Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200

CNET Editors' Rating

3.0 stars
    Overall score: 6.4 (3.0 stars)

Good

Average User Rating

26 reviews

All prices Set price alert
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 - palm Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 - back Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 - bag
Scroll Left Scroll Right
  • Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 - palm
  • Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 - back
  • Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 - bag

CNET Editors' Review

CNET Editors' Rating

3.0 stars Good
    Overall score: 6.4 (3.0 stars)
  • Design: 7.0
  • Features: 7.0
  • Performance: 6.0
  • Image quality: 5.0
  • Reviewed by:
  • Released on:
  • Reviewed on:

The good: Compact, attractive design; optical image-stabilizer; manual exposure mode.

The bad: Requires far more light for low ISO shots than most competitors; exceptionally long flash-recycle time and disappointing shot-to-shot performance; image-processing artifacts; LCD has poor off-angle viewing; proprietary USB cable.

The bottom line: The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200's 12-megapixel sensor raises the price of an otherwise decent snapshot camera, with little benefit. The W90 and W80 are better deals.

Review: I couldn't have asked for a better example of the evils of sensor-resolution specmanship than Sony's 12-megapixel Cyber-shot DSC-W200. This top-of-the-food-chain addition to the otherwise sensible W series--not exactly budget cameras, but reasonably priced compact models with the occasional amateur-friendly feature--shares the attractive, compact design and midrange feature set of models like the W80 and W90, although Sony doesn't offer a black alternative.

There's little to complain about with the 6-ounce camera's design. There's no dedicated area to rest your thumb, which I thought would pose a problem, but the slightly indented mode dial

... Expand full review
I couldn't have asked for a better example of the evils of sensor-resolution specmanship than Sony's 12-megapixel Cyber-shot DSC-W200. This top-of-the-food-chain addition to the otherwise sensible W series--not exactly budget cameras, but reasonably priced compact models with the occasional amateur-friendly feature--shares the attractive, compact design and midrange feature set of models like the W80 and W90, although Sony doesn't offer a black alternative.

There's little to complain about with the 6-ounce camera's design. There's no dedicated area to rest your thumb, which I thought would pose a problem, but the slightly indented mode dial fulfills this purpose without incident. The buttons are a bit small, but manageable.

Likewise, its feature set supplies the capabilities we expect from a premium-priced snapshot camera. Among them you'll find Sony's Super SteadyShot optical image stabilization, 9-point autofocus, and face detection. Here, Sony makes some odd choices. For example, you can only enable face detection in full Auto mode; it's not even available in Program mode. Also, the W200 provides a Manual exposure mode--a fairly limited one, in which you can select from only two or three aperture settings, depending upon zoom, but manual nonetheless--without providing a shutter-priority choice.

I also expected more from the 2.5-inch LCD. It's the same coarse, 115,000-pixel model we see in cameras half the price, with poor off-angle viewing. It's almost impossible to view in bright light, and the Brightness Up setting is practically indistinguishable from its standard state. There's a surprisingly large, if somewhat distorted, optical viewfinder to supplement the LCD, however. The narrow f/2.8-5.5 35mm-105mm-equivalent 3x zoom lens is also a bit limiting.

As we've seen in other Sony models, the W200's face detection works pretty well, recognizing multiple faces in a scene--as long as it can see both eyes. It tends to be inconsistent, however; in a three-headed test setup, it would usually choose one, sometimes three, occasionally two faces, and a couple of times none, all under identical conditions.

The model fares moderately well on shooting speed. From power-on to first shot takes a zippy 1.6 seconds, and in high-contrast light it snaps photos in a reasonable half-second. In dim light, under harder-to-focus conditions, it takes a so-so 1.3 seconds. Unfortunately, the W200's typical shot-to-shot time is a sluggish 2.2 seconds, and when you enable flash, that almost doubles to a seriously shot-impairing 4.4 seconds. Its 2fps continuous-shooting rate compares better to its classmates, though.

Sample photos from the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200

Hide Review

Compare to other digital cameras

Compare selected

select

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX9

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX9 Starting at $148.95

  • Editor's rating: 4.0 out of 5

select

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX9V

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX9V Starting at $328.00

  • Editor's rating: 4.0 out of 5

select

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W90

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W90 Starting at $419.96

  • Editor's rating: 3.5 out of 5

select

Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Canon PowerShot SX230 HS Starting at $224.99

  • Editor's rating: 3.5 out of 5

Average User Rating

4.0 stars out of 26 user reviews

Rating Breakdown

  • 5 star: 19
  • 4 star: 4
  • 3 star: 2
  • 2 star: 0
  • 1 star: 1

My Rating

0 stars click stars to rate product

CNET Community

This product is on 2 user lists. Add to my list

Most Helpful User Review

4.0 stars 21 of 21 users found this review helpful

"A solid little camera which unfortunately gets bogged down in the megapixel war" By keberts

Pros Good build quality (far superior to the W90) w/ almost entirely metal case, manual mode a huge plus, other exclusives to the W200: accessory lens mounting ring and Sony's DR Optimizer (it works IMO)

Cons Absolutely pointless to pack 12MP into a camera of this size, image noise issue at times, ISO6400 also a gimmick IMO, lens could be better, but what do you expect? (at least it's tiny and fast)

Summary Let me start by saying I was a bit suprised after reading the CNET editor's review, having just returned from a weekend in the Poconos where I snapped away like crazy with my new W200. Overall I was quite pleased with the pictures, especially after a little post-processing in ... Expand full review

Where to Buy

See all prices Set price alert

Specifications

See full specs

Quick Specs

  • Product Type: Digital camera - Compact
  • Resolution: 12.1 megapixels
  • Digital video input format: MPEG VX

Sponsored Premier Brands on CNET

Where to Buy

See all prices Set price alert

Which digital camera is right for me?

Laptop Finder

In order to choose the right camera--one with the right set of features at the right price--you'll need to figure out what you'll be doing with it.

In this guide, we've compiled a handful of typical user profiles to help outline the specific uses for digital cameras. Match your needs to one of these user profiles to determine the digital camera that's right for you.

Read our guide | Step-by-step digital camera finder