Just when you think you’ve read all the camera announcements from Sony, they debut yet another item – this time in their high zoom Cyber-shot range. The DSC-HX5V is an update to the popular DSC-HX1, and is upgraded slightly with the addition of a 10 megapixel “Exmor R” CMOS sensor, but still has the same 3” LCD and a slightly lesser 10x wide angle 25mm zoom lens (compared to last year’s 20x, 28mm). Like the HX1 of yesteryear, it also has the ability to record AVCHD, but this time in a higher quality 1920 x 1080 at 60i (full HD). Other useful specifications for image taking include Active/Optical Steady Shot, Intelligent Sweep Panorama (which allows you to take panoramic pictures in mere seconds), Backlight Correction HDR (High Dynamic Range), incredible low-light performance, and the ability to take 10 MP resolution images at up to 10 fps, helping to ensure you never miss the precise moment you’re intending to capture.
A new feature this year is the addition of GPS and Compass capabilities, which adds location and direction information on photo files. Sony has also integrated Transfer Jet wireless technology into the camera, which allows you to send (at 560mbps) pictures and movies from your Cyber-shot camera to your Transfer Jet receiver, such as a computer. This allows for people to not worry about taking out the memory card or looking for the USB cord when they want to get the pictures off their camera. Some notable software additions include iAuto, which detects eight scenes and optimizes camera settings accordingly.
Another nice surprise is the price – it will only cost about $350 and should be available in black this March. That’s not a bad deal considering the DSC-HX1 was nearly $500 when it debuted and has less features than this update.
