18.2MP | 26-130mm (5X) Zoom | $348/£317/€338
This is the sixth in a series of short underwater/rugged camera reviews on DPReview. We'll be publishing a roundup of the class shortly, which will compare them directly.
Where most rugged cameras seem like something you'd throw in the glove compartment of your 1-ton truck, the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX30 has a thinner, more stylish appearance. It has an ultra-slim metal body that should be familiar to anyone who has seen a Sony T-series camera in the last few years (non-waterproof models are no longer manufactured), complete with a sliding lens cover and large touchscreen display.
The TX30 has most of the traits of other high-end rugged cameras, with one big exception: it has no GPS.
Specification Highlights
- 18.2 effective megapixel 'Exmor R' BSI-CMOS sensor
- F3.5-4.8, 26-130mm equivalent 'Carl Zeiss' zoom lens (5X)
- Optical image stabilization
- Waterproof to 10m, shockproof from 1.5m, freezeproof to -10C, dustproof
- 3.3 inch widescreen touch-enabled OLED display with 1229K dots
- Built-in LED lamp for close-up macro shooting
- 1080/60i movie mode with stereo sound
- Dual Record allows user to shoot video and take stills simultaneously
The two standout features here are the touchscreen display and Dual Recording feature. We'll dip into those a bit more later in the review.
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The Cyber-shot DSC-TX30 has one of the longer zoom lenses in the rugged camera group, with a range of 26-130mm (5X).
As with most of its peers, the lens has a 'slow' maximum aperture range of F3.5-4.8. |
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Around the lens are a pair of LED illuminators, which can be used to brighten up your subject in the camera's Magnifying Glass Plus mode.
This mode allows you to be 1cm away from your subject. |
Is this ultra-thin rugged camera able to keep up with its bulkier competitors? Keep reading to find out.
If you're new to digital photography you may wish to read the Digital
Photography Glossary before diving into this article (it may help
you understand some of the terms used).
Conclusion / Recommendation / Ratings are based
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Over the past few weeks we've been reviewing this year's collection of weatherproof tough cameras, and in this article we're rounding them up, comparing their relative strengths and weaknesses and taking a more detailed look at how their image quality and feature sets stack up. Even if you've read the full reviews, we recommend clicking through and reading our final, definitive roundup of this year's class of waterproof rugged compacts. Click through for a link.
Sony has announced the Cyber-shot DSC-WX300, DSC-HX300 and DSC-TX30 compact cameras in the US market. The HX300 is a 20MP 50x superzoom with a 24-1200mm equiv. lens. Meanwhile the WX300 is an 18MP Wi-Fi compact superzoom with a 25-500mm equiv. lens. The tough, waterproof, card-style TX30 offers a 26-130mm equiv zoom. The WX300 will cost around $330, while the HX300 and TX30 will have retail prices of $500 and $350 respectively.
Sony has announced the Cyber-shot DSC-WX300, DSC-HX300 and DSC-TX30 compact cameras. The HX300 is a 50x superzoom with a 24-1200mm equivalent lens in front of a 20MP CMOS sensor. Meanwhile the WX300 is a Wi-Fi compact superzoom that Sony says is the slimmest 20x camera. It has an 18MP CMOS chip behind its 25-500mm equiv. lens. Finally, the tough, waterproof card-style TX30 shares the same sensor and offers a 26-130mm equiv zoom. The three models are not currently being announced in the USA.
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