Sony NEX-3, Sony NEX-5 camera prices
Sony has announced the launch of two mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras called the NEX-3 and the NEX-5, which the company claims as the lightest cameras in its segment.
With the new cameras, Sony will target consumers who are beginners in photography and do not want to invest in a DSLR. They are definitely affordable too, for cameras in this class.
This particular segment of small interchangeable lens cameras has seen four different formats so far, such as the Micro Four Thirds format jointly developed by Panasonic and Olympus, the NEX from Sony, the NX system from Samsung and the GXR system from Ricoh.
Sony NEX-3 price: $550-600
Sony NEX-5 price: $650-700
The Sony NEX-3 and NEX-5 cameras are equipped with a 14.2 megapixel Exmor APS CMOS sensor which is equivalent in size to mid-range DSLR sensors. The image sensors are larger in size as compared to those present in the Micro Four Thirds cameras and therefore offer better image quality and better images in low light as well.
Sony NEX-33 and NEX-5 promo video
The Sony NEX cameras are equipped with a new mount called “E-Mount”. Since Sony’s Alpha lenses cannot be fitted to the E-Mount, the company is selling a separate adapter at a price of $200, which can make the use of Alpha lens possible with NEX cameras. Sony has also announced the launch of two E-mount lenses with the NEX cameras with iris and focus motors that are very silent. The 16mm f/2.8 E-Mount lenses will be priced at $249.99 whereas the 18-55mm f3.5-5.6 E-Mount lenses will be priced at $299. Another 18-200mm E-Mount lens is expected to be released by the company in the fall season. The E-Mount lenses will also have built-in stabilization called Optical SteadyShot.
Both the Sony cameras are slim and light with the NEX-3 having a thickness of 1.38 inches and the NEX-5 having a thickness of 1.56 inches. A 3-inch LCD screen that can be tilted is also part of these slim models. The screen is equivalent to a mini HDTV with its 921,600 dots and its tiltability makes it easy to take shots at odd angles.
The Sony NEX-3 and NEX-5 cameras include a number of attractive shooting modes and techniques for the photography beginner. The cameras include creatively controlled setting that are present on DSLRs such as blurred backgrounds and shallow depth-of-field settings, but the user does not have to shift to manual or aperture priority modes as in DLSRs to achieve these effects. The Intelligent Auto Mode has several creative options such as “Defocus Background” to achieve the effect. The cameras have very friendly user interfaces without too many buttons on its back side. The buttons are replaced by a scrollwheel and two soft keys for accessing menus, settings and scenes and the function of the soft keys are dependent on the menu that the user is in. The cameras also do not feature a pop-up flash, an optical viewfinder and the traditional mode dial that is present on the top of all DSLRs.
Features that are present on Sony’s Cybershot series are also added in the NEX cameras. The feature by which users can take a panoramic image by simply sweeping the camera is present in the NEX cameras as well. The Handheld Twilight Mode in which six images are overlaid to deliver a sharp low-light image without any noise, is also a feature in the NEX cameras.
The area where the cameras are actually different are their video shooting capabilities. The NEX-5 camera can shoot HD videos of 1920x1080i resolution whereas the NEX-3 can only shoot HD videos of 1280x720p resolution. The NEX-5 is also capable of shooting in ADVHC and MPEG-4 format while the NEX-3 can only shoot in MPEG-4 video format. Both cameras however, feature a dedicated video button.
Sony has revealed that it will release a firmware update in July that will enable the shooting of 3D panorama images that can later be viewed on Sony Bravia HDTVs with 3D glasses.
The cameras will support external storage in the form of SD, SDHC, SDXC and Memory Stick cards. There will also be a particular storage slot on the cameras that will be capable of accepting both card formats.
The NEX-3, with its polycarbonate body, will be available in late June in red, silver and black whereas the Nex-5, with its magnesium alloy body, will be available in July in silver and black only. A NEX-3 kit with a 16mm lens is priced at $550 and the NEX-3 kit with an 18-55mm lens is priced at $600. The NEX-5 kit with 16 mm lens is priced at $650 whereas the NEX-5 kit with the 18-55 zoom lens is priced at $700.