eK-gadgets info

Sony today took the wraps off of two new ultra-slim cameras in their Cyber-shot T-series. The thinnest of the pair is the DSC-T77, which is just 5/8″ thick. I have this camera “in house”, and will be reviewing it in the near future. Until then, you’ll have to live with these specs:

Cyber-shot DSC-T77 

• 10.1 effective Megapixel CCD
• F3.5-4.6, 4X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 35 - 140 mm
• Optical image stabilization
• Ultra-slim body comes in silver, black, green, pink, and brown
• 3-inch, 230,000 pixel touchscreen LCD (16:9 aspect ratio)
• New Intelligent Scene Recognition feature automatically picks one of eight scene modes
• Face and Smile Detection, plus new “anti-blink” feature, which discards photos with closed eyes
• VGA movie mode with sound
• 15MB onboard memory + Memory Stick Duo slot
• Optional HD video output
• Uses NP-BD1 lithium-ion battery; 220 shots per charge
• Ships in late September for $300

Cyber-shot DSC-T700 - changes ;

• 3.5″ touchscreen LCD display with a whopping 921,000 pixels
• Slightly thicker body; available colors include silver, red, gold, pink, and dark gray
• 4GB of onboard memory allows the camera to serve as a portable photo viewer (it can hold 1000 full resolution or 40,000 VGA-size photos); photos can be searched by event, date, smile/face, and more
• Built-in upload tool for YouTube and other social networking sites
• 200 shots per charge
• Priced at $400

Next up, we have Nikon’s first compact camera with a touchscreen LCD. Nikon also managed to squeeze a 5X zoom lens into the Coolpix S60’s slim body. Here’s more:

Coolpix S60

• 10.0 effective Megapixel CCD
• F3.8-4.8, 5X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 33 - 165 mm
• Optical image stabilization
• Ultra-compact body comes in red, black, white, burgundy, pink, and bronze
• 3.5″ touchscreen LCD display with 230,000 pixels
  • Camera has only two buttons (power and shutter release) — everything else, including zoom, is controlled with the screen
  • User can touch area of the frame on which to focus
  • Requisite “paint” and “draw” features in playback mode
• Point-and-shoot operation, with new auto scene selection feature
• Face detection (including the ability to zoom into a face by touching it), smile detection, blink warning, redeye removal, and D-Lighting
• HDMI port (mini type) for connecting to an HDTV; PictMotion slideshow feature now supports HD quality
• VGA movie mode
• 20MB onboard memory + SD/SDHC card slot
• Uses EN-EL10 li-ion battery;

140 shots per charge

• Ships in September for $350

Need a camera with a wide-angle lens that can print billboards? Then check out this next one:

Coolpix S710 

• 14.5 effective Megapixel CCD (!)
• F2.8-5.6, 3.6X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 28 - 101 mm
• Optical image stabilization
• Compact, stylish design, comes in black, red, and silver
• 3-inch LCD display with 230,000 pixels
• Full manual controls; ISO goes to 12,800 at 3 Megapixel (!)
• Same point-and-shoot features as cameras above
• 42MB onboard memory + SD/SDHC card slot
• VGA movie mode
• Uses EN-EL12 li-ion battery; 250 shots per charge
• Ships in September for $380