Customer Reviews

Sony Alpha A230L Digital SLR Camera With 18-55 mm Lens

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is Sony's entry level DSLR and whilst well specified, it does not have the Live view or the tilt screen of the A330/A380, in all other respects it is the same camera....which is a good thing

For me, and I have tried the A230, the A330 and the A380, the choice is between the two 10MP cameras (the 230 and the 330), I would forget the 380 with its 14.2mp sensor...the 10mp version as used in this camera gives cleaner, more punchy results, and its cheaper too

So, great things about this camera...smaller and lighter than the camera that it replaces, better user interface which will have you snapping away in no time....there is really nothing bad to say about this DSLR only that you may want to handle one first as some people say the grip is too small....I personally think its just fine, and I have big hands.

Sony have really established themselves in this market now, and there is really no longer any reason to choose a Canon or a Nikon over this camera, Sony Alpha DSLR's are here to stay, and Sony now have a really decent system on the market which is getting more and more established as time passes...no-one dismisses the Sony Alpha cameras anymore...they are excellent, so any lenses and accessories that you buy will transfer to future Alpha cameras

Just a definition of live view if you are unsure.....on a compact camera, you can see the image on the screen before you press the shutter button....on this camera you cant do that, you need to use the viewfinder at all times...thats all OK if that is what you are expecting, if you want that feature on this camera (many people are not bothered)...then you need the slightly more expensive A330....and as I say...forget the A380

So to sum up...good reliable entry level Sony Alpha which takes great photographs which are at least as good as any other 10MP DSLR on the market (Sony supply the image sensors to other manufacturers anyway...so the image quality is the same), its fast, lightweight, has a decent kit lens and it is nice to use, the handgrip has been criticised but in my opinion its fine, and last of all, the price is very competitive....you cant go wrong really

I give it a Recommended

The Sony A230 is as good an introduction to using an SLR as I could have hoped for. Making the leap from a dodgy compact to a full blown SLR is quite a big step and I was slightly nervous about learning the ropes, but the a230 is totally intuitive and has a brilliant graphic display.

Within two or three days of use I am already playing around with the advanced features and am taking shots of a quality I never thought I would be capable of.

Note: the a230 does not have the tilting screen or live view - the photo and manufacturer's description refers to the other models in the new Sony Alpha range.

Recived this camera today & have just had a chance to test it out. It gives excellent results, pictures are sharp & clear & the viewfinder is bright & easy to use. The menu system on this camera is also excellent, very easy to use, well layed out & there is an onboard help system that explains each setting in detail as you highlight it.

The camera itself is quite small & light & has fewer buttons than most DSLRs in this class (although still keeps all the functionality), this can only be a good thing as it makes it easy to remember where everything is located for when you want to change a setting while taking a shot.

There are a few things that stop the camera from getting 5 stars though, mainly that there was no lens hood included, you have to take the battery out of the camera to charge it & the lens cap doesn't have a tie hole on it (so very easy to drop or misplace). I know these are really only little things but there little things that you just expect to be included when spending £450..

overall though a very good little camera, I can't fault the design & like I said above it produces very nice crisp shots.

First and foremost I love this camera. I had never owned a digital SLR before so I was therefore looking across the market. I looked at the Canon EOS450D & Canon 1000D models. These cameras looked really good but £450 for the Canon EOS450D was a lot of money when buying a SLR camera for the very first time. I therefore decided to purchase the Sony Alpha A230L. It's very similar to the Canon 1000D model but the Sony A230 has IS (Image Stabilising) built into the camera rather than into the lenses. Meaning that if you wanted to, you can buy a non IS lens with the Sony A230 as the IS is built into the camera. The purchase I made on this camera was one of the best purchases ever! It's amazing. The quality of the pictures is un-real. I've been taking photos of my pets recently & they look great. I can't wait to show the pictures off to my family & friends. So, if you're like me and buying a SLR camera for the first time... you won't be disappointed with the Sony A230!

Bought this as a Christmas present - so far, am 100% satisfied with the purchase. Not knowing anything about SLRs, I've found the options on this to be very useful. Apart from manually adjusting all the aperture and focal settings, camera has a series of preset options useful for landscape, night, portrait, sunset etc. which is good for getting a feel for what the camera can do.
Only 4 stars because the standard 18-55 lens doesnt really do anything spectacular - to really use the camera properly, you need at least one more lens.
Overall, delighted with the purchase and looking forward to many hours of happy snapping :)

Just a quick review - The sony A230 is a great camera, its relatively small and light for a DSLR and it is very user friendly. If you set all the features to auto anyone could use it. But of course it does have the versatility of a professional DSLR in it's various modes notably the manual mode - probably not a camera for someone who already owns a DSLR. Good build quality.

