Users Speak Out About the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-N1

[Ben Stafford]

It's been a while since our last "Users Speak Out..." article, but the topic of today, the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-N1, has had a recent jump in popularity on our site.  We thought that more of you would like to see what people are saying about this camera.  The opinions will be chosen based on the value of the information (in our opinion) to our readers. We won't necessarily pick only the "positive" opinions or only the "negative" opinions. We'll pick the opinions that we think will be most helpful to you as you shop for and compare cameras.  To see other reviews out there on the net, see the reviews page.

The N1 is an 8 megapixel camera with a 3 inch touch screen LCD.  With the touch screen LCD and 26MB of internal memory, you can view up to 500 VGA sized images in a nice slideshow mode.  For storing the 8 megapixel images, you'll probably want to use some Memory Stick Duo memory.  Also, you can use the touchscreen to tell the camera where to focus with "Free Spot AF".  A 3x optical zoom Carl Zeiss lens lets you get closer.

 

Wow. The slide show takes the cake!

Pros: The addtional built-in RAM and slideshow capability is AWESOME for sharing photos. The HUGE display make it a joy to share the pics with others. The music (which you can load) and effect make it very fun. The touchscreen is very good - no more tiny switches! (Make sure you put a screen protector on it when you first get it to avoid scratches.) 30 frames per sec MPEG4 video is really nice. This is a very good point and shoot that is very functional and a lot of fun. Try it out, and you'll likely agree.

Cons: Obviously, a little pricey, but I think for 8.1MP, internal storage and slideshow (which no other camera in it's class has), huge touchscreen (again, no other camera in it's class has this) is a fair deal. The connection cable is a little busy but that's because they wrap USB, RCA outputs, and a power connector all into one cable (which actually turns out to be convienent; I can use the igo power tips to recharge if I am on the road.)

---

DSC-Nice One

Pros: 8.1 Megapixels, Awesome Touchscreen Controls, Good Battery Life (well over 200 shots), Photo Album/Slideshow Review, Manual Focus Targeting, ISO - 64, 100, 200, 400, 800, Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar Lens,

Cons: It takes 4-5 hours to charge the battery, Bulky Ultracompact, LCD gets fingerprints, Pricy (mine was $450), 2x Digital Zoom

---

The first priority is supposed to be given to image quality! I've returned it.

Pros: Many stylish features (touch screen, huge LCD, music, album, nice menu system, etc.)

Cons: Poor image quality; poor resolution; extraordinarily yellow images; especially low quality indoor images

---

SONY's DSC-N1 another Masterworks for the Pocket.

Pros: Huge 3" touch-screen display, eliminates a bunch of butons on the metal body, stonger flash

Cons: Thicker than the "T" series, but worth the weight in Gold

---

Flashy, sleek, high tech, and adequate for those point and shoot average users. Low light pick up

Pros: 8.1 mpixel, strong flash 16ft, long battery life still, fast response huge touch screen, easy to use

Cons: Need to buy mem stick, Pricey, Need to buy mem stick adapter and A/C charger to avoid taking battery out and also allow continuous play while on low batt. It is thicker than expected but ok I guess.

---

A Brilliant Camera

Pros: Phenomenal Performance, Sleek Metal Casing, Addictingly Huge STUNNING Display, Outstanding (and Easy) Menus, Touch-Screen is VERY convenient

Cons: Maybe just a little thicker than most new compact camera, but STILL thin compared to the rest--especially considering it's an 8.1 MP

---

Useful features (including manual control), great image quality, and awesome slideshow.

Pros: Touch-screen operation crisp and logical, cool slideshow capability with sound, and huge high resolution display.

Cons: Sony Pro Duo memory, but prices are pretty good on Ebay.

[SeaMonkey]

Thanks for the review there.

I have never been a fan of Sony cameras but they seem to be improving.
Shame about their propetry memory, I wonder when they will just go SD?

[Brian]

Memory Stick is not proprietary and there's no chance of them going SD.

[Jessica]

Im wondering about this comment -

Poor image quality; poor resolution; extraordinarily yellow images; especially low quality indoor images

Why would the images be yellow?
I think this is the only mention of this in all your comments there, could it be a faulty camera?

[Ben Stafford]

Yellowish cast is probably caused by the automatic white balance not being able to figure out the white balance in mixed lighting conditions (like sunlight and fluorescent).

[FZ20]

This happens on all cameras though, it comes down to the user not choosing the right camera setting generally, and not the camera itself.

It took me 3 months to find the correct setting so i wouldnt get fringing and yellow tinges in my photos.