New Sony Digicams Unveiled

July 25, 2011: Sony Europe has sent us details of two new Cyber-shots that will be added to the company’s line-up in the third quarter of this year.
Weighing only 95 grams without battery and memory card, the new Cyber-shot TX55 claims to be the world’s thinnest camera with Full HD video, while the Cyber-shot WX30 sports a 3-inch touch-screen. Both models feature 16.2 effective megapixel Exmor R CMOS sensors that support Full HD movie recording in AVCHD format. Users can capture 12 megapixel still photos which recording a video clip. A new ‘By Pixel Super Resolution’ technology provides up to 10x Clear Image Zoom (digital) and both cameras come with Intelligent Sweep Panorama HR, 3D Sweep Panorama and 3D Still Image modes plus a variety of in-camera Picture Effects.

Sony’s new Cyber-shot TX55. (Source: Sony.)
The Cyber-shot TX55 is just 12.2 mm wide and features a 3.3-inch Xtra Fine OLED wide touch-screen. It’s the first Cyber-shot with a slot for Memory Stick Micro (M2) and MicroSD/SDHC flash memory cards. All cards come with free PC software (available via download), File Rescue for quick, easy recovery of deleted or damaged photos and files, and x-Pict Story for creating slideshows from recorded photos.

The Cyber-shot WX30 has a similar range of imaging options for stills, Full HD video and 3D shooting but has a slightly smaller monitor. Both models introduce a new ‘Clear Image Zoom’ that boosts magnification without lowering pixel count in the final image. Interpolation extends the camera’s 5x optical zoom range, allowing full-resolution 16.2 megapixel images with a maximum 10x zoom. ‘By Pixel Super Resolution’ technology also significantly boosts still image quality during movie recording. The ‘Dual Rec’ function in both cameras grabs 12 megapixel-level still photos when the shutter button is pressed without interrupting Full HD video shooting.

The Cyber-shot WX30. (Source: Sony.)
Both models feature a new SteadyShot Active Mode that adds electronic image stabilisation for vertical and horizontal handshake correction during Full HD video shooting. The Intelligent Sweep Panorama includes a HR (High Resolution) mode that records 42.9 megapixel panoramas. The 3D Still Image mode grabs a pair of frames in quick succession, estimating depth information to create a dramatic three-dimensional still image. Other 3D shooting options include 3D Sweep Panorama and Sweep Multi Angle.
A new Picture Effect more provides a choice of seven Picture Effect options includes HDR Painting, Rich-tone Monochrome, Miniature, Toy Camera, Partial Colour, Pop Colour and Soft High-key. The Superior Auto mode recognises a wide range of shooting situations, adjusting exposure and other settings for images with low noise and high dynamic range. The Cyber-shot WX30 is compatible with the Party-shot^TM IPT-DS2 docking base.