New Gear: Sony DSLR-A550 and DSLR-A500

If you're not ready to step up to Sony's new full-frame A850, Sony has two more consumer-oriented cams ready to go in your bag. Both cams sport new Exmor CMOS sensors. The A500 checks in at 12.3-megapixels and the A550 moves up to 14.2. They both come with a 3-inch tilt-angle LCD, in case you need a break from the viewfinder every now and then. The A550 starts at $950 ($1050 with aWith 18-55mm lens) and the A500 checks in at $750 with an extra hundred dollars tacked on for the kit lens. More pictures and all the important specs below.

--ISO settings up to 12800 with reduced picture noise
--BIONZ image processing engine
--Shooting speed of 4 fps in live view or 5 fps with the optical viewfinder --Speed priority momde (A550 only) moves up to 7 fps
--3-inch LCD with tilt-angle
--Viewfinder has 95% coverage
--Redesigned UI to make for simple operation
--Auto HDR mode which combines two frames, even if you're shooting hand-held --"A Smart Teleconvertor button instantly boosts image size by 1.4x or 2x to etend your camera’s zoom lens range further for frame-filling close-ups." (Translation: It's just an in-camera crop)
--SteadyShot Inside optical image stablization
--Compatible with the optional VG-B50AM battery grip

A550




A500

Comments

[dyna]

Another important spec on the A500 and A550 is the support for high speed shutter sync with the HVL-F58AM and HVL-F42AM flashes, that the Bionz processors and the CMOS sensors are all new and completely overhauled, full wireless flash commanding with the built in flash on both A500 and A550, the A550 also sports the same gorgeous 920k dot LCD screen that makes people so happy on their D700 or A900 cameras... and that both camera models support not just the Quick AF Live View mode that's described up top (though you'll be hard pressed to find any other cameras with 4fps in Live View WHILE TRACKING A SUBJECT or using Face Detection), but also full sensor LiveView with manual focus up to 14x magnification for critical work.

Seems to me these are pretty impressive for ze dollar!

[spiruline]

Looks awesome. Definitely going to buy this camera. Great feature, great value. The picture quality of sony is outstanding. 14.2-megapixel resolution for incredible detail.