Sony Alpha DSLR-A380

Sony introduces new Alpha DSLR entry and midrange

The family welcomes Alpha A230, A330 and A380, and with them the removable screen and LiveView. But still no video.

With its rotating screen, the Sony Alpha A380 facilitates shooting in adverse conditions (crowd in a concert for example).

Sony has proved in 2008 with his Alpha 900 he was able to approach Canon and Nikon in the high-end devices. Nowadays, the Japanese manufacturer unveiled three devices into and occupying the middle of the range, the Alpha A230, A330 and A380, with an emphasis on ease of use.

All three aircraft share almost all of the technical base, screen and sensor excepted. At the bottom of the scale, the A230 with a 6.7 cm diagonal screen, a 10.2 megapixel CCD sensor mechanically stabilized and no LiveView. More fortunate, the A330 receives a screen tilt for framing in a difficult environment and LiveView. As the eldest, the A380, it has a sensor generous 14.2 Mpix. But in the belly is the same thing: a processor Bionz image processing, similar sensitivity values (100-3200 ISO), etc..

The first surprise is the lack of video: if it is not (yet!) De rigueur on digital SLR cameras, this technology tends to democratize, especially as these devices have a sensor far larger than the optical camcorders and oh how much more efficient. With Canon, which launched its technology in the 5D Mark II (But 50D and 500D), Nikon’s D90 Panasonic and its GH1 future, hope that Sony thinks highly. Especially as the know-how of the brand in video is further proof.

In the absence of major technological advance, Sony highlights the ease of use of these three units with clear menus and teaching methods as well as scenes comparable to those of its compact. Besides, it is likely that the positioning of the A230, A330 and to a lesser extent, A380, the aircraft is “better than the compact but easy to handle.” We find an interface using the same imagery as that used in compact cameras and a display that seems more streamlined.

On the technical side, there are open time classic (1 / 4000 s to 30 s) along with gusts of more conventional modes: 2.5 fps to 2 fps in LiveView, but limited to four RAW unlimited JPEG. And a very nice timer takes three or five frames in a row for group photos easy. Still in the environment of this is being done, there is a Dynamic Range Optimizer (D-Lightning Nikon), a process that reduces over-and under-exposures in software within the housing. It worked rather well in the Alpha 900, hoping that technology is well supported in the descent line.

The first to arrive on the market should be the A330, scheduled for June, the low and high end as are the A230 and A380 announced for the month of July. Three aircraft for nine different prices, each of which can be purchased bare, with one or two goals as a kit, 500, 550 or 750 euros for the A230, 600, 650 or 850 euros for the A330 and 750, 800 and 1000 euros for the A380. A380 should be, pardon the pun, a bit hard to take off in this price range, the range being expert trustee by Canon and Nikon.