Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
TylerR
(San Jose, CA)
Date
2-Jul-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
107of108
people found this helpful
Pros:
Quality, great low-light photos, manual focus, Video quality
Cons:
Playback button is far to reach for people w. small hands
This camera is INCREDIBLE. I was making my way into the superzoom camera market but not quite at SLR level. I had previously owned a nikon superzoom and it wasn't cutting it, there were minimal settings you could use, and the low light quality sucked. to boot, the flash was dead and they wanted to charge almost the whole price of the camera to fix it!
Anyways, on to the review.
This camera super clear photos, even at night. I don't have a single photo out of the 1000+ photos i've taken on vacation in chicago that isn't clear. The video quality is better than basically all video cameras the under $500 category. And this camera isn't even a dedicated video camera! Audio is excellent as well, and night video recording has absolutely no blur with real looking light. The image stabilization is so good for pictures and videos that I don't even need a tripod when zooming all the way across the 120x zoom. The features of this camera are awesome to play around with too. The fact that this cam can do a manual focus is really neat too, it uses the ring on the front for focus. The camera has a setting as well that saves grainy and blurry night shots by doing a burst 6 shot for night photos and processes out the noise, blur and grainy look to make stunning night photos without a tripod! I'd highly recommend this camera, it beats out the Nikon P510, Panasonic FZ150 and Canon SX40 In almost all aspects. Only thing I can find that bad (its not even bad for most people) is that people will small hands will have to reach pretty far to hit the playback button. At least for me it was a minor issue that I got over quick. But for everyone else, it shouldn't be a problem at all. One last thing is that I'd read the in-camera manual so you know all the amazing features this cam has. Without a doubt I recommend this camera.
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Liberty2013
(Phoenix AZ)
Date
12-May-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
55of58
people found this helpful
Pros:
battery life, great pictures, good in-motion pictures, zoom
Cons:
digital zoom
This camera is great, it looks good and takes amazing photos, the zoom is outstanding, but the digital zoom is often out of focus and very sensitive to movement, however it is better on this camera than on most cameras out there. The optical zoom is amazing!
Overall it's a great camera for beginners, or professionals, it's great for every day use and vacations, great buy!
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Bellatrix
(Hawaii, USA)
Date
17-Mar-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
200of205
people found this helpful
Pros:
design, customizable modes, quality, weight, battery,
Cons:
macro designated mode, lens cap attachement (so minor), good manual that shows how versatile and amazing this camera is
After a month of going back and forth between all sorts of bridge, SLR, DSLR cameras I have made a choice to get this Sony Camera, which would be 5th in the Sony family I own.
If you are like me where you are an addicted photographer, who carries her camera everywhere with, and has a great imagination and vision for all sorts of composition yet exhausted point and shoot options, and want something much more without feeling overwhelmed with the nuts and bolts of highly advanced photography, this camera will take you places and more. I have read every review on the last years 100V model and people who claim over saturated colors simply have to learn the depths of this camera, and how to use it. Even though there are 2 Auto modes there it still has ability to customize within those 2 settings. I also read about the noise & grain in the last's year model reviews - again learn about ISO and how to use it to your advantage in different lighting conditions, with any camera it is about mastering the light - this camera is highly intuitive and is user friendly. Take time to learn it, and practice each mode until you feel you can smoothly go through changing settings within that mode as the light changes around you for example during shooting landscape. If you are passionate about photography as a hobby that feeds your spirit, and you want to take that hobby to a next level including professionally, this camera will support your needs. If you have no clue about aperture, shutter speed, ISO this unit might be too overwhelming.
Battery seems always to be an issue, but there are ways to save your power in the general menu settings, turn off your GPS, In Guide, change the LCD onscreen brightness and you are saving battery. Get on amazon additional 2 batteries and a wall charger, which I did, and if you are out in terrain shooting all day long, you will be just fine.
