I've been using this camera for a couple of weeks and here's a list of what I've shot so far:
Grass sprouts
Landscapes
Selfies
Other people
Food
Stuff in the daytime
Stuff at night
A video of me making coffee
Taking pictures:
It's pretty easy and straight forward. It has two modes where the camera does pretty much everything for you. Superior Auto shoots a burst of photos and creates a composite of the images captured. It's pretty great if you're willing to hold the camera still for about two whole seconds for it to capture the scene. And I'm told it's best to use this mode in darker places to reduce noise, but I haven't tried that yet. I personally prefer the other mode, Intelligent Auto. This mode adjusts the settings according to the shooting conditions. It's quicker to get a picture in this mode while still automating a lot of the process in taking the picture.
Other photo modes include:
Scene Selection: Lets you pick one of the many preset for certain conditions so that things can be more predictable when you shoot. Gives you a little more control than the previous two modes.
Memory Recall: Lets you create some presets that you can recall.
Manual Exposure: Adjust aperture and shutter speed manually. I think this mode is meant to be used for long exposure photos.
Shutter Priority: Adjust only the shutter speed manually.
Aperture Priority:Adjust only the aperture manually.
Program Auto: Sets both aperture and shutter speed automatically, while the other settings can be set manually.
iSweep Panorama: Shoot a panorama picture. You can set the direction you want to sweep, so you can shoot horizontally or vertically.
Taking videos:
Videos are a whole other story with this camera. The first thing to talk about is the video quality when filming. It can capture in 1080p and 60 frames per second in three formats. The first format is MP4, which is the preferred format for YouTube. If you intend to shoot a video that will be uploaded directly up to YouTube, this is the video format to use. I shot a little YouTube video using the "AVCHD 60p 28M(PS)", which was the maximum setting for that video format. It looks good, but when I went to edit it, I can only export into MP4 or some other formats, so next time I'll just use MP4. I couldn't tell the difference anyway when I compared two videos in both formats. There's also the "XAVC S HD" video format, which is said to be suited for shooting movies, but apparently my SD card isn't good enough for it, so I have to wait for my new SDXC card to arrive. I probably won't need it.
Another thing to keep in mind when filming with this camera is the 5-axis stabilization feature. Basically, it's a feature where the sensor in the camera is being mechanically stabilized, giving you no compromise in quality when shooting stabilized video. Most cameras handle this digitally by cropping the actual video and outputting an upscaled version of the cropped video. Depending on how much you shake, you can notice a huge drop in video quality if you use digital stabilization. This camera does not have that issue. An interesting this to keep in mind is that when the feature is on, you can notice the camera adjusting the sensor when you set the camera down, which creates this feeling like you're on a boat or something even though it's sitting on the counter or s sturdy surface.
When it comes to audio, the stereo speakers are located on top of the camera. They're located in a way that makes it pretty impossible to stick fluff to, which is something I see a lot of people do to mitigate wind noises when shooting videos. It does have a feature `There's also no way, that I know of, to connect an external microphone, so that internal microphone is all you have. So far, I don't have any problems with it, but I also don't shoot videos where I talk and I haven't been to any concerts since I bought this.
Other Features:
The flash is hidden away inside of the camera until you hit a switch to pop it up. This means if you want to use the flash, you have to pop it up every time and also remember to push it back down when you're done with it. It sounds like a chore, but it could be a good thing. When you don't need it, you have the assurance that it won't go off when you shoot, because it's tucked away. The flash is located directly above the sensor, so the lighting it provides is pretty centered on the subject.
Auto-focusing was kind of a pain to deal with. The only explanation I've found on how it works is that it auto-focuses on the nearest subject in the center of view. I can see it's pretty quick at auto-focusing, but I can't seem to figure out how to make it focus on what I want it to focus on. I guess I just need to do a lot more research on this.
Transferring photos and videos off this camera is SUPER easy! I connected my phone (Sony Xperia XZ) via NFC and the QR code it provides and both of them work super quickly and the transfer starts right away. Usually takes about 3 seconds for an 18mp photo, which is about 4 MB. You do need to download the PlayMemories app on your phone.
