The camera assigns the name to the folder although.)
  • Change Record Folder: Selects the folder for recording images. (The display for choosing the active folder is quite useful, showing the folder name, the number of files it currently contains, and the date and time it was created.)
    
    
• Setup 1:
  
  • Power Save: Turns the automatic power save function on or off.
  • LCD Brightness: Controls the brightness of the LCD display. Options are Bright, Normal, and Dark.
  • LCD Backlight: Controls the backlight for the main LCD, options are Bright, Normal, and Dark. (This option only appears when the camera is running from battery power. Connecting the AC adapter automatically sets the brightness to "Bright," and removes this option from the menu.)
  • Beep: Turns the camera's beep sounds on or off. The "Shutter" option enables only the shutter release sound.
  • Language: Selects either French or English as the menu language.
  • Clock Set: Sets the camera's internal clock and calendar.
    
    
• Setup 2:
  
  • USB Connect: Sets the USB connection type to PTP or Normal. (PTP requires no host driver software, and is supported by Windows XP and Mac OS X.)
  • Video Out: Sets the A/V Out signal timing as either NTSC or PAL.
    

Image Storage and Interface
The V1 uses the proprietary Sony Memory Stick format for image storage. I'm not sure what size Memory Stick will actually ship with the camera, given the prototype status of my evaluation model. Memory Sticks are currently available up to 1GB, and I would advise picking up at least a 32 or 64-megabyte card, given the high resolution of the DSC-V1. Individual images can be write-protected from accidental erasure (except through card formatting) via the Protect option under the Playback settings menu. Individual write-protection also prevents the image from being rotated, but does permit resizing and trimming, since those operations don't disturb the original image, but rather make a new copy. The entire Memory Stick can be write-protected by sliding the lock switch on the stick into the locked position, which also guards against the stick being reformatted.

The V1 lets you set up individual folders on the Memory Stick, so you can manage images by folder and choose where images will be recorded. This could be handy if you wanted to organize your photos by events, date, etc.

The LCD monitor reports storage information in the detailed information display, including the current number of images captured, how many additional images can be stored (based on current image resolution and quality settings), while a small graphic shows you approximately how much space is left on the Memory Stick. (In Movie mode, the camera reports the available recording time remaining.) Through the Setup menu, you can designate whether the camera numbers each image sequentially (from one Memory Stick to the next), or restarts file numbering with each new Memory Stick inserted. The Playback menu offers a Resize option, as well as a Rotate tool. The camera's Digital Print Option Format (DPOF) compatibility allows you to mark specific images for printing on a DPOF-compatible printer. Through the Setup menu, you can decide whether or not to print the date and / or time on the image as well.

Image Size options include 2,560 x 1,920; 2,560 (3:2); 2,048 x 1,536; 1,280 x 960; 640 x 480; and 320 x 240 pixels (E-Mail recording option). Movie file sizes are 640 x 480 and 160 x 112 pixels for MPEG Movies. In addition to the uncompressed TIFF file format, the V1 offers both Fine and Standard JPEG compression levels, and a GIF option for the Clip Motion recording mode.

The table below shows the approximate still image capacities and compression ratios for a 32MB Memory Stick (main resolution options):

A USB cable accompanies the camera for quick connection to a PC or Macintosh computer, as well as a software CD containing interface software and USB drivers. Thanks in part to its USB 2.0 computer interface, the DSC-V1 is capable of very fast downloads. I clocked it at 1369 KB/second on my Sony VAIO desktop machine, which has a 2.4 GHz Pentium IV CPU running Windows XP. (This high a download speed is dependent on having a computer with a USB 2.0 connection. Computers with older USB version 1.1 connections will probably see download speeds closer to 600 KB/second.)

Video Out
The V1 comes equipped with an Audio / Video cable for connection to a television set. (Through the Setup menu, you can select NTSC signal format for U.S. and Japanese systems and PAL for European systems.) Once connected to the TV, you can review images and movies or record them to videotape. Viewfinder displays are also visible via the video output, letting you use a video monitor as an extra-large "remote viewfinder."


Power
The V1 is powered by an NP-FC11 InfoLITHIUM battery pack and comes with an AC adapter which doubles as an in-camera battery charger. InfoLITHIUM battery packs contain a chip that exchanges information with the camera, allowing the camera to report approximately how many minutes of battery life are left at the current drain level. This information is displayed on the LCD monitor and the electronic viewfinder with a small battery graphic. The AC adapter plugs into a small socket on the camera's left side. It can run the camera without a battery inserted, or charge the battery when the camera isn't in use.

The Li-Ion battery packs used in Sony cameras prevent me from making my usual direct power measurements, but the good news is that the InfoLITHIUM system reports projected camera runtime while the battery is being used in the camera. Despite the excellent feedback provided by the InfoLITHIUM system, I still recommend you purchase and pack along a second battery, though. (Another advantage of the Li-Ion technology used in the InfoLITHIUM batteries is that they don't "self-discharge" like conventional NiMH rechargeable cells do, and so can hold their charge for months on the shelf or in your camera bag.)

Included Software
Like most Sony Cyber-shot digicams these days, the V1 comes packaged with a CD-ROM containing Pixela ImageMixer software and USB drivers. Pixela ImageMixer is compatible with both Windows and Macintosh platforms, and offers minor image editing tools.