Speed, this camera is fast enough for me personally - yes it does take few seconds to start up, or process but with all the specs and modes the brain of this camera it is not an issue, also you can diminish the processing time in certain modes by simply clicking the shutter. Ask yourself for what purpose you need this camera and what are your expectations. It sucks to see a great camera like this (last year's model) to be getting bad reviews because people expect DSLR performance. To me it is pretty close, but I have just gotten this camera few days ago and after taking 300 photos I only see how much more for me there is to explore in order for my photos to take full advantage of the HX200V.
I mention the lack of macro mode, which is a minor inconvenience, if again one has some photo glossary knowledge. You have 2 focus options - auto and manual, so in your manual mode you can use the manual focus and get magnificent photos.
Video - I have not tried it yet, so no comment here.
I purchased this camera for assisting me to upgrade my photo skills and take my long amateurish journey into a next level. So again if you are looking for video camera, maybe look at camcorders, if you are looking for an overall amazing camera with superb photo shooting, this is it.
Design is also incredible - I have small to medium hands, and the design here is perfect, and so is the weight. It is truly a beautiful camera if like me you also like the aesthetics of your equipment.
Lack of manual showing all different options is somewhat a tiny disappointment with Sony as a company, because if they would hire few peeps dedicated to offering in depth tutorials on how to use this camera, more people would buy it, or buy it and keep it, instead of returning it for lack of knowledge on how to use it.
Lens cap - still got to figure out how to attach it to the camera for now I just put it in my pocket when camera is in use.
So I absolutely highly recommend this camera if you LOVE photography, LOVE to know things about what you are doing do not have the ability to invest or physically carry all sorts of lens and tog along heavy equipment. I am very much so in LOVE with this unit, and am proud to say I use Sony camera :). Great Job Sony!!!!
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
CarLife
(Bronx, NY)
Date
24-Feb-2013
I've had this product for3-6 months
6of6
people found this helpful
Pros:
Clean, Clear
Cons:
Slow
This camera is the best camera ive ever owned. The Photos are very beautiful and clean. It's perfect for my automotive photography.
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 1.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Fotoman
(Marysville, CA)
Date
15-Nov-2012
I've had this product foren_CA, SonyStyleText, REVIEWS_Have_Had_Product_For_
15of61
people found this helpful
Pros:
Nice Camera
Cons:
No Good Battery
Please let me know when this model or one like it comes out that uses AA batteries.
Rated 3.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Alikcee
(ny)
Date
17-Dec-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
11of16
people found this helpful
Pros:
true color pictures
Cons:
slow when processing
Sony please tell me why when I am taking pictures it's very slow processing ? It take so long before I can take for the next picture ? I am using (10) memory card.-20MB This was my problem on my previous camera 16 MG. Now I bought this one 18 mega but still the same VERY SLOW PROCESSING. Maybe there is a remedy for this . Tell me. Answer is needed right away..Why this is very slowwww.. I can't click for the next picture because it is still processing for a long time..Goshhh I hate it.
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Cheena
(Colombo, Sri Lanka)
Date
14-Jan-2013
I've had this product for3-6 months
10of10
people found this helpful
Pros:
Exceptional crisp images with real colour
Cons:
High speed shooting
Really a good digital compact camera with sound image quality.
It is the best among its competitors. It’s easy to use and comes with very advance features and in-camera HDR and various picture effects that are usually available in DSLR cameras. Intelligent shooting mode is exceptionally beyond expectations as it selects best shooting parameters according to scene requirements..
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
warbler
(Virginia)
Date
7-Nov-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
21of21
people found this helpful
Pros:
Beautiful vivid natural colors. Very easy to use.
Cons:
Difficult to track birds in flight through the view finder.
I purchased this camera to replace my very good DSC-H7 which I used with a 3 x converter to photograph birds. The DSC-HX200V is a great improvement with a super fast automatic zoom capturing photos that would be impossible using a DSLR. The 18.5 MP sometimes appear impressionistic when enlarging photos of small birds taken at full zoom but these are photos that would have been impossible with other cameras.
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
ShebaNV
(Las Vegas)
Date
5-Dec-2012
I've had this product for1-3 months
7of9
people found this helpful
Pros:
30 optical
Cons:
no instruction booklet
I bought this Camera because of the 30 optical close up , it takes exelent pictures , the super high ISO is another great plus . I would recommend this camera , I do love to take pictures and it is great for novics like me .This picture , no flash ,just high ISO and I take all pictures in the highest pixel .
