- 8.1-megapixel Super HAD CCD captures enough detail for photo-quality 16 x 22-inch prints
- Carl Zeiss 5x optical zoom lens; 3.0-inch LCD display
- High Sensitivity Mode (ISO 3200) allows for shooting even in low-light conditions
- MPEG Movie VX Fine mode captures VGA (640 x 480) audio/video clips at high frame rate
- HD output; HD slide show with music feature
Product Description
The 8.1 megapixels DSC-T100 camera is a showstopper with the most powerful zoom and largest LCD screen in Sony’s T-series. With its Carl Zeiss 5x optical zoom lens and 3-inch LCD screen, this model is destined to be the fashionista crowd’s favorite party companion.
Sony Cybershot DSC-T100 8MP Digital Camera with 5x Optical Zoom and Super Steady Shot
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The DSC-T100 is a very good camera and I would highly recommend it. I have had several generations of the Cybershot series (DSC-T1, DSC-T9 and now the DSC-T100) and they’ve all been great, high quality cameras.
This camera takes beautiful pictures. The pictures are clear, little to no white bleeding, with superb colors and great contrast. The lens is bigger than previous models so it works better in low light conditions and apparently this camera uses the noise reduction technology used in the new high end Sony cameras so the pictures should be less noisy when it’s dark too.
The movie quality is 640×480 at 30 frames per second with audio. And unlike the previous models you can zoom while recording movies (BIG plus!), whereas in the previous models you were locked at whatever zoom level you set before you began recording. Also, the movies are saved into MPG and not Quicktime so you’re not locked into a video format.
The camera is bigger than the previous top-end models, but not by much. I imagine they made the change to fit in the 5x optical zoom (over the previous 3x). And while they had the extra depth they threw in a 3 inch LCD (instead of 2.5) and a larger battery (to drive the larger LCD no doubt). I personally preferred the feel of the DSC-T9, but I accept the trading of features for a bit more size.
The downsides to the camera are few and minor, and if I could I would have given this product a 4.5/5, but they don’t let you do that. But, here are the problems I have with this camera.
1. Reduced Buttons: From the previous models they removed buttons and replaced them with software driven menus. While I do not mind software menus, I do mind not having a choice between using the software menus and using physical buttons. They really should have included a button for delete and I really want a switch to pick between movie mode and picture mode. It takes a few extra seconds to switch from the previous models and I don’t like that. Companies seem to think that it makes something easier to use if they make it software driven, but really it makes it harder and slower to use.
2. Options Not Very Accessible: The software menus impose too many limitations. I should be able to cycle through all flash options with the flash button in auto mode, but I have to go into program auto mode to do it, and I have to use the software menus to do it. This camera has the ability to set a brighter flash or a dimmer flash, but it takes so long to change that I won’t ever be able to use it. The same type of problem applies to the red eye reduction (although, I don’t think it’s necessary because it doesn’t seem to have red eye problems since the flash is further away from the lens).
3. The camera is still missing options that the DSC-T1 had. When I bought my DSC-T9 I remembered being so angry that they changed and removed options, and still they’re missing. For example, you can cycle through different display levels (normal, normal with histogram, bright, etc.). On the DSC-T1 there was an option to turn off the backlight, which increased the battery time dramatically. But, you can’t do this on the newer DSC-T9 or even the newest DSC-T100 models.
4. It’s a Sony so you pay a lot more for it. The camera is a reasonable price, but to make it useful you need to buy a Memory Stick Pro Duo, which costs a considerable amount more than SD cards (even though they are the same technology). You also may want the docking station, which is far overpriced, and all of the various other peripherals are more expensive then this should be also.
Don’t let the negatives discourage you though. This is a good product a Sony deserves praise for making it. I just wish they’d consult with me before they marketed it.
