Sony DSC S650 Review

The Sony DSC S650 is a seven megapixel starter digital camera. It has a standard three times zoom lens. It is easy to use and likely to appeal to anyone looking for a less expensive camera from one of the leading brands. The DSC S650 is on the large side to fit into a pocket, but is compact enough to be carried around without a problem.

Shutter Lag and Recycling TimesThe shutter lag delay for taking a single photo was 0.41 seconds. This is just above average. For five photos it took a respectable 8.30 seconds. Turning the flash on and repeating the tests is a whole new ball game. Times increased dramatically to 2.21 seconds for a single photo and 22.67 seconds for five photos. Sometimes it seemed to take an age to get the camera to focus with the flash turned on. You can compare this camera to other models by taking a look at the Shutter Lag Comparison Table.

Features

The 3x optical zoom lens has a focal length equivalent to 35 - 105mm in 35mm format. The zoom power of the DSC S650 can be increased by using a feature called smart zoom. More and more smart zoom becomes available as you decrease the resolution you are shooting at. A maximum of 14x smart zoom is available at the lowest resolution. 6x digital zoom is another alternative. For lining up shots there is a 2" LCD screen. This is made up of 115,000 pixels. I must say I found the screen more or less impossible to see in bright sunlight. It was by far the worst camera in this area out of the ten I was testing at the time. The flash works up to 3.5m. This falls to 2m when the zoom lens is in use. Flash modes are Auto, Forced Flash, Slow Syncro and No Flash. Red eye reduction is also available. There is the usual selection of scene modes. These are Twilight, Twilight portrait, Soft snap, Landscape, Beach, Snow and High Sensitivity. By selecting the type of scene you are about to photograph the camera is able to use what it considers to be the optimum settings for the shot.

Ease of Use

Ease of use is a strength of the camera. Most of the key controls are available through buttons on the back of the camera and also a control dial on the top. The menu system is straightforward and you should be able to find the options you are looking for without to much of a problem.

Cost

You can pick up a Sony DSC S650 for £95. This compares to the Canon Powershot A550 £115, the Fuji Finepix A700 £95 and the Olympus FE-210 £90.

Style

From the front the camera looks like many of the other cameras in the current Sony range. It is on the large side to fit into a pocket with dimensions of 91 x 61 x 26.5mm. It weighs 130g. Other than that there is not a lot that really distinguishes this camera from other models.

Batteries

Two AA batteries are required to run the camera. Sony estimate a typical pair of batteries should be good for around 100 shots before they need replacing.

Memory Cards

There are 24mb of storage built into the camera. Therefore a memory card is not supplied as standard. I was able to take seven shots before the internal memory was full. The camera is compatible with memory stick duo and memory stick duo pro cards. Click here to save money on Memory Stick Duo.

Summary

I know the Sony DSC S650 is not the most expensive digital camera, but I was still disappointed by its performance. Shutter lag with the flash, the performance of the LCD in bright sunshine and the lack of sharpness it the outdoor shots are all major drawbacks.