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 3.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
StJerome
(Huntsville, AL)
Date
31-May-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
74of93
people found this helpful
Pros:
Great video
Cons:
Owner Manual is one big joke
Sorry, but the user manual for this camera is a FARCE. The printed manual that comes in the box contains the barest of info on its operations. Believe it or not, the majority of support is embedded in the unit's software on camera, which means that if I want to use a given, unfamiliar feature, I've got to wade through pages of menus (poorly organized) to look for an answer. Worst of all are the icon explanations, which are next to USELESS. I don't know why Sony didn't spend a few cents more and incorporate detailed instructions on a DVD, to be printed out rather than the owner having to go to software in the camera for an answer. For example, on page 12 of the owner manual, item #2, says: "CUSTOM #Custom) [?] button. You can assign a desired function to the CUSTOM button." without further explanation or reference to a page number. My Panasonic DMC-FZ28, which this Sony was SUPPOSED to replace, had complete explanations for all camera features. Shame on Sony for cutting corners on its documentation, the reason why I am returning the unit to Best Buy tomorrow. I will carefully read any
Rated 4.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
TylerSadCyberShotOwner
(Tennessee)
Date
5-Jan-2013
I've had this product for6-12 months
16of18
people found this helpful
Pros:
Very fast shooting, All the modes you could desire, zoom/ focus ring, It has an outstanding flash, battery life is good,
Cons:
Tiny image sensor, No threading for filters, not hot shoe, No manual movie mode, Horrid electronic view finder
Over all, this camera is great, Has all the modes your heart could desire for a camera in this price range. But, I do believe Sony could dramatically change this market of camera with some pretty basic improvements/ changes to this camera. They need, NEED to put in a larger sensor with a faster lens (Bigger aperture), Much like in the Sony RX100, If they just combined the RX100 with this camera, it would be worlds better. With such a small sensor, image quality is good, but not outstanding, and it wouldn't take much effort at all for Sony to change this. Also, they need to step up the optics. The depth of field on this camera is just poor unless you are shooting something less than a foot away from the camera. I have to blur the background of almost every image I take in Photoshop before I would even think about sharing the picture. But, all in all, it is a great camera for Family Photos and pictures of your kids and flowers and stuff if you're an all auto all the way kind of photographer. But for people like me on a small budget looking for a camera to take creative picture and occasionally getting paid for Photo shoots with friends and family, just be prepared to spend days in Photoshop cleaning up images before you could even think about showing them to anyone. But at the end of the day, you'll get a decent picture of whatever you intended, but it won't be stunning like you would get with a dslr. I see a huge potential in this market of cameras and I can only dream that Sony would read this and make the camera of my dreams that I see in my head right now. Side note: Why you would want a bigger sensor? Because there would be less image noise(graininess) and you could crop to your hearts desire and not have to worry too much about loosing quality. Other side note: Why would you want a faster lens(bigger aperture)? Because this would create more depth of field giving you really nice background blur(or bokeh) and much better overall image quality. Another side note: Manual movie mode: This camera NEEDS manual movie mode, because i have noticed that when recording in bright sunlight the camera decides to increase the aperture(creating less depth of field) instead of increasing the shutter speed or putting on the built in ND filter, so you can't get as good of video quality as you could with even a simple firmware update. I'm sorry if there are any spelling or grammar mistakes, I do not want to waste too much time on this as I could be spending my time Photoshopping pictures to sell so I can save up for a Canon 5D Mark III in 50 years. Unless Sony steps up their game with their a99, Then I would consider it. But who am I kidding, Sony doesn't listen to their customers. Back to Photoshop. Last side note, I swear. They make a big deal about background defocus mode and it needs some serious work, never good for people shots, especially those with hair. But works okay for things with very defined edges and very distant backgrounds.
