Announced in January 2005, The DSC-P200 is the direct replacement for the DSC-P150, the first ultra-compact 7 megapixel compact. The changes are minimal (a slight redesign, a new, larger screen, an additional metering mode and the addition of custom white balance) - though pricing is inevitably a lot keener after a year in this fast-moving market. As with the P-150 before it, the P-200 is essentially a 'point and shoot' camera with a Carl Zeiss 3x zoom lens, 7.2 megapixel sensor and a smattering of photographic controls.

  • 7.2 effective Megapixels
  • Carl Zeiss® Vario-Tessar® lens
  • 3x Optical Zoom, up to 14x Smart Zoom, 6x Precision Digital Zoom
  • Large 2.0" LCD
  • Stamina Battery Life (approx 370 shots by CIPA standard)
  • Manual Exposure Setting
  • Slim and Compact High Quality Aluminium Body with Hair Line Finishing
  • MPEG VX Fine with Audio
  • AF Illuminator
  • Histogram Indication
  • USB 2.0 High Speed Transfer
  • Scene Selection Mode
  • Available in Red, Silver and Black versions
  • Conversion Lens Compatible (Optional
  • Cyber-shot Station Compatible (Optional)

Note: Due to the minor nature of the changes, the majority of this review is based on the DSC-P150 review, September 2004.

Sony DSC-P200 Key specifications

Street price • US: $370
• UK: £230
Body Material Metal (aluminum)
Sensor • 1/1.8" Sony Super HAD CCD
• 7.2 million effective pixels
Image sizes

• 3,072 x 2,304
• 3,072 x 2,048 (3:2)
• 2,592 x 1,944
• 2,048 x 1,536
• 1,600 x 1,200
• 640 x 480

Movie clips • 640 x 480 pixels @ 30fps
• 640 x 480 pixels @ 15fps
• 160 x 112 pixels @ 8fps
• Motion JPEG (.avi)
• With sound
• Clip length limited only by media capacity (streaming)
• 640 x 480 pixels / 30 fps only with Memory Stick PRO media
Lens

• Carl Zeiss 38 - 114mm equiv. (3x optical zoom)
• F2.8-F5.2
• 7 Elements in 5 Groups, 3 Aspheric Elements
Focus • TTL autofocus
• 5 Area Multi-Point AF
• 5-step Manual focus
• 6cm macro mode (Wide), 30cm (Tele)
Shooting mode

• Auto
• Program
• Manual
• Twilight
• Twilight Portrait
• Landscape
• Soft Snap
• Candle
• Snow
• Beach
• Fireworks
• High Speed Shutter
• AE compensation -2.0EV to +2.0 EV in 1/3EV steps
Metering • Center, Multi-Segment, Spot
Sensitivity • Auto
• ISO 100
• ISO 200
• ISO 400
White Balance • Auto
• 5 presets
• Custom (manual)
Image parameters

• Saturation (3 levels)
• Contrast (3 levels)
• Sharpness (3 levels)
• Color effects (Sepia, Black and White)
Continuous • 0.6 to 0.9 fps (5 shots 7MP / JPEG fine)
Flash • Built-in flash
• Auto, Forced On, Forced Off, Slow Synchro
• Range (ISO auto): Wide; 0.2 - 3.5 m (0.66 - 11.48 ft)
Tele; 0.3 - 3.5 m (0.98 - 11.48 ft)
Storage • Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO
• 32MB Memory Stick supplied*
Viewfinder • Real Image Optical
LCD monitor • 2.0 " TFT, 134,000 pixels
Connectivity • USB 2.0
• A/V out
• DC-IN
Power • NP-FR1 Rechargeable InfoLithium® Battery,
• AC adapter included (in-camera charging)
In the box*

• NP-FR1 Rechargeable InfoLithium Battery
• AC-LS5 Battery Charger
• Combined AV / USB Cable
• Wrist Strap
• MSA-32A 32MB Memory Stick® Media
• Software CD-ROM (Picture Package™ for Sony v1.0 (Windows), Pixela™ ImageMixer VCD2 (Macintosh), SPVD-012.1 USB Driver, Cyber-shot Life tutorial (Windows)
Other features

• PictBridge and DPOF compatible
• Live Histogram & playback histogram
• Autofocus Illuminator
• Optional 2.6x Tele converter lens (VCL-DH2630)
• Optional 1.7x Tele converter lens (VCL-DH1730)
• Optional 0.7x Wide converter lens (VCL-DH0730)
• Optional Camera Dock (Cyber-shot Station CSS-PHA)
• Optional Slave flash + bracket
• Optional filter kits and filter adapter

Weight (inc batt) 144 g (5.4 oz)
Dimensions 104 x 52 x 28 mm (4.1 x 2 x 1.1 in)

* Supplied accessories may differ in each country or area