Rating: 4 / 5
I’ve had the T100 for just a few days (including a weekend of heavy shooting). I love it. Compared to similar offerings from Panasonic, Canon, Fuji, to name a few, it’s expensive, but it has these following features that I find useful — and they do work well in the real world:
- Excellent picture quality: you buy a digital camera to shoot great-looking pictures, right? The T100 takes excellent pictures indoors and outdoors; like other Sony digicams, it’s especially good at taking scenery photos
- Face detection: automatically sets focus and exposure optimally for light-skinned faces in the picture; seems to work well in well-lit scenes
- Optical image stabilization (“SteadyShot”): helps you steady slow-shutter shots; saves you about 1 f-stop; only Canon and Panasonic besides Sony use this kind of sophisiticated, non-digital technology
- 5x optical zoom: the highest among ultra-slim digital cameras; zoom range is 35mm-175mm equivalent in a 35mm film camera
- Zoom optically while shooting video: I’d been wanting this since the first day (over eight years ago) I got my first digital camera (a Fuji); yes, you can zoom the lens smoothly and *optically* (as opposed to digitally) while shooting in movie mode
- 3″ super-bright LCD: the regular brightness level is pretty usable outdoors, but if you’re shooting in bright sunlight, you can crank up the LCD brightness even further (at the expense of shortened battery life, of course)
- Decent battery life: rated at 340 shots per charge by the Japanese CIPA standard; this translates into pretty good real-world battery life
- Some manual controls available: EV compensation, etc.
- Gorgeous design: and yes, I got this red version
So is this worth almost $400 for an 8-megapixel camera? For me, the 5x zoom and optical image stabilization are must-have features (I’m nuts about shooting low-light photos without using the flash, unless I’m shooting with my Nikon D70 digital-SLR with sophisticated lighting setup that reproduces a natural-light look to the scene).
Canon’s and Panasonic’s and Fujifilm’s shoot excellent-quality pictures, too, but only the T100 has the right mix of image quality (and a great movie mode with zoom), standout styling and ease-of-use that make it a total best buy for me.
Your comments and questions are welcome.
Rating: 5 / 5
First of all I would like to say that I was very reluctant to buy a SONY camera. After doing a lot of research for my needs I ended up with Canon 800IS and Sony’s new toy T100. Ofcourse canon has the best overall ratings for ever but I wanted a stylish looking camera for my needs. Sony T100 is the best looking camera I have seen. It’s features are awesome compared to it’s small size. You can take it everywhere. Big bright screen on the back clearly visible in bright sunlight. It takes good indoor pictures too. I tried to play with its settings for while and thought that camera was not good. But then the best feature of the camera made it a winner for me. The auto mode takes great pictures and no need to set anything. Sometimes changing auto ISO helped to reduce the graniness but to be very honest if you are not going to blow the image to larger sizes (which would be 99% of the time atleast for me) it won’t make difference. Just Point and Shoot. You get a perfect image for viewing on computers. No complaints apart from optional docking station which costs about $80. 5x optical zoom is boon to me as 3x was merely zoom. Also zomming while taking movies makes this a small camcoder with 640×480 30fps shooting.
It doesn’t have touch screen like T50 and so it’s responsiveness is better. I would like it bit faster though. Also camera takes pictures at very fast rate and the first picture you take is less than 2 secs.
I would highly recommend this camera to anyone who can afford it.
Rating: 5 / 5
Pros:
The camera looks and feels great in the hand. The solid metal casing, and the very satisfactory snap of the front sliding mechanism is very pleasing.
I get frequent compliments and looks of envy when i pull this camera out, which to me, is a desired feature for any personal electronics i carry on my person everyday.
The user interface design on sony cameras are generally very intuiative and well thought out. The 3″ screen is gorgeous and the buttons are very tactile and easy to reach and use.
