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I purchased this camera after a lot of research & internal debate. My daughter dropped my other point & shoot into our pool & I was in dire need of a new one. I wouldn't call myself a pro but I do take candids & head shots of some friends & family members & have had some training. I already have 2 DSL cameras & they are SO bulky that I never want to drag them with me. I chose this camera based on many reviews on the wonderful sales people at Ritz camera. It features 12.1 megapix (which you probley will never need taking snapshots) & the feature I love - the HD video. Picture quality is very good - the photos pop out at you - bright life-like colors. This camera also has a "smile" button where if pressed it will automatically snap pictures for you if it detects a smile - a wonderful feature if you have small children. There are only a couple flaws I have come up with so far - in video mode it tends to lose focus if your subject is moving around ie: swimming or running. The flash isn't all that powerful either but in light of the fact it is so small - it would easily fit in your pocket, these are a couple things I can live with. Will it be my only point & shoot? I doubt it - I already have my eye on the panasonic FZ28 & the canon S1 - but for now it fits the bill. Not to mention my husband isn't afraid to pick it up. Would I recommend this - yes, in a heart beat - happy shooting!Read full review
Good machine, dont regret to buy it. I love your design, light, very beautiful, with the front pattern with striated (wue pretty easily but retains dirt, because the surface is not flat -but compensates for beauty). Takes photographs of very good quality, ... and videos in HD quality is impressive, I was amazed with the quality of the recorded video. The only negative, is the recording of video, you can not use the zoom during filming - very bad for Sony - I was furious! ... and, only you can make video recordings of over 30min for about! ... if you want to make a film that will use the program PMB, that is included in the package w290, and add the videos of several 30mm and saves them all together - but it is offset by the recording quality. Some people have been disappointed with this machine in general use, but I do not agree, perhaps because they think the w290 is a PROFESSIONAL machine and have a professional expectations - but the w290 is not a machine for professional use. Against another, is the battery life, very poor - I advise you to buy another extra battery. In conclusion: on a scale from 1 to 5, I give 4 values. If I could go back ... I buy a Sony w290 again.Read full review
Decided to buy this camera for my first 10 day trip to Italy. All of the various options for taking pictures and the ease of use are fantastic reasons to purchase this camera. If you have been looking at the Digital SLRs but can't afford their price this is a compact budget friendly camera with a lot of the amenities of a DSLR. I was also looking at the 10MP version, but after all was said and done the bells and whistles on this 12MP camera (which I have already been using) was the primary reason I purchased the camera. Do your research and find out what you need out of your camera; don't buy a 12MP camera if all you are doing with your photos are emailing them to family and friends (you have not plans on printing or having the pictures printed on photo paper).
The Camera is easy to use. On screen helps let you adjust your camera to what you want or do not want. Light weight easy to handle. Comes on instantly. You are able to upgrade the memory at a good price. Battery last quite a while and they are fairly inexpensive. Software is very nice. The zoom is easy to use. The LCD is a very nice size and clear. It is very easy to delete the picture you do not want. The video portion is very good, with fine sound quality. What more can I say. This is an excellent camera for anybody, for beginner to expert. Pat
I just received this camera a few days ago, was replacing a Nikon Coolpix that broke due to lens error (cost as much to fix as to replace.) By comparison, this camera is almost twice the price, but still very affordable at right around $200, and has TONS more features!! Better zoom, lens, options, in-camera retouching, etc. I especially like the "twilight" features, which allow you to take a clear pic without losing the dim lighting...dont know how many "blow out the candles pics" are ruined by super bright flash and you cant even tell the room was dark. This solves that! Easy mode IS super Easy - also has a "program" mode where you can customize each setting. I also am impressed by how fast you can turn on & snap a pic. My coolpix took forever to turn on, and took forever to load between shots...and by the time i got it on, my "kodak moment" was over. This one turns on in approx. 1-2 seconds and is ready to snap. And depending on the setting, does not take long between shots. Also I LOVE LOVE LOVE the "burst" setting available on all settings, except easy, which lets me take 3 or more shots at once for moving images, or to capture the right facial expression. I have only tested the smile button, but thats really neat too - and I look forward to using it for my 18 month old... Does video in HD - just be aware you cannot zoom in or out while filming, but I knew that before buying thanks to other reviews. I also didnt want silver because I had read in reviews that it picks up fingerprints & dirt, but the best price I found was for a silver, so I got it anyway, and I dont see many fingerprints (other than on shutter and LCD, which would happen anyway) and I think the silver looks quite sharp. I do NOT like how the wrist strap is not adjustable (I have very small wrists) but I beleive you can find others - I am going to look... I needed an adapter for my memory stick, as my comp. only has a slot for an original mem. stick (NOT Duo Pro) but the adapter was only approx. $11 after researching prices online, so no biggie. I also love all the accessories available: cases, tripods that screw directly in, batteries that let you see exactly how many mins are left...I will slowly buy them.Read full review