There's an OLED viewfinder that pops up and down. By default, it turns on the camera when it pops up and turns it off when you push it back down. You can turn that off in the setting. It has a proximity sensor that automatically turns on the screen in the viewfinder when you bring it close to your eye. I personally don't use this feature, because I have to get really close to it to set the sensor off and my nose ends up touching the screen below, which is gross in the Summer when I'm sweaty and the sweat gets on the screen.
The flip up screen is amazing! It would automatically flip the image and the HUD. By default, when you flip up the screen and press the shutter button, it has a 3 second timer before taking the picture. You can turn that off in the settings. Also the camera has Smile-Shutter where it detects smiles would take a picture automatically.
Another feature I find to be extremely useful, but haven't gotten around to using, is the facial registration. You can program the camera to recognize up to 8 faces and it uses these faces to prioritize autofocusing and the smile shutter.
The feature I use the most, however, is the built-in level. This will help you keep your camera level in both landscape and portrait mode. It's very useful for panorama pictures and capturing video.
Finally, there's a button in the bottom right corner of the camera with a question mark on it. This button gives you hints and explanations on pretty much every feature on the camera. Just go to any option or setting and press the button for help. It's been pretty helpful for me in troubleshooting and learning how to better utilize the many features.
What I don't like:
In order to record a video, you have to press the dedicated video button, which is the circular button on the top right corner with the label MOVIE above it. Even if you're in Movie mode, you have to press that button. This is an issue when you shoot a video of yourself, since you have to feel around and find that button to start and stop the video and it's VERY annoying.
You can also use the PlayMemories app to remotely control your camera, but I don't like it. It kinda lags and there's almost no point in using it. You're better off buying a camera remote from Sony.
Final thoughts:
Even though I had issues with some of the things about the camera, most of those issues can pretty much be resolved with a little research and further experimentation. I'm not a professional photographer or a vlogger and my Xperia XZ can take better pictures and videos than this can, but it is a reliable camera with greater zoom capability (30x) and a lot of features to explore. It doesn't excel in any field, but it's also far from the worst in every field, so you end up with what can only be described as decent. I do plan to continue using this camera a lot more. I'd say if you're not a professional photographer or a vlogger, this is the best camera you can get for around $300. This is the camera you would buy if you want to step up your Instagram pictures and videos or just need to use something that's more natural to hold and use than your phone. I've done just that with a lot of my recent Instagram posts and I'd say this camera is doing a phenomenal job at that. I'd even go so far to say that this is the perfect small camera on the market in this price range.
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This Item  Sony DSCHX80/B High Zoom Point & Shoot Camera (Black) |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $465.00 | $498.00 | -8% $549.00 List: $599.00 | -10% $89.99 List: $99.99 | $139.99 | $549.00 |
| Delivery | Get it May 17 - 20 | Get it as soon as Thursday, May 2 | — | — | Get it Apr 30 - May 2 | — |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Zoom | ||||||
| Auto focus | ||||||
| Image stabilization | ||||||
| Picture quality | ||||||
| Battery life | ||||||
| Sold By | Chumdog LLC | Amazon.com | Woodland Hills Camera & telescopes | Amazon.com | Focus Camera LLC | Woodland Hills Camera & telescopes |
| display type | LCD | LCD | LCD | LCD | LCD | LCD |
| display size | 3 inches | 3 inches | 3 inches | — | 2.7 inches | 3 inches |
| lens type | all-in-one-zoom | Wide Angle | Zoom | Wide Angle | Wide Angle | Wide Angle |
| zoom type | Auto Focus | — | Optical Zoom | Optical Zoom | Optical Zoom | Optical Zoom |
| shooting modes | Intelligent Auto; Superior Auto; Program Auto; Aperture Priority; Shutter Speed Priority; Manual Exposure | Aperture Priority, Manual, Program, Shutter Priority | Automatic | Easy | Automatic, Portrait, Landscape, Macro | Automatic, Movie, Panorama |
| connectivity tech | NFC, HDMI, USB | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB, Micro HDMI | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | USB | USB | Wireless |
From the manufacturer
Incredibly Close-Up and Compact
Get sharp detail up close with the world’s smallest and lightest^5 30x zoom camera. There's even a pop-up electronic viewfinder for eye-level framing and a 180° tilt screen for 18.2MP selfies. Stunning picture quality comes from the low light Exmor R sensor and premium ZIESS lens with 5-axis image stabilization. Then share photos instantly with built-in Wi-Fi^2 and NFC^3.