In the Box
Production models of the V1 will ship in the US with the following items:

• Wrist strap
• 32 MB Memory Stick
• NP-FC11 InfoLITHIUM battery pack
• AC adapter
• AV Cable
• USB cable
• Software CD
• User Guide and registration information

Test Results

While my original "First Look" review of the V1 was based on a late-model prototype, I've now had the opportunity to test a production model of the V1. You'll find sample photos shot with it on the sample pictures page, but here's a condensed synopsis of my findings:

• Color: The production model of the V1 showed good color. It showed good, appropriate saturation with most colors, neither over- nor under-saturated. The one exception was that it tended to get a little carried away with bright greens, rendering them over-bright, and somewhat yellowish. Its auto white balance system also did very well, handling even the very difficult warm-toned lighting of my indoor portrait shot with only a little too much color cast left in the image. (Manual white balance did a bit better on that shot.) The bottom line was color that was a good cut above average, but that I didn't feel quite rose to the standard set by the earlier F717.
  
  
• Exposure: For some reason, the V1's metering system had a tendency to underexpose my studio shots. Thus, I typically shot with a +0.3 EV exposure compensation boost to get properly-exposed images. On the very high-key outdoor portrait shot though, it was noticeably more accurate than most cameras, requiring only +0.3 EV to expose properly there. (Most cameras need 0.7 to 1.0 EV of boost on that shot.) As I observed on the prototype, the V1's default tone curve is a little contrasty, resulting in a loss of detail in the highlights of harshly-lit subjects. (It lost a fair bit of detail in Marti's shirt in the outdoor portrait shot, although its low contrast option helped somewhat.) Overall, the V1's exposure and tonal rendition was good compared to the general run of five megapixel digicams, but I didn't think that it rose to the level of the F717.
  
  
• Resolution/Sharpness: The V1 performed very well on the "laboratory" resolution test chart. It didn't start showing artifacts in the test patterns until about 800 lines per picture height, in both horizontal and vertical directions, but they were very subtle at that point. I found "strong detail" out to at least 1,300 lines horizontally, 1,250 vertically. "Extinction" of the target patterns didn't occur until about 1,700 lines. A really impressive performance.
  
  
• Closeups: The V1 turned in about an average performance in the macro category, capturing an average-sized minimum area of 4.45 x 3.34 inches (113 x 85 millimeters). Resolution was very high, with strong detail in the dollar bill, coins, and brooch. Details were also quite sharp, with only slight softness in the corners. Color was good from the Auto white balance setting, and exposure was about right. The V1's flash almost throttled down for the macro area, though there was a hot spot in the top center of the frame, and a slight shadow in the bottom two corners.
  
  
• Night Shots: The V1 turned in a really excellent low-light performance, with low noise, and accurate framing and focusing in total darkness. For low light work, the V1's full manual exposure control and maximum exposure time of 30 seconds are its basic strengths, but the infrared-based Night Framing and Hologram Autofocus options are the icing on the cake. These two features permit accurate focusing and framing, even in zero light environments. The V1 produced clear, bright, usable images down to the 1/16 foot-candle (0.67 lux) limit of my test, with good color at all four ISO settings. The V1's Noise Reduction system did a great job of controlling image noise as well. Even at ISO 800, noise was low compared to many other digicams. Color was good for the most part, although at the 1/8 foot-candle (1.3 lux) light level, the color balance shifted blue at all four ISO settings, returning to a warmer cast at the 1/16 foot-candle light level. Color balance is often very hard for cameras to hold in extreme low light conditions though, so not many points off for the V1's minor bobble there. All in all, an exceptional low light performer.
  
  
• Viewfinder Accuracy: The optical viewfinder's accuracy varied quite a lot as a function of zoom position, from 79% frame coverage at wide angle to 86% at telephoto. 86% is a bit better than average, but I really dislike a viewfinder whose performance varies as you zoom the lens. - This makes it too hard to tell what's going on, makes it difficult to mentally compensate for it. Happily, the LCD VF was dead-accurate.
  
  
• Optical Distortion: Optical distortion on the V1 was about average at the wide-angle end, where I measured approximately 0.8 percent barrel distortion. The telephoto end fared a little better, as I measured 0.35 percent pincushion distortion there. Both numbers are within the average range among cameras I've tested, although the pincushion value pushes the envelope a little. - But then, most digicams with lower pincushion distortion also have a shorter 3x optical zoom ratio. Chromatic aberration seemed a little higher than average to me, with fairly bright coloration on either side of the resolution target lines. (This distortion is visible as a very slight colored fringe around the objects at the edges of the field of view on the resolution target.) The images were unusually sharp from corner to corner though, with only a little softening in the extreme corners at maximum telephoto, and the aforementioned chromatic aberration at wide angle. - Overall, corner to corner sharpness was much better than average.
  
  
• Battery Life: Battery life was OK, but not fantastic, with a worst-case run time of only 84 minutes. (In capture mode with the LCD running.) Sony trimmed the battery size to squeeze things into the V1's small form factor, losing battery capacity in the process. As always, I highly recommend buying a second battery at the same time as the camera.

Conclusion

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Having now had a chance to evaluate a production-model V1, I can at last comment on its performance and image quality. Overall, the DSC-V1 is a powerful package of photographic capability in a small container, with excellent creative controls and a unique range of Sony-only features like Night Shot/Framing and Hologram Autofocus. Its image quality is very good, but I felt that it fell just a little short of that offered by the earlier DSC-F717, that model offering better color accuracy and dynamic range. Not to denigrate the V1 by any means though, as it's a very capable camera, with very good image quality - It's just that I feel that the F717 is a bit better. Of course, the F717 is quite a lot larger and more cumbersome, and a good bit more expensive as well. If you want the unique features of the F717, but can't afford either its price or its physical bulk, the DSC-V1 would make a very worthy stand-in. If you're sitting on the fence between the two models, I encourage you to examine the sample photos I've posted from both models, to see which you prefer. At the end of the day, Sony has two very capable digicams, both of which are worth a serious look if you're shopping in the high end of the consumer marketplace.

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