Downsides - there is no live view or video mode this camera is purely designed to take good pictures.

If you want a DSLR and you're moving on from a compact this camera is perfect. The kit lens it comes with delivers good clean pictures, you can use an SD card or an SDHC or Sonys own memory stick. It has a HDMI mini output and the normal USB etc.

If you are thinking of getting one I would recommend a case, an LCD protector, a lens cloth and brush for the body. Depending on how careful you are it might be worth getting a filter and lens hood for the lens.

All in all though, for the price another great piece of kit from Sony.

This is my first DSLR, and I have to say that I am really impressed by it. I chose it after reading many articles on photography and various camera reviews. It is a great camera to beginners, very simple to use. The screen is very intuitive and makes it very easy to use.
Let me point out some pros and cons:

PROs
1. 10 Megapixels is more than enough to have high quality pictures;
2. It is very light, which makes it more comfortable to handle;
3. Controls are very accessible (on the upper left side), and with some practice you can change settings very quickly, for unexpected moments that requires you to set a different mode or exposure;
4. The software is very simple and practical. Correcting brightness, contrast and colors is very easy. You MUST shoot RAW! If you are just beginning in this field, it is imperative that you shoot RAW images and use the software to learn how your pictures can be improved by using different exposures and other settings, such as White Balance;
5. The price is fantastic. Clearly the best cost-benefit for DSLRs currently in the market.

CONs
1. The grip for the right hand is indeed a bit uncomfortable (if your are used to bigger grips commonly found in other cameras). But if this is your first camera, it would not be an issue. I am already used to it.
2. Battery runs off quickly if you use a lot of flash. First time I used it, it ran off after less than 200 photos. Then I tried taking pictures without the flash (with better sunlight, night shots, or exploiting more the shadows), and it went around 500 photos; (having more than 1 battery is a MUST, even with more efficient cameras, so in the end, it matters very little)
3. No live-view. But let's face it, if you own a DSLR, you should use the viewfinder. LCD screens don't provide the accuracy of the viewfinder, and using the viewfinder forces you to pay total attention to the shot, its focus and framing.

Having other lenses makes the experience even better (a macro, a wide angle, a zoom...) Perhaps it is useful to take a look at pictures taken with the A230 on appropriate websites.
It is a great camera, and I recommend it to beginners like myself.

This is my first purchase for a dslr, the build quality is excellent, the controls are well laid out, extremely user friendly, picture quality is great.
If I had to rate this dslr It would 5 out of 5.

The Sony Alpha A230 is such a good DSLR for so many reasons.

If you need a camera that takes extremely sharp and vivid photographs, that is also easy to handle then this is your camera! You will find the process of manual photography so much easier with it on board help system, this helps you understand what each setting does and what it does to your picture.

The lens (18-55mm) is perfectly suitable for a beginner or even a professional, it has reasonable zoom capabilities and also very strong focus. Using the DSLR and its features will enable you to create your own personal photographs and not just holiday snap quality, actually using the focus and zoom correctly for the environment you are in, this will make your pictures look a whole new world better and will show more talent in your work. This is why I would recommend this camera to someone who is maybe starting an A level photography course of some sort.

Looking more at the settings now, lets say you're not that into photography at this point and are still learning the ropes, in which case you can use a number of settings to achieve amazing pictures by doing nothing complicating, such as (Auto) this is a common setting which is on pretty much every camera (Apart from SLR's) and is used so that the camera does everything for you, E.g. setting up the armature and ISO, also focus and shutter speed. (There will only be auto focus if you set your camera to AF not MF)

There are also other settings which are more relevant to where you might be such as: Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Sports Action, Sunset, and Night Port./View. Also there are settings named as "P", "A", "S", and "M" these are for more manual settings where you might like to keep a particular setting (For more experienced photographers)

One of the more fun features is the choice of colour scheme (Theme) of the camera, pick from black, pink, white and light brown. Also being able to save your pictures to a Sony Pro Duo memory stick or an SD card, and be able to choose where they are saved)

Another thing people like to know is how heavy a camera is, and honestly this is not very heavy, easy to carry around or keep around your neck with the provided Sony Alpha strap.

I can promise you this is a very good camera which allows the owner to create amazingly sharp and vivid photos as soon as they get it out of the box!

Hope this helps.

Bought this, my first DSLR, for a digital photography class I am doing. Good value entry level digital SLR. Has everything necessary for beginners and good value for money. I have produced some brilliant photographs using manual settings, but if you like set it to auto and shoot away.