Videos
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Great beginner friendly camera for vlogging
Ericka Gonzalez
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1:05
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A step beyond your normal camera
Should I Get It Reviews
Reviews with images
Step up your social media game
I've been using this camera for a couple of weeks and here's a list of what I've shot so far:Grass sproutsLandscapesSelfiesOther peopleFoodStuff in the daytimeStuff at nightA video of me making coffeeTaking pictures:It's pretty easy and straight forward. It has two modes where the camera does pretty much everything for you. Superior Auto shoots a burst of photos and creates a composite of the images captured. It's pretty great if you're willing to hold the camera still for about two whole seconds for it to capture the scene. And I'm told it's best to use this mode in darker places to reduce noise, but I haven't tried that yet. I personally prefer the other mode, Intelligent Auto. This mode adjusts the settings according to the shooting conditions. It's quicker to get a picture in this mode while still automating a lot of the process in taking the picture.Other photo modes include:Scene Selection: Lets you pick one of the many preset for certain conditions so that things can be more predictable when you shoot. Gives you a little more control than the previous two modes.Memory Recall: Lets you create some presets that you can recall.Manual Exposure: Adjust aperture and shutter speed manually. I think this mode is meant to be used for long exposure photos.Shutter Priority: Adjust only the shutter speed manually.Aperture Priority:Adjust only the aperture manually.Program Auto: Sets both aperture and shutter speed automatically, while the other settings can be set manually.iSweep Panorama: Shoot a panorama picture. You can set the direction you want to sweep, so you can shoot horizontally or vertically.Taking videos:Videos are a whole other story with this camera. The first thing to talk about is the video quality when filming. It can capture in 1080p and 60 frames per second in three formats. The first format is MP4, which is the preferred format for YouTube. If you intend to shoot a video that will be uploaded directly up to YouTube, this is the video format to use. I shot a little YouTube video using the "AVCHD 60p 28M(PS)", which was the maximum setting for that video format. It looks good, but when I went to edit it, I can only export into MP4 or some other formats, so next time I'll just use MP4. I couldn't tell the difference anyway when I compared two videos in both formats. There's also the "XAVC S HD" video format, which is said to be suited for shooting movies, but apparently my SD card isn't good enough for it, so I have to wait for my new SDXC card to arrive. I probably won't need it.Another thing to keep in mind when filming with this camera is the 5-axis stabilization feature. Basically, it's a feature where the sensor in the camera is being mechanically stabilized, giving you no compromise in quality when shooting stabilized video. Most cameras handle this digitally by cropping the actual video and outputting an upscaled version of the cropped video. Depending on how much you shake, you can notice a huge drop in video quality if you use digital stabilization. This camera does not have that issue. An interesting this to keep in mind is that when the feature is on, you can notice the camera adjusting the sensor when you set the camera down, which creates this feeling like you're on a boat or something even though it's sitting on the counter or s sturdy surface.When it comes to audio, the stereo speakers are located on top of the camera. They're located in a way that makes it pretty impossible to stick fluff to, which is something I see a lot of people do to mitigate wind noises when shooting videos. It does have a feature `There's also no way, that I know of, to connect an external microphone, so that internal microphone is all you have. So far, I don't have any problems with it, but I also don't shoot videos where I talk and I haven't been to any concerts since I bought this.Other Features:The flash is hidden away inside of the camera until you hit a switch to pop it up. This means if you want to use the flash, you have to pop it up every time and also remember to push it back down when you're done with it. It sounds like a chore, but it could be a good thing. When you don't need it, you have the assurance that it won't go off when you shoot, because it's tucked away. The flash is located directly above the sensor, so the lighting it provides is pretty centered on the subject.Auto-focusing was kind of a pain to deal with. The only explanation I've found on how it works is that it auto-focuses on the nearest subject in the center of view. I can see it's pretty quick at auto-focusing, but I can't seem to figure out how to make it focus on what I want it to focus on. I guess I just need to do a lot more research on this.Transferring photos and videos off this camera is