Cons:
The camera captures OK pictures, but nothing to get excited about. It gets extremely noisy in indoor shots. by comparison, the Fuji F10 i bought perhaps 3 years ago easily out shone this camera in picture quality. In terms of a high ISO sensitivy camera (which this camera does boast, with sensitivity up to 3200iso and image stablization), i think i would whole heartedly recommend the much uglier and bigger Fuji F’series.
Unlike the Sony T7 which I also own, I found this camera to be a lot slower in autofocusing when the flash is needed. In any indoor shot, i almost can never capture the shot i had want. I would pull out the camera, point it at my subject, and she/he might pose for me, and the camera would just flash the red focus light on them, for god knows how long, and the camera just won’t snap any pictures. by the time the camera finally does take a picture, the moment is lost (up to 10-20 second) and the composition of the picture i had hoped for is no longer there. the upside i guess, is that i don’t get too many “posed” photos from this camera cause people trying to pose usually assume they don’t have to freeze in a fake smile for that long. by the time the camera flashes, they are generally surprised
Conclusion:
Cute attractive camera might just be right for you. But i’d really recommand getting a few test shots in before you commit this much money to it.
I am not dissatisfied enough with this camera to return it, but i probably won’t buy it again if i had to do it over.
Rating: 3 / 5
I own the Sony Cybershot DSC T100 red, and I must say that this is one of the best compact digital cameras I have ever seen. I have prepared a list of pros and cons for your camera-buying needs.
PROS (There’s a lot of them.):
-The camera is sleek and stylish; it fits in your pocket and is great on-the-go.
-The screen is HUGE! 3 inches! Granted, it’s not as big as the T200 touch-screen, but at least you don’t get the screen all greasy with your fingers.
-The picture is crystal-clear. I’ve taken many pictures of my cat with it, and I could see every hair and every spot. I could even see the small drops of water on her nose (now that’s clear)!
-Good automatic mode if you don’t have time to dabble with the settings.
-Many many many different picture settings. There’s one for outdoors, one for at night, one for high speed, and many more.
-The macro mode is amazing! When you’re taking pictures close-up, the results are fantastic. This camera even comes with super macro mode, which means you can shoot something with astounding clarity from less than one inch away.
-If you’re shooting a rapid action sequence, the burst mode is great. It shoots continuously as the shutter button is held.
-The start-up time is very fast. When my cat starts to yawn, I have enough time to open the camera and take a picture before her yawn ends.
-5x zoom is really all you need for everyday picture-taking. It’s super accurate as well and when you zoom, it flows instead of pausing after every zoom level.
-The camera has a high-definition output and it takes pictures in high definition. It also has a 16:9 picture mode so you can view pictures on a 16:9 television.
-VIDEO! VIDEO! VIDEO! The video quality is so good that this camera actually replaced my regular video camera. Astoundingly clear video. I’ve made several vacation home movies thanks to this amazing device.
-If your pictures always come out blurry because your hands shake, this camera has SteadyShot.
-The display comes with a power save mode (the led becomes darker) which saves you battery life.
-The picture review response time is very fast, you don’t have to wait long at all to see your picture.
-FACE DETECTION! Makes faces really clear. I tried this out on a page of an old yearbook, and the camera detected the faces on the page!
-Red-eye reduction is there, but that’s a standard feature nowadays.
CONS (It was very hard to find any.):
-The button to view pictures is located at the top of the camera next to the power button, so if you have big fingers, you might accidentally press “off” when you want to review a picture.
-Under fluorescent lighting, the pictures don’t give off very natural colors, but they are still suitable for every-day purposes.
-This camera doesn’t have a viewfinder but only has a screen. So for people that are used to looking through a viewfinder, it’s quite a change. You cannot turn the screen off, you can just dim it.
-The SteadyShot feature doesn’t work in auto mode.
-You can’t use flash on super macro mode.
-The face detection is only for eight people, so if you take a lot of group photos with a large group, some faces might be blurry.
I recommend this camera to anybody. It’s a great little device for the price. It’s worth every penny.
Rating: 5 / 5