Sony Europe has released details of two new Alpha DSLR cameras that are due to go on sale in the Northern Hemisphere summer (Australian winter).

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June 10, 2010: Sony Europe has released details of two new Alpha DSLR cameras that are due to go on sale in the Northern Hemisphere summer (Australian winter).
As far as we have been able to ascertain, only one of these models will be offered in Australia, the higher-specified DSLR-A390. Both models offer an effective resolution of 14.2 megapixels and have dual SD/Memory Stick Duo card slots. Both feature 6.7cm (2.7-inch) TFT Clear Photo LCD monitors with 230,400-dot resolution. The redesigned body has an improved grip and the position of control buttons has been revised to provide more comfortable handling. The ?390 adds Quick AF Live View with a live image preview on the tilt-angle screen with speedy, accurate phase-detection autofocus.

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Front view of the DSLR-A390. (Source: Sony.)

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Rear view of the DSLR-A390 showing the tilting LCD monitor. (Source: Sony.)
New user-friendly on-screen Help Guide and Graphic Display functions make the DSLR-A390 ideal for novice users. The Help Guide offers concise explanations of camera functions, illustrated by a sample image. Quick access to shooting and playback menus is streamlined by coloured on-screen icons. The Graphic Display makes it easy to understand the relationship between shutter speed and aperture and shows the effects of a chosen exposure settings on the final picture.

To the best of our knowledge, neither of the new cameras supports video recording. The DSLR-A390’s rechargeable lithium-ion battery is CIPA rated for 500 shots when the viewfinder is used for shot composition. The camera body measures 128.1 x 97.1 x 79.6 mm and weighs 508 grams with battery and Memory Stick Duo card.