SUPER easy! I connected my phone (Sony Xperia XZ) via NFC and the QR code it provides and both of them work super quickly and the transfer starts right away. Usually takes about 3 seconds for an 18mp photo, which is about 4 MB. You do need to download the PlayMemories app on your phone.There's an OLED viewfinder that pops up and down. By default, it turns on the camera when it pops up and turns it off when you push it back down. You can turn that off in the setting. It has a proximity sensor that automatically turns on the screen in the viewfinder when you bring it close to your eye. I personally don't use this feature, because I have to get really close to it to set the sensor off and my nose ends up touching the screen below, which is gross in the Summer when I'm sweaty and the sweat gets on the screen.The flip up screen is amazing! It would automatically flip the image and the HUD. By default, when you flip up the screen and press the shutter button, it has a 3 second timer before taking the picture. You can turn that off in the settings. Also the camera has Smile-Shutter where it detects smiles would take a picture automatically.Another feature I find to be extremely useful, but haven't gotten around to using, is the facial registration. You can program the camera to recognize up to 8 faces and it uses these faces to prioritize autofocusing and the smile shutter.The feature I use the most, however, is the built-in level. This will help you keep your camera level in both landscape and portrait mode. It's very useful for panorama pictures and capturing video.Finally, there's a button in the bottom right corner of the camera with a question mark on it. This button gives you hints and explanations on pretty much every feature on the camera. Just go to any option or setting and press the button for help. It's been pretty helpful for me in troubleshooting and learning how to better utilize the many features.What I don't like:In order to record a video, you have to press the dedicated video button, which is the circular button on the top right corner with the label MOVIE above it. Even if you're in Movie mode, you have to press that button. This is an issue when you shoot a video of yourself, since you have to feel around and find that button to start and stop the video and it's VERY annoying.You can also use the PlayMemories app to remotely control your camera, but I don't like it. It kinda lags and there's almost no point in using it. You're better off buying a camera remote from Sony.Final thoughts:Even though I had issues with some of the things about the camera, most of those issues can pretty much be resolved with a little research and further experimentation. I'm not a professional photographer or a vlogger and my Xperia XZ can take better pictures and videos than this can, but it is a reliable camera with greater zoom capability (30x) and a lot of features to explore. It doesn't excel in any field, but it's also far from the worst in every field, so you end up with what can only be described as decent. I do plan to continue using this camera a lot more. I'd say if you're not a professional photographer or a vlogger, this is the best camera you can get for around $300. This is the camera you would buy if you want to step up your Instagram pictures and videos or just need to use something that's more natural to hold and use than your phone. I've done just that with a lot of my recent Instagram posts and I'd say this camera is doing a phenomenal job at that. I'd even go so far to say that this is the perfect small camera on the market in this price range.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2017
Set: BaseVerified Purchase
I've been using this camera for a couple of weeks and here's a list of what I've shot so far:
Grass sprouts
Landscapes
Selfies
Other people
Food
Stuff in the daytime
Stuff at night
A video of me making coffee
Taking pictures:
It's pretty easy and straight forward. It has two modes where the camera does pretty much everything for you. Superior Auto shoots a burst of photos and creates a composite of the images captured. It's pretty great if you're willing to hold the camera still for about two whole seconds for it to capture the scene. And I'm told it's best to use this mode in darker places to reduce noise, but I haven't tried that yet. I personally prefer the other mode, Intelligent Auto. This mode adjusts the settings according to the shooting conditions. It's quicker to get a picture in this mode while still automating a lot of the process in taking the picture.
Other photo modes include:
Scene Selection: Lets you pick one of the many preset for certain conditions so that things can be more predictable when you shoot. Gives you a little more control than the previous two modes.
Memory Recall: Lets you create some presets that you can recall.
Manual Exposure: Adjust aperture and shutter speed manually. I think this mode is meant to be used for long exposure photos.
Shutter Priority: Adjust only the shutter speed manually.
Aperture Priority:Adjust only the aperture manually.
