Sony Cyber-shot DSC S500.
Whatever claims be made, the number one reason to choose this camera will be its price. Of course, at 11K this is not a cheap camera and many brands are available at lower rates. But the thing is that, they don’t have a SONY badge! Sony has substituted the Carl Zeiss lens with an in house one to achieve this price tag. That’s the major difference between this model and the next one- S600. (S600 also have a better video format.)
Although it is ‘just another silver box’, the overall appearance is also good. I would say- better than any other model of this category, even the S600. The back side looks even better with its 2.4” LCD, a size not common in entry level cameras. This is a big positive element for this model.
Another important reason why you should go for a Cyber-shot is their 3 year warranty.
Now coming to the features, this is a 6 Mp, 3X optical with 25 Mb built in memory and powered by 2AA size cells. It got AV out and USB connectivity. This is a quite straight forward point and shoot camera, with not much manual controls. Of course there do have some, but can’t be said very user friendly. But the auto mode does the job quite satisfactorily, so this simplicity can be a welcome feature for many.But I prefer to have some manual control over the frames. I addition to the auto mode, there are 7 more still modes which include a program mode. Some level of manual control is possible with these modes. But the disadvantage is that the preview we see on the LCD is not the one we capture. So some trial and error is needed before we hit the right picture. Unfortunately by then you may miss the action! Another problem is that of the shutter lag. Here also the frame you clicked at may not be the one you capture. But these problems are common for almost all entry level cameras. The only way out is to go for a higher end camera.
The picture quality is pretty good, but if you are a perfectionist, you will notice that the edges are not very sharp when you view them in full size. But I don’t think that is a big problem in practical sense. The macros are exceptionally good. They appear straight out from a professional SLR. Video is not actually of TV resolution, but ok. After all is has 30 fps which is also not common with entry levels.
With 25 Mb memory you can take only 6-8 pictures in fine 6 Mp mode. So an added memory card is highly recommended. Sony claims this camera can handle up to 4 Gb cards. I settled for a 1 Gb card (Pro Duo). Street price: Rs 1250.
Personally I preferred AA power units, because the other types can be expensive in the long run. Brochure says about 60 pictures can be taken with a pair of alkaline cells, (dealer says it is only 20-25) I could take 79 pics with the supplied Sony stamina plus cells. (Most of them with flash.) So you better go for chargeable cells. Nickel metal hydride and not the usual Ni-Cd are recommended. They last much longer with each charge than alkaline cells. (4 cells and charger, Sanyo, standard Eco charger. Street price Rs 850.)
Connectivity to computer was not a problem. Was instantaneously identified and got installed in XP. I didn’t install Cyber-shot viewer, as I already had Adobe Photoshop album viewer installed. Although the accompanied CD had option for online registration, Sony does not provide that facility for Indians. Can’t understand why! There may not be much in that, (But Samsung gives an additional 3 months warranty for online registrants) but this kind of double standards irritate me. We are actually paying more than those in US or UK.
So, should I recommend this camera? That depend on what you need. Of course this camera is not very much value for money. But with the current trends in prices it can’t be much cheaper. It also has the disadvantages I mentioned earlier. But for a superior camera with some meaningful difference, you will need to shell out twice or thrice the amount. If you really need a real high quality camera, go for them, else you settle for this.