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Huss
(San Diego)
Date
25-Mar-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
40of53
people found this helpful
Pros:
Everything
Cons:
Nothing
It has been only 2 days since I"ve bought this Camera, It is amazing
I recommend to every one
Rated 4.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
KateCh
(Miami Beach, FL)
Date
24-Jun-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
17of77
people found this helpful
I really like pics with dis focused background. And this camera required the objects to be on 30sm distance!! are u kidding me?????? or i just missing something????
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
jds21
(Dayton, OH)
Date
5-Apr-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
56of60
people found this helpful
Pros:
zoom, action photos, clarity
Cons:
none so far
I have had this camera for a little over a day now and I have been taking as many pictures as possible. So far, I love it. The clarity exceeds my expectations, takes great videos and action photos when the flash is on, and is very nice looking. Not too bulky at all in my opinion. I have also always wanted to own a camera that can take awesome moon photos, so last night I zoomed as far as I could up to the moon and as you can see it turned out spectacularly. I even had a friend ask if it was a NASA photo! I can't wait to use this camera more, especially when I travel!
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
NoStupiding
(Phoenix, AZ)
Date
8-Apr-2013
I've had this product for3-6 months
5of5
people found this helpful
Pros:
Zoom, Photo Qualty, Scenes/Modes
Cons:
Speed, particularly flash speed
I absolutely love this camera! I do a lot of event photography, mostly shows/performance art, bands, live music, etc. in mostly dimly-lit bars and night clubs. After dropping and breaking my previous $1,200+ DSLR, and the one before that being stolen, I didn't want to (or have the money to) spend that much again on a new camera. (Photography, is not the base of my work, just something I like to do.) I picked this camera up for just under $400 on sale and was blown away with the quality of the photos and features for the price. I have been able to capture some amazing shots from all the way across a dark bar. The sharpness and color of the photos when using the zoom is very impressive. I think it does great in low-light environments too. At first I was worried about not having the ability of adding a flash, but it's proven not to be an issue. I do find it tends to be a little slow, and it seems to be the lag is because of the flash. I've had no complaints with speed when shooting outdoors in bright light. I've been getting more (positive) comments on photos taken with this camera than I did with more expensive models in the past.
If you're looking for a great zoom and wonderful picture quality for a very reasonable prize, I'd recommend looking into this great camera!
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
SanketPandit
(India, IN)
Date
7-Jan-2013
I've had this product for6-12 months
7of9
people found this helpful
Pros:
Reduced Blur, ND Filter, Image quality
Cons:
Processing speed annoys sometimes
This is my first cam which I'm still using. I really liked it. With Photoshop you can create more amazing images.
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 2.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
wildbird
(Santa Rosa, CA)
Date
23-Jan-2013
I've had this product for3-6 months
7of15
people found this helpful
Pros:
takes nice pictures
Cons:
too heavy, too slow,
I had a Sony DSC HD50 for years and I absolutely loved it. I take a lot of pictures of moving wildlife - mostly birds - and the HD50 let me zoom fast and easliy with the right thumb. The images were wonderful. The user manual that came with was thorough. Yu have to download one for this camera and that is a pain. This camera takes a long time to zoom in because it needs to be done manually with a turn wheel. And sometimes the wheel goes left and sometimes right. Then the lens that extends is heavy and the camera is too hard to hold steady. The HD50 had the balance between point and shoot and DSLR just right. This camera went too far toward the DSLR end and is too difficult to use for my purposes. I thought I would like the GPS on the camera but it's all too complicated. I give it a 2. I actually went on ebay and found a used HD50 to go back to.
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
PhillyPaul
(Philadelphia, PA)
Date
20-Jul-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
86of88
people found this helpful
Pros:
Picture quality, zoom, shooting modes, wide angle, features
Cons:
Lens cap
This camera is really a terrific unit, over and above everything else in the price range.
The picture quality is wonderful, zoom is spectacular and the feature set is fantastic.
I have one minor complaint with the lens cap, as others have identified. It doesnt fit well, pops off and needs improvement.
Otherwise, you will be very happy with this camera...
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
superman999
(India)
Date
16-Apr-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
41of42
people found this helpful
Pros:
long stable zoom,excellent video quality & pics,reasonably fast operations,excellent battery life,good looks & grip!!