Program Auto: Sets both aperture and shutter speed automatically, while the other settings can be set manually.
iSweep Panorama: Shoot a panorama picture. You can set the direction you want to sweep, so you can shoot horizontally or vertically.
Taking videos:
Videos are a whole other story with this camera. The first thing to talk about is the video quality when filming. It can capture in 1080p and 60 frames per second in three formats. The first format is MP4, which is the preferred format for YouTube. If you intend to shoot a video that will be uploaded directly up to YouTube, this is the video format to use. I shot a little YouTube video using the "AVCHD 60p 28M(PS)", which was the maximum setting for that video format. It looks good, but when I went to edit it, I can only export into MP4 or some other formats, so next time I'll just use MP4. I couldn't tell the difference anyway when I compared two videos in both formats. There's also the "XAVC S HD" video format, which is said to be suited for shooting movies, but apparently my SD card isn't good enough for it, so I have to wait for my new SDXC card to arrive. I probably won't need it.
Another thing to keep in mind when filming with this camera is the 5-axis stabilization feature. Basically, it's a feature where the sensor in the camera is being mechanically stabilized, giving you no compromise in quality when shooting stabilized video. Most cameras handle this digitally by cropping the actual video and outputting an upscaled version of the cropped video. Depending on how much you shake, you can notice a huge drop in video quality if you use digital stabilization. This camera does not have that issue. An interesting this to keep in mind is that when the feature is on, you can notice the camera adjusting the sensor when you set the camera down, which creates this feeling like you're on a boat or something even though it's sitting on the counter or s sturdy surface.
When it comes to audio, the stereo speakers are located on top of the camera. They're located in a way that makes it pretty impossible to stick fluff to, which is something I see a lot of people do to mitigate wind noises when shooting videos. It does have a feature `There's also no way, that I know of, to connect an external microphone, so that internal microphone is all you have. So far, I don't have any problems with it, but I also don't shoot videos where I talk and I haven't been to any concerts since I bought this.
Other Features:
The flash is hidden away inside of the camera until you hit a switch to pop it up. This means if you want to use the flash, you have to pop it up every time and also remember to push it back down when you're done with it. It sounds like a chore, but it could be a good thing. When you don't need it, you have the assurance that it won't go off when you shoot, because it's tucked away. The flash is located directly above the sensor, so the lighting it provides is pretty centered on the subject.
Auto-focusing was kind of a pain to deal with. The only explanation I've found on how it works is that it auto-focuses on the nearest subject in the center of view. I can see it's pretty quick at auto-focusing, but I can't seem to figure out how to make it focus on what I want it to focus on. I guess I just need to do a lot more research on this.
Transferring photos and videos off this camera is SUPER easy! I connected my phone (Sony Xperia XZ) via NFC and the QR code it provides and both of them work super quickly and the transfer starts right away. Usually takes about 3 seconds for an 18mp photo, which is about 4 MB. You do need to download the PlayMemories app on your phone.
There's an OLED viewfinder that pops up and down. By default, it turns on the camera when it pops up and turns it off when you push it back down. You can turn that off in the setting. It has a proximity sensor that automatically turns on the screen in the viewfinder when you bring it close to your eye. I personally don't use this feature, because I have to get really close to it to set the sensor off and my nose ends up touching the screen below, which is gross in the Summer when I'm sweaty and the sweat gets on the screen.
The flip up screen is amazing! It would automatically flip the image and the HUD. By default, when you flip up the screen and press the shutter button, it has a 3 second timer before taking the picture. You can turn that off in the settings. Also the camera has Smile-Shutter where it detects smiles would take a picture automatically.
Another feature I find to be extremely useful, but haven't gotten around to using, is the facial registration. You can program the camera to recognize up to 8 faces and it uses these faces to prioritize autofocusing and the smile shutter.
The feature I use the most, however, is the built-in level. This will help you keep your camera level in both landscape and portrait mode. It's very useful for panorama pictures and capturing video.
Finally, there's a button in the bottom right corner of the camera with a question mark on it. This button gives you hints and explanations on pretty much every feature on the camera. Just go to any option or setting and press the button for help. It's been pretty helpful for me in troubleshooting and learning how to better utilize the many features.