I had been using a 10 MP camera that was an off brand. I was very unhappy with the quality of picture, but thought that I could not afford any better. When I saw this Sony. 12MP camera for such a great price, I initially thought that it would not have the features that I wanted. I am happy to say that I was wrong! This little compact camera is small enough to fit in a pocket, yet takes excellent pictures! It has a centering feature and an easy focus feature that takes the guess work out of choosing the right setting! The viewing screen is 2x3 inches, so everything is visible, no more squinting to see if you got Aunt Mabel in the shot! What impressed me even more, is the battery life. I have not had to charge it yet, and I have been using it for three weeks! There is nothing that I do noy like about this great camera. Bravo, Sony!Read full review
NOTE: IF YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT PURCHASING THIS PRODUCT, SEE WARNING BELOW! My wife and I are planning a long vacation trip and needed a compact, but versatile, alternative to a full blown DSLR. I've owned this little camera for just 20 hours, but can offer some first impressions. We bought a Canon SX110IS at Christmas for our daughter. Compared to the jewel-like Sony, the Canon's build quality seems substantially less. However, it has a 10X optical zoom compared to Sony's 5x, but 9 mega pixel resolution compared to 12.1 on the Sony. I doubt that the image quality difference will be notable, but I will update this when I can make a valid comparison. One of the main reasons I picked the Sony over the Canon is that it is truly compact. While the Canon is small, the Sony is flat - less than 1" thick - and hardly shows in a pocket (although I have ordered a case). Comparatively speaking, its LCD screen is huge and bright (but does not swivel like some Canons). BTW, neither camera has a viewfinder, so I am not confident that either will be easy to see in bright sunlight. This model does NOT employ a touch screen (which I did not value), but the controls (though small) are simple and generally intuitive once you learn Sony's ops language (different from Canon's). I will admit, if you happen to be a bit ham-fisted, you may not be willing to struggle with such tiny controls which are suited more to a child's hand than an adults. Also, because they are so small, the two adjustable dials are hard to read - not so handy when your eyes start to fail as are mine. The special features (many on this camera) all seem like they may be useful, but the "smile" feature seems a bit useless to me. The facial recognition works great - even when I pointed it at a TV image. It takes longer than I am used to to auto focus (I normally shoot with a Canon full frame 5D that uses focus motors in the lenses - hardly a fair comparison). Also, if you plan to use this camera to record full 12.1 mega pixel images, you will have to buy plenty of Memory Stick storage, although it will shoot at much lower resolutions, it has limited internal memory. I bought two 16GB Sony brand Pro Duo sticks on eBay for $21 each to be able to do so. BTW, that is much cheaper than Amazon, say. Also, since this camera shoots HD (720P) video in MPEG4 format - one of the features I plan to exploit - you'll want plenty of extra storage anyhow. I'll have to reserve my opinions on picture quality until I can do a real world test, but the images I shot indoors with the built-in flash were crisp and noiseless at 12.1 mega pixels, less so, of course as I tried lower resolutions. And did I mention that the Sony's "anodized" blue finish trimmed in "black chrome" is elegant and stunning? WARNING! WARNING! WARNING! Shortly after writing this review, I decided to double-check my "cheap" memory purchase. What I found was disturbing. It is likely that the Pro Duo memory sticks I bought on eBay are FAKES! I'm telling you this so you won't make the same mistake I probably did (my Memory Sticks have not yet been delivered). If you will check out this eBay link BEFORE you buy memory for your new camera (or other Sony device), you may be able to save yourself a lot of trouble (and $). http://reviews.ebay.com/FAKE-Sony-Memory-Stick-Pro-Duo-MagicGate-Cards-Exposed_W0QQugidZ10000000001236041 Like they say, "If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is". I know better. Now, so do you!Read full review
I had this same camera but I took a spill and the camera was in it's case attached to me by it's shoulder strap. The impact caused the LCD window to crack making the viewing of my shots nearly impossible. I truly loved my camera but it would have been over $200 to get it repaired, a price I could not justify. I decided to place a bid on e-bay and after 3 tries I won!! I am so delighted to be back to capturing wonderful memories. This is by far the BEST camera I have ever owned. I feel the quality is excellent. It's very easy to use and produces beautiful results. It was worth the auctioning excitement to successfully win my "replacement" camera. This camera produces the best pictures in all types of lighting and very rarely calls for a flash. I actually get better quality pics without the flash. Unfortunately they are no long producing this model so if you get the chance to bid on one, I would highly recommend it.Read full review
Excellent camera. I only buy Sony cameras. They've been very good to me - my last one was a DSC-W50 that I had for almost 4 years and it's still working. I gave it to my younger brother. The pics on the DSC-290 are amazing, VERY clear. The pics without flash look really good too. You can have it on an automatic setting, or manually change the settings if you would like. The video quality is good. Not the best but then again, you're not buying a camcorder - it's a camera. Overall, very easy to use and GREAT CAMERA!!
good screen, smile detection and face detection. The camera is light and very simple to operate. Great for novices and professionals alike. Unmatched picture quality.