PMA 2009: Sony Unveils DSC-HX1

Sony's new DSC-HX1 Cyber-shot camera will be the company's first digital still camera to feature sweep panorama technology. It will also be the first camera in the Cyber-shot line to feature Sony's 1/2.4 inch Exmor CMOS sensor and the first to have HD movie recording capability, two more reasons that make the HX1 one of Sony's highlights at this year's Photo Marketing Association expo in Las Vegas.

The HX1 differs from most other digital still cameras in that it uses a mechanical shutter rather than an electronic shutter, which helps reduce distortion while shooting a moving subject. Also, while in hand-held twilight or anti-blur modes, the HX1 can supposedly capture images with up to 50 percent less noise than those captured by traditional sensors. According to Karim Noblecilla, senior product marketing manager in Sony Electronics’ Digital Imaging Division, "Traditional CMOS sensor technology provides higher shutter speeds, but we are using what we call an Image3 system that combines the best image, sensor and processor. By combining this sensor with a high-quality Sony G lens and powerful BIONZ™ processor, we are able to create solutions beyond fast speed that helps consumers get better pictures.”

The hand-held twilight and anti-blur modes achieve images with significantly less noise by using the high speed shutter Exmor CMOS sensor technology to take six shots in a fraction of a second. The camera's BIONZ image processor then calculates the positions of objects in each of the frames and superimposes them in such a manner that the clearest, sharpest picture results. To reduce blur the processor would use the moving subject in one of the six frames while superimposing all six for the background, resulting in a crisp, sharp background and greatly reduced blur on the subject.

Another highlight, the "press and sweep" functionality allows the user to capture much more than a traditional wide-angle lens. It allows you to take 224 degree horizontal shots and 154 degree vertical. The camera continuously shoots full resolution pictures at high speed and then the processor pieces them together into a panoramic shot with a max resolution of 7152 x 1080. According to Noblecilla, "This panorama mode is so seamless that it removes the guess work, the camera indicates where you are in the degree range, so you know how wide you can shoot and stitches the photos automatically. It calculates and aligns pictures for you without using additional software.”

1080p HD movie recording is another bright spot of the HX1. In HD movie mode the camera records at 30 fps (1440 x 1080) and captures audio with a built in stereo microphone. The 20X zoom is also available in this mode. It uses MPEG4 AVC/H.264 format and can shoot in standard and VGA modes. It also has HDMI connectivity.

The HX1 features the Sony G lens, a 28-560 millimeter f/2.8-5.2 wide-angle lens with 20x telephoto range, also a first for the Cyber-shot line. The G lens has a six blade aperture which allows it to produce defocused backgrounds, plus A-spherical lens elements that minimize chromatic aberration common to high-magnification lenses.

The HX1 also features a host of features incorporated into its "intelligent auto" mode that make picture taking easy. Intelligent Scene Recognition allows the camera to recognize a scene (based on lighting conditions, contrast, etc.) and optimize the settings for that particular scene in just a thirtieth of a second. Face detection allows the camera to adjust settings such as flash, exposure, white balance and focus to produce the most natural skin tones and reduce red eye. It also takes two pictures simultaneously (well almost) and saves the one in which the eyes are least closed. Optical SteadyShot technology helps to counteract camera shake and Smile Shutter recognizes smiles to help capture them when they happen.

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX1wil be available in April for around $500 USD, but look for pre-sales to start this month. We will be updating this table as pre-sales and deals appear.

[via dpreview]

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