Sony out to surprise us all (well those who didn't already know...) today announced three new digital cameras the DSC-S70 (3.3 megapixels), DSC-S50 (2.1 megapixels) and DSC-S30 (1.3 megapixels). Each camera housed in a similar case (but rather more traditional looking body than the F505) features a 3x Carl Zeiss zoom lens, 2.5Hour Lithium batteries USB and a TIFF mode...

Sony DSC-S70, S50 & S30 release dates and prices
(Japan)

Model Release date
(Japan)
Price (exc. Tax)
(Japan)
Sony DSC-S70 March 25 113,000 YEN (~US$1000)
Sony DSC-S50 April 15 88,000 YEN (~US$840)
Sony DSC-S30 April 25 63,000 YEN (~US$600)

Sony DSC-S70 specifications

Name Sony DSC-S70
CCD 1/1.8" 3.3 megapixels (RGBG filter)
Image sizes 2048 x 1536, 2048 x 1360 (3:2 mode), 1600 x 1200, 1280 x 960, 640 x 480
Image modes JPEG, TIFF, GIF (text), MPEG1
ISO (sensitivity) Auto, range unknown
Lens Carl Zeiss 3x Zoom (34-102mm 35mm equiv.) F2.0 - F2.5
Lens thread 52 mm
Digital Zoom 2x
Autofocus TTL autofocus / macro option
Manual focus Presets: 0.5m, 1.0m, 3.0m, 7.0m, Infinity
Shooting distance Normal: 25cm - infinity
Macro: 4cm - infinity
Optical viewfinder Yes
LCD monitor 2" Hybrid TFT EX (123,000 pixels)
Storage MemoryStick - 8MB supplied
Metering modes Auto, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, Night, Night+, Scenery, Spot
Picture effects B&W, Sepia, Negative, Solarise
Burst Animation modes: MPEG1, 320x240, 160x112
Shutter speed range Auto: 1/30s - 1/1000s, Shutter Priority: 8s - 1/1000s
Aperture range F2.0 - F2.5 / F8.9
Exposure compensation +/-2EV in 1/3EV steps
White balance Auto, Hold, Indoor, Outdoor
Sharpness control 5 levels
Self-timer 10 secs
Flash Built-in, External sync connector
Flash coverage 0.3m - 2.5m
Flash modes Cancel, Auto, Auto anti-red-eye (flash output level control)
Playback Trim, Resize, Playback zoom 5x
Interface USB
Video output NTSC / PAL
Power requirements Sony NP-FM50 InfoLithium battery & Charger
Dimensions 117 x 70 x 65 mm (lens not extended)
Weight (no batteries) 310 g (420g including battery)
MSRP Price 113,000 YEN (~US$1,000)
Release date 25th March 2000 - Japan

Sony DSC-S70 Samples @ PC Watch

Sony DSC-S50 specifications

Name Sony DSC-S50
CCD 1/2.7" 2.1 megapixels (RGBG filter)
Image sizes 1600 x 1200, 1600 x 1072 (3:2 mode), 1280 x 960, 640 x 480
Image modes JPEG, TIFF, GIF (text), MPEG1
ISO (sensitivity) Auto, range unknown
Lens Carl Zeiss 3x Zoom (39-117mm 35mm equiv.) F2.8 - F2.9
Lens thread 37 mm
Digital Zoom 2x
Autofocus TTL autofocus / macro option
Manual focus Presets: 0.5m, 1.0m, 3.0m, 7.0m, Infinity
Shooting distance Normal: 25cm - infinity
Macro: 3cm - infinity
Optical viewfinder No
LCD monitor 2" Hybrid TFT EX (123,000 pixels)
Storage MemoryStick - 4MB supplied
Metering modes Auto, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, Night, Night+, Scenery, Spot
Picture effects B&W, Sepia, Negative, Solarise
Burst Animation modes: MPEG1, 320x240, 160x112
Shutter speed range Auto: 1/30s - 1/725s, Shutter Priority: 8s - 1/725s
Aperture range F2.0 - F2.9 / F11.9
Exposure compensation +/-2EV in 1/3EV steps
White balance Auto, Hold, Indoor, Outdoor
Sharpness control 5 levels
Self-timer 10 secs
Flash Built-in
Flash coverage 0.3m - 2.5m
Flash modes Cancel, Auto, Auto anti-red-eye (flash output level control)
Playback Trim, Resize, Playback zoom 5x
Interface USB
Video output NTSC / PAL
Power requirements Sony NP-FM50 InfoLithium battery & Charger
Dimensions 113 x 68 x 69 mm (lens not extended)
Weight (no batteries) 280 g (370g including battery)
MSRP Price 88,000 YEN (~US$840)
Release date 15th April 2000 - Japan

Sony DSC-S30 specifications

Name Sony DSC-S30
CCD 1/2.7" 1.3 megapixels (RGBG filter)
Image sizes 1280 x 960, 1280 x 848 (3:2 mode), 640 x 480. 1472 x 1104 interpolated 1.6Mpixel mode
Image modes JPEG, TIFF, GIF (text)
ISO (sensitivity) Auto, range unknown
Lens Carl Zeiss 3x Zoom (39-117mm 35mm equiv.) F2.8 - F2.9
Lens thread 37 mm
Digital Zoom 2x
Autofocus TTL autofocus / macro option
Manual focus Presets: 0.5m, 1.0m, 3.0m, 7.0m, Infinity
Shooting distance Normal: 25cm - infinity
Macro: 3cm - infinity
Optical viewfinder No
LCD monitor 2" Hybrid TFT EX (123,000 pixels)
Storage MemoryStick - 4MB supplied
Metering modes Auto, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, Night, Night+, Scenery, Spot
Picture effects B&W, Sepia, Negative, Solarise
Burst n/a
Shutter speed range Auto: 1/30s - 1/725s, Shutter Priority: 8s - 1/725s
Aperture range F2.0 - F2.9 / F11.9
Exposure compensation +/-2EV in 1/3EV steps
White balance Auto, Hold, Indoor, Outdoor
Sharpness control 5 levels
Self-timer 10 secs
Flash Built-in
Flash coverage 0.3m - 2.5m
Flash modes Cancel, Auto, Auto anti-red-eye (flash output level control)
Playback Trim, Resize, Playback zoom 5x
Interface USB
Video output NTSC / PAL
Power requirements Sony NP-FM50 InfoLithium battery & Charger
Dimensions 113 x 68 x 69 mm (lens not extended)
Weight (no batteries) 280 g (370g including battery)
MSRP Price 63,000 YEN (~US$600)
Release date 25th April 2000 - Japan

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