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top LCD, what for?

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AllanMarcus

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Sorry if this has been asked before. Just got an A77 (I've use KM5D, A100, and A700) and I'm not sure what the point of the LCD screen on the top is for? Is there a way to turn it off and save battery?

Am I missing something? All the info in the top LCD is available via the various other screens.

--
Thanks,

Allan Marcus
Sony Alpha A77
Mac OS X
 
I agree, I understand only limited info can be displayed on this small screen, but it's too basic to useful for me.
No ISO, no amount of exposure compensation, etc.
So it looks nice but in practice I hardly check the top LCD.
 
Generally this is a carry over from the film camera days, when no rear LCD was fitted. You could look down and see the camera settings, before raising the camera to your eye.

With modern cameras it is largely redundant, but now tends to be fitted (marketed) to more "Professional" cameras. Some people swear by them while others would prefer more space to fit additional buttons or switches on the camera. I would love a switch for the SSS, as I tend to forget if I have left it on or off.
 
The top display window on the A77 takes very little battery power. It lets you see all the pertinent information at a glance even when the rear LCD panel is turned off. This can extend battery power considerably.
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Sony SLT-A77 / Rokinon 8mm / Sigma 10-20 f4.0-5.6 / Sigma 18-250 f3.5-6.3 / Sigma 50-500 f4.5-6.3 OS / Minolta 70-210 f4.0 / Minolta 50 f1.7 / Kenko MC4 AF 1.4 / Sony HVL- F56AM flash Karl Scharf
 
I usually use viewfinder and lock/turn off the main LCD. With Auto-Option, the viewfinder is off too all the time, it only turns on when the sensor detects my eyes. So it saves battery, and I get about 1000 shots on one battery.

When the main LCD is closed/off, the top LCD comes really handy for a fast change av EV, ISO and aperture, which I use frequently.
 
AllanMarcus said:
Sorry if this has been asked before. Just got an A77 (I've use KM5D, A100, and A700) and I'm not sure what the point of the LCD screen on the top is for? Is there a way to turn it off and save battery?

Am I missing something? All the info in the top LCD is available via the various other screens.
Click to expand...
I suspect it was because the A700 got slammed by the press for not having one. Apparently a top LCD is an essential feature of any "professional" camera, even though they are pretty much obsolete in the digital age. Personally, I think that it is a criminal waste of potential button space!
 
DSLR for The pro must have an LCD in top. Otherwise its not serious, The buyers and The reviewers think. In The oud days is was handy. With the A77 you dont need it. Its all in The viewer, rear lcd.
What à reliëf.
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Catch the light!
http://www.jantepas.nl
 
This is kinda funny to me. Before reading this I forgot my A90 had one!!
 
And like others have said, it makes your camera look pro.

Other than that...can't think of any reason. Think I've used it once since I got the camera. One of the things I love about my SLT is the fact all the information is inside the viewfinder.
 
I use it often, especially when doing groundlevel shots using the LCD. My eyes are going south and the top LCD is a help.

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Busch

Take the scenic route! Life is too short to do otherwise.

http://www.pbase.com/busch
 
Thanks for all the responses.
--
Thanks,

Allan Marcus
Sony Alpha A77
Mac OS X
 
I wanted to get the Alpha 77 also, until I realized that it had this carry-over LED info screen from who knows when. My 22 years old SLR also has such a screen, so there.

Too bad they stuck one of these things on the A99 as well, instead of populating that handy topside surface area with 6 more function buttons. AFAIK, out of the SLT line-up, only the A77 and A99 have the topside screen, right?
 
But in the newer cameras (with LCD screens that move around, like the A77 and it seems the A99), the relevance of that sort of usage scenario just got screwed over.
 
I use it often as it improves battery. It would work even better if you could use the evf to only display live view, the LCD to review pictures and change settings and the top lcd to review those settings.

Just out of curiosity, when the A700 came out, one of the main critics posted here was that it didn´t had a top LCD and when the A900 came out, it was too small.

--
Proud A100, A300, A700 and now A77 dSLR shooter.
Ex. s602z, with an Fuji s9500 as backup
Also have a HX9V that i love
 
AllanMarcus said:
Sorry if this has been asked before. Just got an A77 (I've use KM5D, A100, and A700) and I'm not sure what the point of the LCD screen on the top is for? Is there a way to turn it off and save battery?

Am I missing something? All the info in the top LCD is available via the various other screens.
Click to expand...
No, you're not missing anything. It was removed long ago in the 7D, a100 and a700, and they got criticized in reviews (for example, at this site, negative bullet points for both a100 and a700) for not having a top LCD. Then it was put in again, in the a900, then being called "small", "almost redundant" and "very limited" in the review at this very site (still a negative bullet point). Then, in the a77 review when this camera had gained a huge LCD, dpreview said "unusual" and "we don't really feel it's necessary" with a top panel. I'm not kidding, look it up.

Watch the pea under the cup.

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http://www.magnuswedberg.com
 
First off, since when is an LED screen an LCD screen?

Second off, with the EVF plus the LCD screen plus the topside LED screen, now you have 3 screens of one type or the other to show you this, that, and the other.

Just how many would one really need on a single camera, I wonder? Maybe we need a 'top model" from some bold mfr with a grand total of 4 screens, wow....

I could take so much better pictures and videos with something like that, honestly I could. :-)
 
Sorry, no! I use the a77 and the titling LCD is great but when you have old eyes the display is small when the camera is down at ground level and I'm leaning over. The top LCD info is much easier for me to read. Of course I use the normal LCD for framing.

--
Busch

Take the scenic route! Life is too short to do otherwise.

http://www.pbase.com/busch
 
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