Sony Cybershot DSCW150/B 8.1MP Digital Camera with 5x Optical Zoom with Super Steady Shot (Black)

I do not like returning items, I hardly ever do it. I prefer investing time researching reviews and comparing products before committing to buy. This camera was an exception. I ended up returning it to Amazon. This was my first venture into Cybershot point-and-shoot cameras. This camera is very attractive, it looks really good in paper and given the features provided (e.g. 5x optical zoom and nice display size) it beats similar cameras in price by far. However in practice I have to agree with several other reviews, the quality of pictures from this camera is very inconsistent. I understand if quality is inconsistent taken in low light pictures, that is expected from most point and shoot cameras. But the inconsistency is noticeable in pictures taken in good lighting. On average only 2 out of 5 pictures taken were worth keeping, the remaining 3 were either blurred or with a lot of noise.

I upgraded from a Canon A530, even comparing several shots from that camera, the quality of that old Canon beat this Sony; most of the Sony pictures had noise in it. I tried really hard to keep this camera, I tried several different setting with no success. In the end I ended up settling for the Canon SD1100IS, which only has a 3x optical zoom, but the picture quality is far better and very consistent. I was not surprised to see the DSCW150 camera as low as $170 in brick and mortar stores such as Target. The launching price was $249. This was a very poor first impression of Cybershot cameras for me. Hopefully the inconsistency of quality is limited to this model. I am really surprised that at the time of this writing this camera was rated at 4 stars.

Pros: - Clear detail & high quality in both photos & videos
- Good battery endurance
- Helpful onboard Menu Guide & Menu System
- Facilitates Automation well (No knowledge of how to set up your shots necessary)
- Compact size
- Feature loaded! Great onboard interactive & PC features...

Cons: - Small onboard memory. It IS necessary to purchase a Memory Stick to coulpe with the Camera

- The sometimes grainy look of the LCD Display (though this is not an indication of how the shots/videos look)

Hope this helps!!!

We have had this camera for about a month and really love it. It's super fast, really small, and has a nice view screen. I like the fun slide show option where you can download your own songs and play the pictures to music. How fun. It takes wonderful pictures too. We took it to the beach and got some wonderful sunset pics. It has a nice zoom too. The only thing we don't like is it doesn't take double a batteries, and the place to plug it into the computer is on the bottom which isn't very convienient. I would highly reccomend this camera to anyone who wants a really nice point and shoot camera with lots of fun features.

I got this for my husband and for work. We needed a wide angle lens and this one was the biggest I could find in a camera this size. It's working great and we're totally pleased. You will definately need a memory card for taking lots of pictures, but that's with any camera. The only thing to be aware of - the "Red" camera was a little cheaper, so I went for that - but my husband and everyone says it looks like a dark pink. Luckily my husband is secure! So, if you're getting it for a man, be aware that the red is pink.

I've owned this camera for several months now. It's mainly my wife's camera. She carries it in her purse most days.

I'll start with the negatives and then get to the positives:

The charger requires you to remove the battery to charge it. You cannot operate the camera from any power supply in the meantime. Rarely did I ever do this with my old Sony, but I did do it a few times. This gives you no option other than buying more accessories from Sony, which is where they always get you.

The charger is unreliable. If you put the battery in and you walk away, there's probably a 30% chance that it won't charge. Rather the light will blink identifying some problem. I jiggle the battery in and out, and it starts working again. This has left us with a dead battery on more than one occasion.

The lens cover that automatically closes to protect it - very flimsy. Ours broke after a short time of my wife carrying this in her purse. I'm sure it had makeup and stuff bouncing off of it, but the old Sony stood the test of time for 3 years of the same abuse. In fact, that camera still works if you're careful to make sure the shots are in focus (remember I mentioned half the shots are bad these days - thats if you don't concentrate)

We asked someone to take a picture of us and they dug their fingernail tip into the button. The silver covered plastic is now permanently dented. Again, I know this isn't regular usage, but the old Sony has had dozens of random people snap our picture without fail.

The size of the camera - for a really compact camera, this is not very compact. It's actually larger than our older Sony (which had almost all the same features). I expected in three years of development that they'd miniaturize more of it, or at least reduce its weight. It's actually heavier, too. This need for more space may have led to the off-board charger.

Classic Sony accessories game - The Memory Stick required for this always costs more than the comparable SD cards used in many other brands. If it wasn't for the overall quality and features of Sony stuff, I'd avoid it due to the ridiculous accessory prices.

And now what I actually like about this camera:

5x Optical Zoom! Wow, that's a lot in the world of compact cameras. I never turn on digital zoom (as that's just a waste of pixels) so this 5x was a major selling point for me. It is noticeably different than 4x.

It takes great pictures most of the time. With my last camera, I started getting bad shots about every other pic.. so we upgraded and that problem is gone.

The features are easy to handle. Any moron could operate this camera in Easy Mode. Even the same person could handle the auto modes with a little light reading. This camera is easy to use.

Looks - It looks really good. A lot of people have complimented us for having a cool looking camera. (I believe the black helps that) I realize the point is not the looks, but these colors sure seem to influence sales.


Summary: This is a nice camera. Take care of it, and it should serve you well for a while. I will have to send mine in for repair, and then it will be treated as a fragile item for the rest of its service life. I can't assume that this camera will be nearly as tough as the old Sony I had. In this age of Chinese produced crap, this camera is a shining example of lack of durability. You're working backwards, Sony.