Cons:
No raw image,very minor glitches like lens cap not so good,no touch screen,viewfinder could have been better,
I bought this camera few weeks back and i love this fine piece of gadget :-).........The long zoom stable even at 60x clear zoom with very descent picture quality(absolutely no blurring)at that range impressed me the first day itself.Well suited for wild life photography and day to day photography and video.One thing that makes it stand out from the rest out there is its great video capability at full hd and also the ability to capture pics when taking movie in full hd.Another amazing feature i love is its various effects like color filters,toy image etc...also the flash is powerful.The short charging time and long battery life makes it reliable in various situation when charging is not possible.Picture quality is real good but cannot be compared with a dslr.Even though similar to hx100v it is a faster and fun filled version of the hx100v,so hx100v users may not find a lot of difference but definitely faster.This camera has lot of fun features im yet to play with.I would recommend this camera to anyone not requiring a dslr quality but as good as any other point and shoot cam out there with super stable usable zoom and various feature that brings out your creativity.Im posting some pics taken at long zoom range in my backyard....
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 4.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Jarrett
(Louisiana)
Date
29-Apr-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
39of45
people found this helpful
Pros:
Ease of use, Mega zoom, options galore
Cons:
Jog dial no talways responsive
I got this camera as replacement for a pocket size point and shoot. I didn't think I really wanted to spend the time and was going to be dedicated enough to learn all the functions of a DSLR. After reviewing the other cameras I choose the DSC HX200v for the easy of use, insane zoom, and multitude of options to go beyond just point and shoot.
Thus far I am more than happy with this product and learn something new that I can utilize every time I pick it up and delve into the menus and option.
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
harley05
(whitehall mi)
Date
17-Apr-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
42of44
people found this helpful
Pros:
dont think it could be much better
Cons:
none
take the best shot,s and the zoom is great,cant belive how crisp the pics are.swan was out aleast 150yrds in lake
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Sabih
(Pakistan, PK)
Date
19-Jun-2012
I've had this product for1-3 months
51of54
people found this helpful
Pros:
Wide aperture, 30x Zoom (with image stablization), HDR,12,800 ISO,FULL HD movies 60 fps, in camera editing & effects....
Cons:
No Raw support, no external flash
I have found Sony HX200v best among its competitors. It’s easy to use and comes with very advance features and in-camera HDR and various picture effects that are usually available in DSLR cameras. Intelligent shooting mode is exceptionally beyond expectations as it selects best shooting parameters according to scene requirements. Available shooting modes cover a wide range of scenarios and scenes with full manual controls. Even you can focus using the focus ring! The image stabilization also works well even in rough conditions.
Reviewer Images:
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Rated 4.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
DoctorPeds
(Texas)
Date
4-Oct-2012
I've had this product for6-12 months
57of68
people found this helpful
Pros:
GREAT camera
Cons:
LOUSY manual
Camera takes great pics and videos, and has numerous functions.
Too bad Sony FAILED to provide a complete user manual, either with the camera, on this site, or on the CD. The supplied manual is nice for a "snap-shooter" who really doesn't need a camera like this.
For a prosumer etc., trying to learn the myriad functions with no help can be done but takes far too much time.
This will be my LAST Sony until / unless they provide MUCH better manuals, explaining everything in much better detail
Rated 5.000000 out of 5 Stars
Reviewer:
Forooz
(Highlands Ranch, Colorad, USAo)
Date
19-Dec-2012
I've had this product forless than a month
7of7
people found this helpful
Pros:
HD Video, Amazing 3-D and panoramic results, Manual and Automatic zoom and focusing adjustment. Image steadiness
Cons:
Pixelized images at ISO 12800.It can be turned on and off by accident. There is no attachment for the external filters
This is an excellent camera for the creative photography. It can generate very clear images and video clips under different light conditions. Its integrated GPS device can log in geographical positioning. Its Panoramic and 3-D images are very impressive; it can easily interact with my Samsung 3-D smart TV (via HDMI cable) and deliver high-resolution images.
Reviewer Images:
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