Sony, Too, Unveils HX1 Long Zoom Bridge Camera

Sony Cyber-shot HX1 Digital Camera

Has the competition for camera market share shifted to the bridge cameras? First it was Samsung with its NX series announcement, then Pentax with its own X70 and then now, Sony with its Cyber-shot DSC-HX1 long-zoom camera.

The Sony HX1 features 20x zoom and a 9.1-megapixel CMOS sensor, the Exmor sensor originally developed by the company itself for their Sony Alpha DSLRs. The Exmor technology, according to Sony, delivers outstanding images with reduced noise, especially when shooting in high ISO settings.

Sony explains that the Exmor CMOS sensor supports two new shooting modes that reduce image noise when you’re shooting with the HX1 camera in low light. If you’re capturing static subjects, the new Handheld Twilight mode grabs a high-speed burst of six frames, combining them to create a single optimised image with dramatically reduced noise levels. If your subject is moving, Anti Motion Blur mode also superimposes six frames to produce one crisp, composite image with less subject blur.

And get this: the Sweep Panorama function lets you take panorama photos by holding down the shutter button and swinging the camera horizontally or vertically. The high speed bursts of images are stitched together in the camera and can be viewed on the 3-inch LCD or previewed on a Sony PS3.

The Sony HX1 will be available in April 2009 for about $500.

[Via: LetsGoDigital.org]

Published by Chris Malinao

Chris teaches Lightroom as workflow software to photography students at the FPPF, Federation of Philippine Photographers Foundation. He also teaches smartphone photography.