What I don't like:
In order to record a video, you have to press the dedicated video button, which is the circular button on the top right corner with the label MOVIE above it. Even if you're in Movie mode, you have to press that button. This is an issue when you shoot a video of yourself, since you have to feel around and find that button to start and stop the video and it's VERY annoying.
You can also use the PlayMemories app to remotely control your camera, but I don't like it. It kinda lags and there's almost no point in using it. You're better off buying a camera remote from Sony.
Final thoughts:
Even though I had issues with some of the things about the camera, most of those issues can pretty much be resolved with a little research and further experimentation. I'm not a professional photographer or a vlogger and my Xperia XZ can take better pictures and videos than this can, but it is a reliable camera with greater zoom capability (30x) and a lot of features to explore. It doesn't excel in any field, but it's also far from the worst in every field, so you end up with what can only be described as decent. I do plan to continue using this camera a lot more. I'd say if you're not a professional photographer or a vlogger, this is the best camera you can get for around $300. This is the camera you would buy if you want to step up your Instagram pictures and videos or just need to use something that's more natural to hold and use than your phone. I've done just that with a lot of my recent Instagram posts and I'd say this camera is doing a phenomenal job at that. I'd even go so far to say that this is the perfect small camera on the market in this price range.
Grass sprouts
Landscapes
Selfies
Other people
Food
Stuff in the daytime
Stuff at night
A video of me making coffee
Taking pictures:
It's pretty easy and straight forward. It has two modes where the camera does pretty much everything for you. Superior Auto shoots a burst of photos and creates a composite of the images captured. It's pretty great if you're willing to hold the camera still for about two whole seconds for it to capture the scene. And I'm told it's best to use this mode in darker places to reduce noise, but I haven't tried that yet. I personally prefer the other mode, Intelligent Auto. This mode adjusts the settings according to the shooting conditions. It's quicker to get a picture in this mode while still automating a lot of the process in taking the picture.
Other photo modes include:
Scene Selection: Lets you pick one of the many preset for certain conditions so that things can be more predictable when you shoot. Gives you a little more control than the previous two modes.
Memory Recall: Lets you create some presets that you can recall.
Manual Exposure: Adjust aperture and shutter speed manually. I think this mode is meant to be used for long exposure photos.
Shutter Priority: Adjust only the shutter speed manually.
Aperture Priority:Adjust only the aperture manually.
Program Auto: Sets both aperture and shutter speed automatically, while the other settings can be set manually.
iSweep Panorama: Shoot a panorama picture. You can set the direction you want to sweep, so you can shoot horizontally or vertically.
Taking videos:
Videos are a whole other story with this camera. The first thing to talk about is the video quality when filming. It can capture in 1080p and 60 frames per second in three formats. The first format is MP4, which is the preferred format for YouTube. If you intend to shoot a video that will be uploaded directly up to YouTube, this is the video format to use. I shot a little YouTube video using the "AVCHD 60p 28M(PS)", which was the maximum setting for that video format. It looks good, but when I went to edit it, I can only export into MP4 or some other formats, so next time I'll just use MP4. I couldn't tell the difference anyway when I compared two videos in both formats. There's also the "XAVC S HD" video format, which is said to be suited for shooting movies, but apparently my SD card isn't good enough for it, so I have to wait for my new SDXC card to arrive. I probably won't need it.
Another thing to keep in mind when filming with this camera is the 5-axis stabilization feature. Basically, it's a feature where the sensor in the camera is being mechanically stabilized, giving you no compromise in quality when shooting stabilized video. Most cameras handle this digitally by cropping the actual video and outputting an upscaled version of the cropped video. Depending on how much you shake, you can notice a huge drop in video quality if you use digital stabilization. This camera does not have that issue. An interesting this to keep in mind is that when the feature is on, you can notice the camera adjusting the sensor when you set the camera down, which creates this feeling like you're on a boat or something even though it's sitting on the counter or s sturdy surface.
