Rating: 
Summary: Fun stuff!!!
Review: I bought this camera for several reasons...1) I am a gadget junkie, 2) I love digital format cameras, 3) I truly love the portability and compact size so I'll "never miss a shot". This camera rounds out an extensive collection ranging to the top of the line Sony MEGA-pix camera I use for serious shooting... Granted, this midget will do far less than the big guns, but I am very impressed with some of the shots, especially outdoor shots!!! It offers true Sony picture quality and color. I bought the camera especially for a multi-state bike ride where economy of equipment and supplies was a must and I was not disappointed. In fact, on a recent company outing where we had commissioned a professional photographer, we resorted to taking ALL company group shots with my camera when the "pro" didn't show up and noone else in the group had a larger camera. This little puppy did just fine and the result was several high quality outdoor group photos which everyone raved about from such a small camera. And the BEST part of this was, I found a NEW unit on one of the main online auction sites and got it out the cyber door for $125 including shipping (no tax). I equipped my camera with a 128 meg MS and carry a 64 meg as backup (both also purchased off online auction for a fraction of the best store prices!!!) Had I known how satisfied I would be with this camera, I would have gladly paid retail price...but do shop around, whether through Amazon or other online sources, or check out the Sony website for promos!!! THis is a fun camera to own and use!!
Rating:
Summary: Everyone Needs This Camera
Review: I bought this camera in March 2004 with a plan to have the smallest camera available to compliment my Canon Digital Rebel.
This thing is freakin' amazing. The picture quality is ALMOST as good as my old 1999 2.1MP Kodak DC290 that retailed for $1099.
It is in my pocket anywhere I go. Two weeks after buying this camera, our 2005 Escape was rear ended (with 306 miles on it!, $4200 damage!) and I was able to get pics of the accident scene. Awesome.
I used it on vacation and stuck it out of the sunroof to get scenery pics. The LCD is nice in the sun, you can still see the images.
Seven months after buying it, I have already taken 8,300 pics! You just want to take pics of everything since its so convenient. Mountain biking, home projects, the garden, pets, my partially chopped off index finger last weekend, whatever. It can focus down to about 4", but it has no zoom which can be annoying at times. That is my only complaint.
The casing is metal and mine has several large dents from hitting the ground. It fell in the dirt a few times and the sliding cover trapped some dirt that grinds into the metal when sliding it open/closed.
I see it on Amazon for [$]!! Makes me want to buy a spare at that price. Paid $149 from Sears. There is now a U40 model out. Not much different.
Check out my pics at:
http://mlav.com
Rating: 
Summary: Just beautiful
Review: I have received it today as an addition to my posession of TRV-900. In terms of its size and design, I am very happy with it. Picture quality is much better than I expected, and the controls are very intuitive and simple. My only concern is the battery life; the enclosed manual clearly suggests not to use any AAA alcaline batteries, but I used new AAA ones to test 'cause I didn't have enough time to charge NI-MH batteries which were shipped together. The result was that I could take only 20 pictures before it showed low battery warning. I hope rechargibles stay much longer as the manual argues(75mins or 150 images). If it proves true, DSC-U30 is another masterpiece from sony after TRV-900.
Rating:
Summary: This is one cool and fun little camera
Review: I just purchased this little gem at my local Target here in Albuquerque NM. I have been impressed with the innovative, quality technology products Target has been carrying. I purchased a Apple iPod for Christmas at Target and absolutely love it. You won't find these types of products at Walmart - Sorry ! Anyway this is one great little camera. It is very small and fits anywhere. The style and design are great. It is very simple to operate. I was taking pictures all around the house right out of the box without even opening the manual, although I did read it cover to cover later on and learned a few shortcuts. That really means something as many digital cameras today are quite cryptic to understand. I connected the camera to my Apple Powerbook and the photos instantly appeared in my iPhoto application. No drivers to load, no fuss, no muss. It just all worked - now that is technology the way it should be. Photo quality was sharp and vivid and just fine for 4X6 prints, emailing, and Web posting. This probably covers 90% of what digital cameras are used for. The other 10% is higher end needs that of course require larger, more feature rich cameras, greater pixels, and bigger wallets. The bottom line - Very small, so you can take it everywhere. Very easy to use. Great Sony quality and nice looking photos instantly. The photos far exceed those that current cameras on cell phones can take. I seriously do not recommend purchasing a camera cell phone at this time as the quality of photos they take is very, very poor. The Sony DSC-U30 is a much better investment. You will love it and take it everywhere.
Rating:
Summary: love it!!!!
Review: i love it this product!! bought it when it first came out, and still lovingit! i bring it everywhere i go..it fits in my pocket when i don't wanna bring a bag or when i go clubbing, and fits into my little purse for parties.....I JUST LOVE IT SO MUCH! have gotten so many compliments...the pictures look GREEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTT!!!! worth the money!!
