Sony Alpha DSLR-A230 – An entry level dSLR
Sum and Substance:
Thumbs Up:
Fast autofocus, dual card slots, high magnification viewfinder, straightforward operation, relatively simple, SteadyShot indicator is helpful.
Thumbs Down:
Gripping the camera is uncomfortable, the default settings gives suboptimal photos.
The Whiz Kid Speaks:
Sony Alpha DSLR-A230 is a 10.2 mega pixels SLR, sensor features include Dust Reduction (image sensor vibration) and Anti-Dust coating. ISO sensitivity options include ISO 100-3200 and ISO auto. Shooting programs include Night portrait, Portrait mode, Sports mode, Landscape, Sunset, Macro.
Special effects include Black & White, Night view, Landscape, Portait, Neutral, Sunset, Vivid. Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 second, minimum shutter speed is 30 seconds, x-sync is speed is 1/160 second, exposure metering include center-weighted, multi-segment, spot. Exposure modes aperture-priority, shutter priority, automatic, program, manual, bulb. White balance presets include tungsten light, fluorescent, daylight, cloudy, shade, flash. Images are stored in formats of RAW+JPEG, JPEG, RAW.
Supported flash memory cards are Memory Stick PRO Duo and SD Memory Card. Image storage resolution options are Fine 1920 x 1280, RAW+Standard 2896 x 1936, RAW+Fine RAW 3872 x 2592. Flash modes include Red-eye reduction, Rear curtain sync, Flash OFF mode, Slow synchro, Fill-in mode, Auto mode.
The camera has Zoom lens – 18 mm – 55 mm – F/3.5-5.6 DT SAM, Lens System Mounting is Minolta A-type, filter size is 55 mm, has 3x optical zoom, lens aperture F/3.5-5.6, minimum focus range is 9.8 inches, Focal length is 18 mm – 55 mm
Additional features include Camera orientation detection, Display brightness control, RGB primary color filter, Highlight point display, Dynamic Range Optimizer, Digital noise reduction, Digital tele-converter, Digital image rotation, USB 2.0 compatibility, Shadow point display, PRINT Image Matching, Eye-Start AF system, Built-in help guide, PictBridge support, Exif Print support, Histogram display, Date/time stamp, Direct print, DPOF support.
The screen size is 2.7 inches big. Connectors on the camera include USB and HDMI output. Bundled software includes Sony Image Data Converter SR, Sony Picture Motion Browser, Sony Image Data Lightbox SR, Utilities & Drivers.
Supported Operating Systems are Apple Mac OS X 10.1.3 or later, MS Windows 2000 Professional, MS Windows Vista, MS Windows XP. Included accessories are Shoulder strap, Lens cap, Dust cap and Body cap. Included cables are Video cable and USB cable.
The SLR is powered by Sony NP-FH50 Li-ion rechargeable battery. Sony gives a one year labor and parts warranty for this product.
Razzle Dazzle:
We won’t call the A230 sexy not because this camera is ugly but dSLRs in general look pretty geeky and boring. However, we did like the fact that the A230 is a bit lighter than most dSLRs.
Inside Dope:
This camera is the successor to the DSLR-A200 and the new model has a revamped body, the performance and quality has improved so we will call this an ‘upgrade’ over the previous model. This SLR is a cheaper option to the expensive A330. The latter’s magnification isn’t as high as A230 and the LCD screen on the A330 can be tilted up and down to an angle of 55 degrees. A330 has live view shooting which A230 doesn’t. But apart from that, both of them are almost the same. Given a choice amongst the two, we would go for A230 since it is not worth spending more for the above features.
A230 comes in two kits, with dual-lens kit that adds the 55-200mm lens or with the 18-55mm lens. There is no body only model of the A230 but we think Sony will come out with that soon. Just like all Sony dSLRs you can use any Minolta A mount lens along with the device.
The revamped body though welcome had an issue. We couldn’t securely grip the camera like other dSLRs. The battery compartment protrusion didn’t welcome our fingers getting sinking in. On the bright side, there is rubberized texture helps in bit in gripping.
The mode dial is on the left side of the viewfinder. The button for exposure compensation is located behind the shutter. We didn’t like this and had to move our hand around to access it. We think this will discourage people to use it.
Sony gives us two slots for memory cards on is for SD card which is more popular and other is Sony’s proprietary cards. We were really glad Sony did this, instead of forcing the Memory Stick PRO Duo card slot on to us. You get a manual switch to photo saving on the cards.
Controls on the back are typical of a dSLR and a veteran won’t take much time to get used to it. Just below the thumb rest is the four way navigation button with an AF button in the center. It gives you options for drive mode, display choices, ISO sensitivity settings and flash options. The Fn ubutton is located above the switch for navigation which gives you access to all the settings for shooting and there some more like autofocus mode, metering mode, AF area, white balance, Creative style and D-Range Optimizer. If you pause on a feature for too long without selecting anything, the SLR assumes you are confused and hence gives you help through text pops. Menu system contains functions for flash compensation, toggle the image stabilization and image quality. We found that the user interface was really friendly and there was nothing misplaced or confusingly buried underneath something else.
The viewfinder of the camera is pretty average, which is typical of a dSLR. We had difficulty in seeing the focus dots blinking red, particularly against objects which were dark. But still it is better than A330. SteadyShot scale shows you if you are at your least shaky and this is a feature which other competitors have started to offer too which is like a compliment.
We had no issues with the speed of the SLR. It takes just 0.4 second to wake up and start shooting for the A230. In bright light, focusing and shooting takes 0.3 second and in dim light it is delayed to 0.6 second. Usually Shot-to-shot time for RAW is same as JPEG but here it takes about 0.7 second for RAW and 0.5 second for JPEG. Flash shot-to-shot time is 1.5 seconds which is almost twice when compared to Rebel XS and D60. Continuous shooting speed is 2.4 frames per second which is fractionally short of Canon and Nikon.
The photo quality of the A230 was good however Sony tries to provide us “consumer friendly” photos just like Pentax does with the K2000. Sony, by default, keeps the sharpness, saturation and contrast settings at 0 which you can increase or decrease. We think this would confuse an amateur user and a veteran who knows how to fiddle with these settings won’t go for this entry level camera in the first place at all. Considering the sharpness, exposure and noise the photo quality is pretty good. Dynamic Range Optimizer gives a more detail in midtones and shadows and gets back some clipped highlights and shadows. We were disappointed by the kit lens, they are not as sharp as models like Nikon and Canon. Sharpness starts to dip when you go beyond ISO 400 color noise gets in at ISO 800 and beyond. Images will get very noisy and soft at ISO 1600 and ISO 3200.
Nitty Gritty:
Sony Alpha DSLR-A230 is an entry level camera and we would recommend you to go for this one instead of the more expensive A330, if you are choosing amongst the two. But if you are on the look out for a cheapest dSLR without any serious quality issues, our best bet would be the Pentax K2000.
