Saturday, 20 March 2010

Digital camera Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX1 Overview

Digital camera Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX1 Overview






Along with the company's WX1 model, the DSC-TX1 is one of the first two Sony Cyber-shot digital still cameras to feature a back-illuminated 'Exmor R' CMOS image sensor. Sony's Exmor R sensors have previously featured in camcorder models announced in Spring 2009 at the Photo Marketing Association tradeshow, and we're excited to see them now making their debut in a still camera. Most current imagers used in digital cameras are front-illuminated, meaning that light must pass through a metal wiring layer before arriving at the photodiodes. A significant portion of the light is blocked by this wiring layer, and hence the ability of the sensor to gather light is reduced. By contrast, back-illuminated sensors place the wiring layer below the photodiodes, enabling more light to be collected. This improvement, says Sony, means a 200% increase in the sensitivity of its Exmor R chips over a traditional front-illuminated CMOS sensor.


Digital camera Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX1 Overview






n other areas, the Sony DSC-TX1 brings features previously seen in the company's popular HX1 model into a more compact body. Aimed at the fashion-conscious photographer, the Cyber-shot TX1 has a 0.7-inch thick body, and offers a sensor resolution of ten megapixels. The imager sits behind a prism-folded Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar branded 4x optical zoom lens which offers focal lengths ranging from a fairly ordinary 35mm wide angle to a 140mm telephoto. Maximum aperture varies from f/3.5 to f/4.6 across the zoom range. The lens has optical image stabilization, which along with the improved sensitivity should help with preventing blur from camera shake. For framing and reviewing images, the Sony TX1 offers a 230,000 dot 3.0-inch Clear Photo Plus LCD which is touch-sensitive, there being no optical viewfinder on this camera. The touch panel helps keep the number of controls on the Sony TX1 down to a bare minimum, with almost all interaction instead taking place directly on the display.










Digital camera Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX1 Overview



The Sony TX1 features Sony's Bionz image processor, and offers sensitivities ranging from a minimum of ISO 80 to a maximum of ISO 3,200 equivalent at full resolution. Burst shooting is possible at ten frames per second, and Sony has included a high-speed mechanical shutter that prevents the image distortion which can occur in cameras using an electronic shutter with high-speed burst shooting. The TX1 doesn't offer shutter/aperture-priority or manual modes, but does provide a good range of scene modes that offer some control over the look of images. An Intelligent Scene Recognition mode is also available, which can automatically select from a subset of nine common scene modes. Images are metered with multi-pattern, center-weighted or spot metering, and the Sony TX1 includes a nine-point contrast detection autofocus mode, and face detection capability. As well as using the location of detected faces when calculating exposure and focusing variables, the TX1 can trigger the shutter automatically when your subject is smiling.

Digital camera Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX1 Overview

More unusually, the Sony Cybershot TX1 includes the ability to stack multiple images shot at high sensitivity into a single exposure with reduced noise. It's a feature we've seen in the company's previous DSC-HX1 model, but has been refined in the TX1 and is now able to detect and take account of subjects which have moved between shots, ensuring your subject remains sharp and clear in the foreground. The TX1 also includes Sony's Sweep Panorama function which automatically assembles panoramas from as many as 100 separate photos captured automatically, while you simply sweep your camera across the scene at the camera's direction.



No comments:

Post a Comment