Sony DSC-G1 digital camera - FIRST LOOK review

First Look

Sony has announced their latest Cyber-shot digital camera at PMA 2007 in Las Vegas; the DSC-G1 and we were lucky enough to have a quick play with the new model at the show.

The rather large digital camera is the first from Sony to feature wireless connectivity and will go up against competing models from Kodak, Canon and Nikon, however rather than just connect to a PC for transferring images Sony has taken the technology one step further and allows users to create an adhoc network between them.

"What it means is that if you've got a couple of G1 cameras, you can connect them together to share images as you take them", a spokesman on the stand told us. "So you could be in a concert or press conference and take a picture and them share it real time so I know not to worry about taking the same shot."

It sounds like an interesting concept and while we can't users actually using it in the above described solution what we can see is using the technology to transfer images to your PC, or in the future the PS3.

Currently the system only works with Sony's Vaio Media Center software, however we were told that third party software support would be coming shortly along with the ability to send images straight to your PS3.

Getting back to the size of the device, the DSC-G1 is much larger than your average compact for the reason that the screen in a whopping 3.5 inches. This combined with a slider design that sees the controls appear from behind the screen (very much like a mobile phone) and it will fill the palm of your hand with ease (see pictures).

However when it comes to playing back images its great with Sony opting for a decent quality screen, unlike its newly announced DSC-T100 model.

The DSC-G1 also features the ability to label images similar to that announced by HP and Kodak this week. Users will be able to add up to 20 preset labels to each photograph, however you won't be able to make your own. If its not in the list then you'll have to just tag it up as other.

Other features include a 6 megapixel sensor, Light sensitivity up to 1000 ISO, a 3x optical zoom, and a massive 2G of on board memory meaning there is plenty of space to store your images.

First Impressions

With an easy to use menu system that is reminiscent of the PSP or PS3, the DSC-G1 looks, in our brief play, to be a great looking camera, however its size does make it one of the largest compacts we've seen.

Due out later in the year expect a full review from us nearer its launch in the UK.

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