The review about Sony CyberShot DSC-P200

The review about Sony CyberShot DSC-P200 digital camera

Specifications Highlights

• 7.2 megapixel CCD


• 3x optical zoom


• Color LCD: 2.0" 134K Pixel LCD Screen


• Focus: 5 Area Multi-Point AF, Center AF, 5-Step Manual


• Minimum Focus Distance: 19.7" (50cm)


• Macro Mode: 2.4" (6cm)


• ISO: Auto, 100, 200, 400


• Shutter Speed: 1/8 -- 1/2000 sec. (Auto); 1 -- 1/2000 sec. (Program Auto); 30 -- 1/1000 sec. (Manual)


• Self-Timer: Yes, 10 Seconds


• MPEG Movie Modes: MPEG VX Fine with Audio (640 x 480 at 30fps), (MPEG VX Fine requires Memory Stick PRO media) MPEG VX Standard with Audio (640 x 480 at 16fps), Video Mail (160 x 112 at 8fps) with Audio

The DSC-P200 is Sony’s entrant into the relatively new market sector of seven megapixel snapshot cameras, it is the replacement for the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P150 adds no significant capabilities to the skimpy feature set of its predecessor, competing alongside Canon’s IXUS 700, Nikon’s CoolPix 7900, the Olympus C-70, the Samsung Digimax V700 and the Casio Exilim EX-Z750 among others.

The Sony CyberShot DSC-P200 digital camera has so far lived up to all my expectations, and beyond. The 7.2 mega-pixel facility means you can print crystal-clear prints on A4 photo paper, but most of the time the 5 mega-pixel setting is perfectly good enough for high quality images allowing images up to 3072 x 2304 pixels to be captured. The large megapixel count means that you can print photo-quality pictures to up to 11 x 17 inches. There are several other options for image size recording: 3:2 (3072 x 2048), 5M (2592 x 1944), 3M (2048 X 1536), 1M (1280 x 960), and VGA (640 x 480). The 2 inch LCD is nice to display all those large images.

The outdoor shots are very impressive. The first test shot includes many light and dark areas and really finds out how well the camera handles the level of contrast you find in many typical photos. The DSC P200 had very little trouble indeed. The light areas are reproduced very well, but it is that dark areas that particularly impress me with the detail showing clearly in the shot. Indoors photos are just as impressive.Many digital cameras struggle to focus in poor light and have difficultly in exposing a picture correctly. Many come out either too light or too dark. The sample image showing the bottles is taken in near darkness yet the picture produced is bright and clear.

This camera is likely to suit someone who is looking for a camera that is easy to use, can cater for all the usual social photo opportunities, but has an extra touch of class and quality.The user interface of the camera is very intuitive. Once you enter the menu system, it's very easy to navigate using the directional pad. There are enough "manual" controls (the mode dial, directional pad) available at your finger tips that the level of the complexity of the software user interface has been minimized. If you need to use a preset scene mode, you just turn the dial, and thumb left or right on the directional pad to get to the right setting. No need to dig through 3 or more levels of menus. Here are some shots of the main menu options.

Batteries and Memory Card

Power is supplied by a rechargeable Info Lithium battery : Sony NP-FR1. Sony supplies both the battery and a charger with the DSC P200. All you need to ensure is that the battery doesn't run out at the vital moment.

Sony CyberShot DSC-P200 and DSC-P100 battery image:



Sony NP-FR1 info: Li-ion, 3.7v, 1000mAh.