Rating:
Summary: It's a cute little thang.
Review: I love this camera, it's great. It's so handy to have around. There are many moments in our lives that badly want freeze in our memory, and this little thing can easily be there to do that. I've gotten so many great moments on this camera. It's portable size and the lanyard make it so easy to carry around. I never liked lugging around big cameras, and never thought of bringing them to school everyday. This one I can. One problem is that it doesn't zoom in, but that's okay the pictures turn out pretty big on your computer anyway. This camera draws plenty of attention too. It's been a great conversation starter, but that stuff doesn't matter because it actually is a worth your while camera. It rocks.
Rating: 
Summary: Sony has poor customer service
Review: I ordered the camera thru Amazon. I love Amazon, they shipped the order to me right away.However, the camera sent to me was missing the battery charger. Until I can charge the batteries, the camera will not work. The battery charger is proprietary to this camera, I cannot buy another charger at the store. Sony customer service is poor. I've called, and emailed to request a replacement immediately. The Sony customer service rep acted as through they were doing me a favor. 3 days later, I still have no replacement, and have a camera which will not work.
Rating:
Summary: Sony has poor customer service
Review: I ordered the camera thru Amazon. I love Amazon, they shipped the order to me right away. However, the camera sent to me was missing the battery charger. Until I can charge the batteries, the camera will not work. The battery charger is proprietary to this camera, I cannot buy another charger at the store. Sony customer service is poor. I've called, and emailed to request a replacement immediately. The Sony customer service rep acted as through they were doing me a favor. 3 days later, I still have no replacement, and have a camera which will not work.
Rating:
Summary: Best Smallest Camera in the World, Period!
Review: I own several other digital cameras with 5-7 megapixels, but I have to say this is one sweet little camera that gives excellent pictures (color and clarity). It is so small that I keep it in a cell phone pouch clipped to my belt and found that I use it more than all the other cameras combined. It does not have a zoom or audio with the MPEG video, but the sacrifice of these two features for the size, is well worth it. It is a GREAT second camera to carry on vacation so you never miss those once in a lifetime shots.
Rating:
Summary: excellent little point-and-shoot camera
Review: I purchased this camera so I would always have a camera with me. This is smaller than my cell phone (a Kyocera 2255), and fits beautifully in a pocket or around the neck with the provided strap. The camera also uses standard AAA batteries (2 rechargable batteries and a charger come with the camera), which is great in a pinch. The use of standard batteries is why I chose this over the Casio Exlim S2 model, which is similar in actual size and features (though the sony feels smaller because it isn't as tall). I've used numerous other digicams (some I've owned, some I've borrowed from friends for short trips): Canon A10, Fuji 2800Z, Minolta S404, Kyocera S2, Canon S110, Canon S230, Canon S200, Sony DSC-U53, Canon S30, Sony DSC-U20, Nikon 885, Nikon 4500, Nikon 775... and this Sony U30 ranks somewhere in the middle as far as image quality. It (like most Sony digicams) leans towards oversaturating images, particularly outdoor shots, and the jpeg compression is more extreme than it should be (image sizes are around 500k for 2.0mp images in best quality) which robs the camera of detail, but it is fine for 4x6 prints, which is all you are likely to be using a camera like this for. I do have hope that Sony will offer a higher-quality jpeg option someday with a firmware upgrade (are you reading this, Sony?). The camera focuses fairly quickly by digicam standards (about 1/2 - 2/3 seconds), and the shot to shot time seems excellent. Movie mode is poor at 160x120 resolution, but its better than nothing. You're not getting a camera like this for movies, so it's something I look at as more of an unexpected perk than a drawback. The biggest drawbacks, of course, are the lack of zoom and a somewhat weak flash (though the flash isn't useless, it's not as robust as a full digicam)... these are acceptable tradeoffs, considering the image quality is quite good and the ease-of-use is exemplary. The differences between this and the previous generation Cybershot (the U20) are minor, but are nice to have. The U30 seems to have slightly faster electronics (focusing, shot-to-shot, saving, etc...), the U30 supports Memory Stick Pro (memory sticks above 128mb), and the U30 has a small mirror on the front that makes it easy to frame up self-portraits. Like I said, none of these are features worth upgrading for if you already have a U20, but if you don't have either camera, they are nice perks, since the two cameras are both selling at the same price right now. I plan to get a second, prosumer grade digicam (probably a Fuji S5000 or S7000) when the next generation arrives on the market this fall, but this camera will probably still get the lion's share of my time because it will ALWAYS be with me. No camera--no matter how expensive or how many bells and whistles it has--does you any good if it's on the shelf at home when you are out in the world and come across a good photo op. With this sony, I never have to worry about missing a shot I want.
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