Reviews for Sony Cyber-shot DSC-F88 Compact Camera

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-F88 Compact Camera

Strengths: rotatable lense, battery life, size, scene selection

Weakness: proprietary memory sticks are more expensive and less available.

I love this camera. I wanted something small enough to fit in my front pocket (it does) with at least 4 mega pix resolution (it has 5.1). I always take pictures by pointing the camera at myself and my friends (like Dave Attell on Insomniac). These pictures didn't always end up well-framed but the rotatable lense fixes all that. The only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is the memory stick, which costs twice as much as the SD cards and isn't very available in some stores. I ended up getting a rebate deal on a Sandisk 256 memory stick pro for about $45 after rebate. Similar sized SD cards sell for less than $25 and I've seen them for $10 after rebate.

I've never used up the battery life on this camera. It has lasted for several hours (sometimes even days) across multiple outings and through entire family reunions. The camera turns on within 1-2 seconds of rotating the lense forward and since the zoom is internal, there is no waiting for the lense to extend. I think this feature helps save a lot of battery life from extending and retracting the lense when the camera is turned on-off.

I also wanted a camera that is ready to take pictures very soon after it is turned on and very quick shot-to-shot. This one does. Without the flash it is on almost immediately and it is only a second or two between shots. Witht the flash these numbers go up to a few seconds, but still infinitely faster than my old Kodak 4300.

I am not a professional photographer, but I haven't had an noticable problems with color or distortion. The camera has a real-time color histogram to help avoid over-exposure. It also has multiple scene selections for taking pictures under different scenarios (night, candle-light, water, landscape, portrait, etc.). These are quite handy for some situations, although they do not always produce a better picture. Particlularly for the low light settings, the exposure time is so great that a tripod is necessary to remove the blur from the motion of your body as you take the picture.

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Sony Cyber-shot DSC-F88

Sony's latest swivel-lens design is a compact marvel, with good to excellent picture quality, easy auto and "scene" modes for the novice, loads of features for the enthusiast, all rolled into a compact, rugged package with excellent battery life. If you're looking for a great portable camera with good image quality and plenty of features, the DSC-F88 could be the ticket. Check it out!

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