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let me start by saying that this review in no way reflects the seller, in my opinion the seller is top notch. the camera on the other hand is a lemon. this camera was a purchase for my mother who lost her previous one to a burglary. this camera looks great, has all the functions that i expect out of a sony, and then some. but some of which do not function. lets start with video; this camera is supposed to shoot in hd video format, turn the dial to video and immediately the screen indicates that there is not enough memory on the memory stick, i know this is not true as it is a brand new stick, in fact it is the third stick that i had to purchase to make sure i was using the right kind. now im not a professional videographer, but i am not a novice either, i know that some cards need to be formatted before use, i tried three different stick manufacturers, three different size capacities, 4, 8, and 16 gb. all with the same error message, those of you who try to google search answers on your own, are probably familiar with what i'm referring to. nows lets switch over to camera mode; there is a fifty / fifty chance as to whether the camera will actually compress the image into a file that it will be able to recognize at a later date. i.e. take a picture, review the picture, picture looks great. take another picture, review the picture, error message appears stating "file error" try to review the previous picture and the same error message appears. needless to say i'm not a happy camper about this purchase. i own or have owned approx. 7 different sony cameras, all point and shoot models, and this is the first one that i am really dissapointed in, especially because it was a gift to mom. now it is back at sony's repair center, hopefully it can be fixed. unfortunately it is not a quick turn around. looks to be some where in the neighborhood of about three weeks from being sent to when i'm supposed to get it back.Read full review
The photo quality is very good. I found two setbacks on my T500. The first is the memory stick ysed in T500 must be high speed Mark2 but not all Mark2 I bought can be formatted to run video. The second problem is the unit is easy to get into software problems that would meesed the functions of the unit. The battery must be taken out to reset the system. At least twice in a week my memory stick was corrupted and needed reformat and I lost all of the photos and videos taken earlier. The problems however can be avoided by carefully switching between modes between still photo and video also in reviewing images.
LIKES: For the size, this is an excellent camera. Still pics are beautiful and camera adapts quickly to various lighting in Auto mode. Pics are crisp and colors are vivid. Quick startup and easy to use, straight out of the box without much setup. Hi-Def video (720p) is over the top, especially with built in stereo mic. Cool built-in playback mode allows you to view pics and video directly on the camera with transition effects and background sound. Included software package easily manages media in a calendar format. DISLIKES: Even with a brand new factory battery, battery life is limited. About 10 mins of video recording will consume approx 20 - 30 % of batt life. I highly recommend you buy 2 extra batteries before any vacation. Videos are limited to 10 mins of recording at one time, which is reasonable. Yes, once the first video is copied onto memory stick (about 2 secs delay), you can start another 10 min video recording. Even with steady shot mode, video recording can be very shaky, given the size of the camera (as compared to standard video recorders). Video does output to computer easily via USB interface as mp4 format, but I have had trouble trying to view high def video with any Media Player (including Windows Media Player, MP Classic, QuickTime, etc) even with the latest CODECs. The only way I found to view video output properly was with given Sony software. OVERALL: Given the features and easy to use interface, despite the limited battery life, I would still rate this camera as a 5/5.Read full review
In a nutshell, I use this camera as a replacement for my Panasonic HDC-SD5 palmcorder. The DCS-T500 has very nice picture quality and a bright flash. Nearly as good as the 12MP Kodack v1253. The HD video is very good. Better than v1253 in every way and the SD5 in low light conditions. Comparable with the SD5 in good lighting conditions though not quite as good. Steady shot while not great is quite good enough. Software is very good. Card not included but dock is. The dock really does make life much easier, too bad it won't recharge the camera too, though it may with the optional power supply. Very solid feeling. If you are more than a casual user you will need an extra battery.
This camera is amazing. I am finding new things it can do everyday. I take it everywhere I go.It is small and compact yet gives all the features of a large camera. I would recommend to anyone that loves taking pictures.
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