Sony Cyber-shot DSC-V1 Digital Camera [5MP 4xOptical] 

I did have a budget so some of the top end digital SLR's etc were beyond my reach and as I by no means a professional I am not seeking to earn the money back from my investment. I was drawn to the Canon G3 as it has received exceptional reviews from virtually every magazine and wesite that has touched it but then Sony caught my eye with this new offering. After many comparisons and reading about both of the cameras I decided that Sony were going to get my business, I admit that I was partially won over by the extra 1 Megapixles of image quality compared to the Canon.

I have now had the Sony DSC-V1 for three weeks and have taken several hundred images to get to grips with all the buttons and settings and cannot say how happy I am with it. There are enough functions and options to guarantee that you can get the correct exposure, focus and outcome aswell as the added bonus that the camera is more than capable of taking great images on its auto setting.

The quality of the photos are superb with colour balance and clarity perfect on virtually every image. (The camera also has auto and manual white balance settings to help.)

I really cannot recomend this camera enough and all of my friends who have seen it are equally impressed with the style of the machine and the pictures that it gives back. My other cameras are now collecting dust in the corner as this one is now so much more fun to use.

Good things.

Size/weight. Compared to the Canon/Olympus 5MP equivalents the Sony is significantly smaller. This makes it more likely to be stuffed into my rucsac on every trip.

Image quality. The resolution is backed up by good optics, dealing well with difficult high contrast subjects and varied situations. Performance seems consistent across the zoom range. I'd still pick my SLR when quality is paramount but it is getting close. Colour balance is excellent on Auto almost all the time.

Controllability. Lots of functions, many actually useful. Lots of choices of metering/focus/AE modes. Spot meter works especially well. Good screen information without being too fussy. Exposure compensation and bracketing functions simple to use.

Menus largely logical and easy to follow even if they lack the fancy icons of other makes.

Fast. Little shutter delay and quite quick from switch on to ready.

Less good things;

Screen a bit susceptible to glare, nice if it could be tilted as per the Olympus range (but would make it more bulky).

Some of the buttons a bit scattered and poorly labelled.

Shutter release action is very 'clicky'. Not smooth for low shutter speeds and takes getting used to.

Battery life 'adequate'. Screen at least gives fairly accurate indication of time left. Supplied memory stick too small. No case in the box-how tight is that!

Wide angle lacking without adapter. I would like range to go from 28mm.

In conclusion this is a serious camera that delivers punchy images in a very compact and mostly easy-to-use package. The Sony build quality is good and almost all the functions you'll need are available. Left on AUTO all the time it will cover most situations for the snapper but more creative photography is a real option if you want to use it to full potential.

The hand grip is small, but rather comfortable (maybe my hand is small), menu layout as clear as other sony cameras. A lot of short cut buttons made controls easier. Image quality if even better than what I expect - It is as good as Canon G5, which is much bigger in size and more expensive. Colour is natural (unlike previous sonys) with good tone and contrast. Hologram is exceptional useful in dark.

Reasons that I didn't give a 5 star - I expect a specific button for white balance like F717, instead of the current setting which the WB is burried in the menu. Battery life is a bit short (though not as short as I expect due to some other review on web) and bear in mind that sony accessories are expensive. Continous shooting is no good (only 3 frame at about 2fps). Also I do prefer RAW format instead of hugh TIFF files. However these are minor problems.

My SLR is now seating in my drawers, and I always keep my V1 in my pocket!