When it comes to audio, the stereo speakers are located on top of the camera. They're located in a way that makes it pretty impossible to stick fluff to, which is something I see a lot of people do to mitigate wind noises when shooting videos. It does have a feature `There's also no way, that I know of, to connect an external microphone, so that internal microphone is all you have. So far, I don't have any problems with it, but I also don't shoot videos where I talk and I haven't been to any concerts since I bought this.
Other Features:
The flash is hidden away inside of the camera until you hit a switch to pop it up. This means if you want to use the flash, you have to pop it up every time and also remember to push it back down when you're done with it. It sounds like a chore, but it could be a good thing. When you don't need it, you have the assurance that it won't go off when you shoot, because it's tucked away. The flash is located directly above the sensor, so the lighting it provides is pretty centered on the subject.
Auto-focusing was kind of a pain to deal with. The only explanation I've found on how it works is that it auto-focuses on the nearest subject in the center of view. I can see it's pretty quick at auto-focusing, but I can't seem to figure out how to make it focus on what I want it to focus on. I guess I just need to do a lot more research on this.
Transferring photos and videos off this camera is SUPER easy! I connected my phone (Sony Xperia XZ) via NFC and the QR code it provides and both of them work super quickly and the transfer starts right away. Usually takes about 3 seconds for an 18mp photo, which is about 4 MB. You do need to download the PlayMemories app on your phone.
There's an OLED viewfinder that pops up and down. By default, it turns on the camera when it pops up and turns it off when you push it back down. You can turn that off in the setting. It has a proximity sensor that automatically turns on the screen in the viewfinder when you bring it close to your eye. I personally don't use this feature, because I have to get really close to it to set the sensor off and my nose ends up touching the screen below, which is gross in the Summer when I'm sweaty and the sweat gets on the screen.
The flip up screen is amazing! It would automatically flip the image and the HUD. By default, when you flip up the screen and press the shutter button, it has a 3 second timer before taking the picture. You can turn that off in the settings. Also the camera has Smile-Shutter where it detects smiles would take a picture automatically.
Another feature I find to be extremely useful, but haven't gotten around to using, is the facial registration. You can program the camera to recognize up to 8 faces and it uses these faces to prioritize autofocusing and the smile shutter.
The feature I use the most, however, is the built-in level. This will help you keep your camera level in both landscape and portrait mode. It's very useful for panorama pictures and capturing video.
Finally, there's a button in the bottom right corner of the camera with a question mark on it. This button gives you hints and explanations on pretty much every feature on the camera. Just go to any option or setting and press the button for help. It's been pretty helpful for me in troubleshooting and learning how to better utilize the many features.
What I don't like:
In order to record a video, you have to press the dedicated video button, which is the circular button on the top right corner with the label MOVIE above it. Even if you're in Movie mode, you have to press that button. This is an issue when you shoot a video of yourself, since you have to feel around and find that button to start and stop the video and it's VERY annoying.
You can also use the PlayMemories app to remotely control your camera, but I don't like it. It kinda lags and there's almost no point in using it. You're better off buying a camera remote from Sony.
Final thoughts:
Even though I had issues with some of the things about the camera, most of those issues can pretty much be resolved with a little research and further experimentation. I'm not a professional photographer or a vlogger and my Xperia XZ can take better pictures and videos than this can, but it is a reliable camera with greater zoom capability (30x) and a lot of features to explore. It doesn't excel in any field, but it's also far from the worst in every field, so you end up with what can only be described as decent. I do plan to continue using this camera a lot more. I'd say if you're not a professional photographer or a vlogger, this is the best camera you can get for around $300. This is the camera you would buy if you want to step up your Instagram pictures and videos or just need to use something that's more natural to hold and use than your phone. I've done just that with a lot of my recent Instagram posts and I'd say this camera is doing a phenomenal job at that. I'd even go so far to say that this is the perfect small camera on the market in this price range.
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Top reviews from other countries
Luis Vargas
Tiene un zoom óptico muy bueno y potente.
