Nov 04, 2008 09:11 PM
4275 Views
Sony W70 is a very responsive-feeling camera: Pressing the Power button on top of the body produces a swift reaction: The LCD comes on, the camera chimes, and the lens assembly bursts out of its silo quickly, letting the camera snap its first picture only 1.7 seconds after being turned on. A half-press on the shutter begins the focus operation. In low light, a bright orange LED illuminates the scene when necessary, so low-light focus isn't a worry (at least on nearby objects that can be illuminated by the AF-assist light).
The fast Multi-point AF determines the closest object and focuses quickly, showing brackets around the areas that will be in focus. Shutter lag (the delay between pressing the shutter button and the camera taking the picture) is lower than that of most cameras on the market, with a range of 0.28-0.55 second. Everything about the camera feels like quality and performs competently. Included with the camera is a Sony LiIon rechargeable battery pack and charger, which has a pretty good battery life.
I still suggest purchasing a backup battery pack, and keeping it freshly charged and on-hand for extended outings, but the W70's battery life is very good by any standard. The camera's internal 58 megabytes of memory will hold a few shots, but here again, I'd recommend picking up at least a 128-megabyte Memory Stick Duo card, or a Memory Stick PRO Duo card for the Fine quality movie recording mode.