The A200, 300 and 350
Testing the A200 and A350, we look at the new choices open in the Sony
Alpha DSLR range including Live View and 14.2 megapixel options
F
or a brief period late in 2007, White balancing has been tidied
there was only one current Sony up so that AWB is less likely to show
DSLR product – the Alpha 700. colour casts, and auto exposure
The 100 has already been discontin- seems to have been made less
ued and a replacement was promised. sensitive to small highlights. Flash
When the replacement turned out exposure with D-compatible flash-
to be three cameras launched in rapid guns is more reliable and consistent.
succession, there was almost no time The lens mount is improved, with
for a photo press or the dealers to a wider flange (and an orange ring
react. The Alpha 200, 300 and 350 like the A700) giving better dust and
were revealed without elaborate press moisture sealing. The lens release
conferences despite the ground- button is restyled and a little larger
breaking specifications of the 350 in to find and press. There is no depth
particular. Very little has been said by of field preview button on the mount
Sony about the technology. They just surround now. This is one of the
went ahead and put three new models key omissions from the specifica-
on sale as fast as deliveries permitted. tion of all three new models – you
One model, the Alpha 300, is have no stop-down preview.
exclusive to Jessop in the UK at the The battery is changed for the
moment. Since it is essentially a new type NP-FM500H InfoLithium
blend of A200 and A350 features, used by the Alpha 700, and this
anything you need to know about it also is shared by all three new
can be covered by looking at the 200 models. This means the entire
and 350. We have had both cameras current range shares on battery
since their earliest availability. type. It can also fit the Alpha 100,
but the original A100 cell can not
The Alpha 200
be used in any of the new bodies.
The Alpha 200, above, is the closest replacement for the Alpha 100 and sells for The CompactFlash card slot is
The effective replacement for around £350. The Alpha 350, below, has a Live View function shown here in use turned round to match the 700, so
the Alpha 100, the 200 has an with the screen angled up towards the viewer. It is a 14.2 megapixel model and the card is inserted with the label
improved body design which is sells for around £450 (prices are quoted for body only). facing you, the ‘right way round’ as
more like the A700 in control far as most users see it. This will
layout. It is not reduced in size, and avoid the damage sometimes caused
has a chunky right hand grip . in the 7D, 5D and A100 which had
Some features of the 100 the slot reversed when unthinking
are omitted, other new features users tried to force a card in.
are added and these are mostly The Alpha 200 will accept a
connected to performance. vertical grip, VG-B30AM, which is
The criticism levelled at the 100 shared with the 300 and 350. This
for poor high ISO noise levels is offers dual battery capacity with
corrected dramatically; the top ISO auto switching, the remaining power
limited is raised to 3200, and image only being shown for the battery in
quality at ISO 1600 is now equal to use. It has fully duplicated controls
the A100 at ISO 800. Some reviews for portrait format shooting.
claim the noise reduction is about The shooting setting and menu
half a stop, I would dispute that – it control are simplified, compared to
is much better. You can shoot at night the Alpha 100, but are not as fast to
using ISO 3200 and get fine results. use as the Quick Navi functions of
Otherwise, the sensor remains the 700. It’s easy navigation but a bit
the same 10.2 megapixel CCD. slow. On average you will need one
While the focusing screen, hollow button press more to make any given
mirror prism and viewfinder remain change with the Alpha 200 series
identical to the 100 along with the cameras, compared to the 100.
AF module itself the assembly has The rear LCD viewing screen is
been improved for more accurate larger, but still normal in resolution,
focus and the AF motor which not the ultra-high res of the 700.
drives the lens now runs 1.7X There are no improvements made
faster. There is no gain in sequence to the wideness of auto bracketing
shooting speed or the number range (it remains limited for High
of raw frames or JPEGs you can Dynamic Range multi shots).
capture continuously but autofocus Apical’s Dynamic Range
on moving targets is improved. Optimisation – DRO+ – is continued
5 photoworld
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