Reviewed in Mexico on March 10, 2023Set: BaseVerified Purchase
Caio
Câmera compacta e potente no zoom
Reviewed in Brazil on March 2, 2020Set: BaseVerified Purchase
Caio
Reviewed in Brazil on March 2, 2020
Estou com ela há 10 meses e tenho outra câmera semi-profissional de lentes cambiáveis. Suas limitações são na fotografia noturna a céu aberto ou contra-luz na direção do Sol, pois a lente não é tão grande e por ela não ter também foco manual e a câmera ficar procurando foco nas fotos com alto zoom e baixa luminosidade ou contraluz. Fotos com zoom no Sol ficam com um padrão de reflexos estranho e a limitação de tempo para 1/2000s com f8 faz com que o Sol continue estourado na foto. O que me impressiona que não tenham pensado nesse detalhe para pegar um pôr do Sol, o tempo mínimo deveria ser 1/4000s. Fora esses detalhes técnicos é uma excelente câmera para se ter e levar para todo canto.
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McGilli
Fantastic Features, Using Phone As Remote Is Great!
Reviewed in Canada on October 2, 2018Set: BaseVerified Purchase
McGilli
Reviewed in Canada on October 2, 2018
GREAT FEATURES:
Using your smartphone as a remote control: I was not expecting this, and really didn't care about it. Then I used it. And now it's changed everything for me. You have to install an app on your phone - then you can sync it with your camera. The easiest way is the camera will show a bar code on the screen. Start the app on your phone, it scans the bar code and you are connected. It connects over wi-fi. Being able to use the phone as a remote is great. I can go 50 feet away now and still activate the phone with a 10 seconds timer and get even further, or compose my shot (and put away my phone). You can zoom, change all settings if you are in manual - right from the phone. You can then transfer the photos to you phone if you like. Or your computer.
WiFi With Computer: I use a Mac. Install a simple photo app, and you can then upload all your photos to your computer right from the phone. Works great every time. Sure, you can plug in a USB cable to transfer, but this is just easier for me.
Wealth of Settings: There are too many to list here. But, I cannot think of any option with regards to camera settings that is not here. It's a lot to go through, and even though I'm experienced with cameras, I went through the online PDF FULL manual with the camera in my hands just to make sure I was up to speed on everything.
You Don't Need All Those Settings: I gave the camera to my daughter, put it on Auto and all her photos came out fantastic. It's a great phone for any skill level.
Battery Life: Really, really good. So much better than my previous Sony. I use a little more power than many people since I use it on wi-fi connected to my phone, display on all the time and lots of long exposure shots so lots of processing. And it still lasts me all day. Or week. Depending on how much I need it.
Zoom Range: WOW! Seriously. Check out eh photo I attached of the zoom. It's amazing. Even the end of the zoom which is digital - is really, really good and sharp. Best I've ever had.
There's so much I just can't mention. Trust me, this is a phone practically anyone can enjoy using, and its results.
THE GOOD: So, it's a great phone. it's never failed me, and has brought out my 'artsy' photo side again. Going out at night, or in the dark for long exposure shots using lasers etc. Just so much fun. This destroys any camera on a phone. Absolutely. Phones are good, and are mostly about camera functions these days but - nowhere near as good as this. No regrets.
THE NOT SO GOOD: This is totally dependant on user but the macro range is 3cm it appears. Some cameras have it at 1cm. However, not many do. Still - if you are really into macro photography, this could frustrate you. Using the manual mode and zoom I'm able to overcome this. However, of course this camera makes up for it with the zoom.
THE BAD: There's only one thing that annoyed me. To use the app on my phone, or the program on my Mac, I needed to sign up for a Sony account and sign in. Ok, it's quick, and once it's done you don't need to do it again - but you shouldn't need that. I opted out of all the marketing and etc emails they asked if I wanted.
OVERALL: 5 stars on this phone. It's like buying a smartphone - but without the online interactions and the phone and texting. That's what I wanted. Something dedicated, but not huge, and great results. You can't go wrong with this.
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David Sandoval
Impresionante para videos, muy buena para fotos.
Reviewed in Mexico on February 1, 2021Set: BaseVerified Purchase
David Sandoval
Reviewed in Mexico on February 1, 2021
Muy feliz por esta cámara, no decepciona.
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Warren Long
Very small, lots of zoom, good battery life, great photos, especially in bright light.
Reviewed in Canada on August 1, 2020Set: BaseVerified Purchase
