Rating: 
Summary: As good as it gets...
Review: I looked around to pick a good digital camera. I had a few things in mind that I wanted but I could never find a right all together piece. I think that Sony was the best compromise in terms of features, size and durability. I shoot a lot of film and a lot of times I really don't have to, since the pictures don't go further than web. Using S85 saved me on processing cost, time and gave me more options as far as manipulation of the images go. Since my original purchase was to ease the load and free me up in my "professional" life I find that more often I happen to pack the digital on my hiking or camping trips. I still carry my film camera but I supplement my film shots with a lot of digital snaps. Using Sony manual modes also allows me to become better photographer and it's really fool proof. I see the results immediately and if something is wrong I can re-shoot it again which was impossible with film. I mean yes I can always shoot two or three frames but you surly never know until you get the film from the lab what came out. When I shoot concerts or band shots this is a one time deal. They can't go back and replay the gig. So to be perfect and on the dime is very important for me. I choose S85 for couple of reasons:1) Optics. Can't go wrong with Carl Zeiss glass. It's a really sharp and warm saturated tone that keeps me buying into Zeiss family.
2) Lens brightness (f/stops). Maybe there are better cameras out there with higher zoom range but f/stops on this camera (S85) rock. It's bright and fast enough which means that in combination with faster film setting it will get the job done.
3) Battery life. I originally was very skeptic of using rechargeable battery because of the possible what if I run out of juice scenario. I assumed that I will feel more secure with AAs that rechargeable proprietary battery. I was wrong. Sony battery lasts forever and with one spare everything is pretty much covered.
4) Quality. Good enough for nice and crisp 8 by 10 shots. If I really push it I can get 11 by 14. But for my application it gets the job done.
5) Controls. Easily accessible, options are always at the finger tips.
6) Construction. It's a one big solid unit. No swivel lens, sliding doors, build in lens covers or pop up flashes. There is very few moving parts which makes it a durable piece. Plus build in charger keeps all your things organized.
7) Flash and Sharpness control. At the finger tips I have full override on functions that were always problematic with digital cameras. This saves post production time required for touch ups. What could have Sony done to make it better? 1) ISO. Highest ISO setting is 400 I wish they went for 800.
2) Accessories. There is a load of after market accessories for this camera by other manufactures than Sony. I would like to see some more lenses or maybe even external battery packs made by Sony itself. Underwater housing would be great.
3) Little bit slow start up time. That needs some works.
4) Memory stick. Great concept and I couldn't care less if I'm using memory sticks, flash cards or smart media cards but with 128 MB max Sony media is not the hottest choice out there. Sony S85 is a good camera, probably the best out of the bunch out there. I would highly recommend it to amateurs and semi pros alike. It's a good value for the money.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Digital Camera!!!
Review: After a lot of research, I bought the DSC-S85 Digital Camera. I am a Police Officer and I needed a digital camera for crime scenes, auto accidents and, of course, family photos. The Sony DSC-S85 does it all. The DSC-S85 does require you to have some basic understanding of photography and computers but it is also user friendly to someone who wants to learn, and learning with this camera is fun. You won't go wrong buying this camera.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Value for Money
Review: Excellent Camera! In Auto mode it takes good pictures. For Pros it has cool features like White balance, Spot metering, Shutter and Aperture priority modes. The 1.8 inch screen LCD screen is bright and sharp. Supplied bettery lasts for 3 hours. Only extra thing you need to buy is 128MB memory..The USB driver shows camera as an extra removable drive in Windows Explorer which is very convenient. It is very compact too.
Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: I have had this camera about six mounths now.Takes terrific pictures.Has very good color reproduction.After hearing that digital pictures were not as good as 35mm film i waited.Then i decided to buy it and find out.Great pictures so goodby film developing.Takes better pictures then i thought possible.I think that rumor was started at the photo labs.Or with the 1mp owners thinking they had a photo camera. Has a long battery life and simply recharge the battery over and over again no buying AA batteries.Sony did it again came up with a great product.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Camera! Almost like having a 35mm
Review: I shopped around and looked at a lot of cameras before I decided on this one. I wanted a camera that could take pictures like a 35mm, yet have ease and use of a digital. This one fits the bill. On highest setting it records pictures at about 2mb. That means that if you buy a 64mb memory stick you get 32 pictures.(You can get lots more if you go to a lower megapixal setting, but why buy a high megapixal camera if you aren't going to use it to the max?) I have yet to go that far (I have transfered them to the computer and then started over). The battery last about 180 minutes using it with the LCD (which I recommend shutting off if you don't need it-especially outside). The only drawback at the present is that most photo printers cannot print at the capacity that my camera can take. I did have my pictures developed professionally online and was very pleased. The other drawback-and this is true for almost all digital cameras at this time, is that action photos are very difficult to capture due to low shutter speed. (not impossible, just very hard). This camera allows for adjustments of the aperature so you can take lower light pictures. I am very happy with the camera,and I recommend it for anyone who really wants to use this for taking vacation photos and such. Deleting and in camera cropping is easy and comes out great. You'll find yourself taking over a hundred pictures in just the first week!
Rating:
Summary: Quit Looking - Buy this One!
Review: I've been a serious amateur and semi-pro photog for years, always used an SLR and never wanted to even use a digital until the technology was high quality. I was up and using this one in minutes, and exploring its possibilities within just a few hours. Best small camera I've ever owned.
Rating:
Summary: Stop Looking - Buy this Camera!
Review: I've been a semi-pro or "advanced amateur" photographer for years, always using a 35mm SLR and yet greatly appreciating smaller cameras for their convenience and portability. I held off buying a digital camera until the technology seemed smooth and capable of high quality work. I love the Sony DSC-S85, it is highly versatile, capable of sophisticated photography and yet, if you know a little about photography, you'll be up and running in only a few minutes. In fact, even if you've only used a point and shoot camera, you can love this one right out of the box. Read the reviews, compare, study the features, but when all is said and done, this should be the one you choose.
Rating:
Summary: Great Camera!!
Review: I recently purchased the DSC-S85, and I absolutely love it!! I use this camera all the time, and love the flexibility of it. I can use it as a point and shoot camera, or manually adjust the settings. I have even taken up some minor amateur photography with this camera. I find it easy to use, and great at taking wonderful pictures. Also, while many have complained about the memory sticks, I bought a 128 mb for [$]. I have taken over 100 pictures at one time in JPEG format, and had enough room to take several minutes of video with it. I would highly recommend this camera to anybody.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome!
Review: I come from a family of photographers and have been a serious photographer for 40 years. Over that time, I have owned just about every camera type and brand there is (Leica, Nikon, Rollei, Contax, etc...) and I have honestly not used a camera that is as sweet and accurate as this (only possible exception the Contax G2-a beautifully designed camera). I have used the meter almost dead into the sun and gotten shadow detail in center average mode. The lens is phenomenal and the controls are not only exactly what you would want (as a photographer) but are where you want them. Thank you Sony for making my transition into digital so exciting!!
Rating:
Summary: Awesome!
Review: I have a long history of darkroom photography and over the years have owned and/or used practically every brand of camera. I recently went digital because the huge number of pixels available made the picture quality close to 35mm film quality. I did a lot of research and ended up with the S85 and am I ever happy. This camera has an excellent metering system, I have gotten perfectly exposed shots shooting almost into the sun, with shadow detail. The Zeiss lens (one of the reasons I opted for this) is crisp and the camera handles as well as any I've ever used, including my favorite (for its design), the Contax G2.
And, as a photographer, I still can't get over the idea that I can actually see the effect of over or under exposing BEFORE I take the shot! This digital is designed for photographers, make no mistake about it.
| 
