January 2007
First Look: Sony Cyber-shot DSC-N2 digital camera
A worthy successor to a multimedia subcompact
Few subcompact cameras offer full manual controls. Sony's new 10-megapixel Cyber-shot DSC-N2, $350, is one of them. Its mix
of multimedia features also makes it an interesting choice. You can draw graphics on still images using the touch screen and
included stylus. You can also enhance slideshows with transition effects and built-in music or MP3 soundtracks, which you
can upload to the camera using included software.
The DSC-N2 resembles Sony's 8-megapixel DSC-N1, a recommended subcompact that's scarce in stores (and mainly available at online retailers). Like the N1, it has a 3-inch, touch-sensitive LCD that you can use to compose images, view shots, navigate menus, and select settings. The N2 has a maximum shutter of 1/2000th of a second, twice as fast as the N1's highest speed.
HIGHS
The full manual controls. In full manual mode, you can independently select aperture and shutter settings. But there's no shutter-priority or aperture manual controls, where you select one parameter and the camera determines the other.
It keeps going. Battery life was excellent; the proprietary rechargeable lithium-ion battery lasted 300 shots per charge.
GPS Image Tracker software. As with all of Sony's newer cameras, the N2 comes with software for recording the locations where photographs were taken and plotting them on a map. To use this, you must buy a GPS receiver.
LOWS
Its high ISO settings fall short. While the ISO settings go up to 1600, very unusual for a subcompact, our tests found images captured at 800 or above to be grainy. (The N1 had a high ISO setting of 800, which also fell short.)
You must use the LCD to compose. There's no optical viewfinder, so you must rely on the LCD to compose shots, which might be hard to do in bright sunlight.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The Cyber-shot DSC-N2 is a fine subcompact with greater resolution than most people need. Unusual in a subcompact camera, the ISO setting of 1600 is potentially useful for shooting in low light without a flash, but the resulting photographs won't be very good.
The DSC-N2 resembles Sony's 8-megapixel DSC-N1, a recommended subcompact that's scarce in stores (and mainly available at online retailers). Like the N1, it has a 3-inch, touch-sensitive LCD that you can use to compose images, view shots, navigate menus, and select settings. The N2 has a maximum shutter of 1/2000th of a second, twice as fast as the N1's highest speed.
HIGHS
The full manual controls. In full manual mode, you can independently select aperture and shutter settings. But there's no shutter-priority or aperture manual controls, where you select one parameter and the camera determines the other.
It keeps going. Battery life was excellent; the proprietary rechargeable lithium-ion battery lasted 300 shots per charge.
GPS Image Tracker software. As with all of Sony's newer cameras, the N2 comes with software for recording the locations where photographs were taken and plotting them on a map. To use this, you must buy a GPS receiver.
LOWS
Its high ISO settings fall short. While the ISO settings go up to 1600, very unusual for a subcompact, our tests found images captured at 800 or above to be grainy. (The N1 had a high ISO setting of 800, which also fell short.)
You must use the LCD to compose. There's no optical viewfinder, so you must rely on the LCD to compose shots, which might be hard to do in bright sunlight.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The Cyber-shot DSC-N2 is a fine subcompact with greater resolution than most people need. Unusual in a subcompact camera, the ISO setting of 1600 is potentially useful for shooting in low light without a flash, but the resulting photographs won't be very good.
