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Rating: 
Summary: Love this camera!
Review: I recently bought this camera. I researched a lot of reviews of different cameras and found that it meets my needs and then some. I would recommend it to anyone. It is a great for first time users like me who want the option of using manual controls. Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages I've found:
1. LCD Screen - The large 2.5" LCD Screen is the main reason why I purchased this camera. It is great for viewing especially with a lot of people around, but can eat up your battery power. You have the option to turn it off and use the viewfinder instead to save power.
2. Video - You can take as much video as your memory can hold depending on your settings. However, the video option doesn't have zoom.
3. Menu - The menu is easy to use. I like that options for night, backlit, candlelit, etc. photos are on the top-rotating dial instead of under the setup menu as in previous Sony cameras.
4. Memory - The 32 MB that it comes with doesn't hold a whole lot. I advise getting more memory. It's worth it.
5. Batteries - Convienient AA size, which is bulkier than some other digital cameras. If worse comes to worse, you can use a set of regular batteries.
6. Software - It has a nice tutorial on how to use your camera. The software is very basic and doesn't have much photo-editing features. You can actually do some photo editing on the camera like resizing and cropping. You can download free photo-editing software off the web that works well too.
Rating: 
Summary: great for anyone
Review: I was considering buying both a digital camera and camcorder since I do a lot of work in both. Howevever, my friend got a Sony DSC T1
and I found out it can take video 640x480 @ 30fps! Although I wasn't too keen on spending over $500 on that, I found out about the DSCW1. First off, the battery life is fairly decent. I've charged up the included pair and have been using the camera frequently with little problem in battery life, but if you do run dead on the included batteries, you can always stop by a shop and pick up more AAs which is really convenient since you don't have to rely on a proprietary format. If the 3X optical zoom isn't enough for you, you can always buy a telephoto attachment and screw it onto the lens. Unlike the DSCT1, the W1 uses the standard memory stick size so you don't have to buy the more expensive Pro Duo sticks. At the same time the camera can use up to 1GB memory sticks. 2.5" LCD is very nice but not a neccesity. 5MP gives great pictures and when scaled down makes an even nicer print. Don't bother with the included software. If u run windows XP the camera is recognized as a disk drive and you can access pictures immediately after plugging camera into USB. If you do get this camera, definitely get a Memory Stick Pro 256MB. The 32MB stick lets you take maybe 12 or 13 pictures at max res and 23 pictures @ 3MP. You also can't take advantage of the 640x480 30fps video recording.
Rating: 
Summary: Doesn't live up to its 5MP potential
Review: Only one review site mentions this problem (...) but now a lot of users are starting to see it. This camera's noise filtering causes pictures to look 'soft' or in my interpretation - slightly out of focus. In outdoor scenery shots it isn't very noticeable - the 5MP is able to give you a lot of detail especially in the area of the picture that is not your main subject (background trees, roofs, etc). However in portraits, or pictures of pets, the problem is VERY apparent. Going from a 1MP to a 2MP camera, the 2MP camera "wow'd" me. Going to this 5.1MP camera, I look at the pictures and say "eh?". I've tried what other people have suggested - set camera to manual or programmed mode, turned up sharpness, turned down contrast, set autofocus to center only - yet still pets, portrait
shots are smooth. Facial features are ever so slightly blurred - detail is lost in the hair, contrast around the nose and eyes. It's like looking at a flat/matted picture! Do I think I got a bad one? No. There have been a few other owners on some of the digital camera discussion forums that at first said "No way, this camera is great!" only to come back later and say "Wait, I spoke too soon, there is an issue". Then there is the poor flash capabilities - not very powerful. Yes, a lot of compact digital cameras suffer from this but this camera seems especially bad. There's a user that took a bunch of indoor photos at their son's birthday part and every one was blurry - not one was printable! The camera is physically gorgeous. The LCD is HUGE and very nice and clear! The camera is very responsive, fast, WELL built, and a nice size, but the pictures don't live up to the "Carl Zeiss, 5.1MP" advertising! Don't be fooled by reviews that take pictures of posters and resolution charts - this camera does great with those items. Take a look at their portrait shots of live people and zoom in on the facial features. Compare that with another camera and you'll see the difference. Again, far away shots of scenery looks great. It's when you're doing closeup work of detailed items where the problem shows up. My W1 is going back this week. I'll bet in a year, Sony will address these problems and THAT camera will be fantastic.
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