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Sony Cyber-shot DSCH50 9.1 MP Digital Camera with 15x Optical Zoom with Super Steady Shot | 
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| Brand: Sony
Category: Photography
List Price: $399.99
Buy New: $319.95
You Save: $80.04 (20%)
New (25) Used (6) Refurbished (1) from $304.45
Rating:  66 reviews
Sales Rank: 27
Color: Black
Media: Electronics
Batteries Included: Yes
System Memory: 15
Floppy Disk Drive: None
Monitor Size: 300
Includes Software: Yes
Optical Zoom: 15
Digital Zoom: 2
Connectivity: AV
Display Size: 3
Maximum Focal Length: 78
Minimum Focal Length: 5.2
Maximum Resolution: 9.1
Has Red Eye Reduction: Yes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 3.2 x 3.4 x 4.6
image-stabilization
MPN: DSC-H50/B
Model: DSC-H50/B
UPC: 027242728981
EAN: 0027242728981
ASIN: B00154MCRO
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Smile Shutter technology captures smiles | | • | Super SteadyShot optical image stabilization | | • | HD Photo Viewing capability | | • | Face Detection controls flash/focus/exposure/white bal | | • | 15x optical zoom/30x digital zoom |
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| Accessories:
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Beauty is in the details, and this model captures them all. The DSC-H50 is a full-featured point-and-shoot with outstanding high-power zoom capability. It includes Smile Shutter technology which captures smile the moment they happen, as well as Face Detection technology to optimize focus, exposure and color for up to eight faces. Shoot detailed images with 9.1 megapixel resolution, and bring your subjects closer with the 15x optical zoom Carl Zeiss lens. Intelligent Scene Recognition automatically selects your camera's settings based on detected lighting conditions, while Sony's double anti-blur solution helps keep your images blur-free. The DSC-H50 completes the package with a 3.0" ClearPhoto LCD Plus display that lets you easily view your images and menu options.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 61 more reviews...
 Sony's Latest "Bridge" Camera May 20, 2008
Ray
236 out of 237 found this review helpful
The Sony DSC-H50 Cybershot camera has generated significant interest in the photographic community for a number of reasons. First, there is the ever-present hope that this new model may move us closer to that "gold standard" camera of our imagination, the point-and-shoot camera that rivals DSLR performance in terms of picture quality, containing a single lens that spans all the way from a true wide-angle to high telephoto range, with good overall performance, customizable features, and low weight. Then, there is the large, bright, and articulated screen that so many photographers desire, yet is strikingly absent from most recent models. And, of course, there is the interest always garnered in the technology upgrades that new models typically possess, such as support for ever-larger memory cards, more sophisticated processor algorithms, and improved photographic features that help make everyday photo-taking easier and more successful.
After owning this camera for a few days, I can report that from the usability standpoint, the DSC-H50 is a gem. The camera is lightweight, easy to hold, and has a comfortable grip. Sony's implementation of a bright, clear, articulating 3-inch LCD screen makes the camera particularly easy to use, and only a short time using the camera is required to find that the camera's shape "works." Controls are laid out in clear, easy to understand manner, and users of previous Cybershot models will recognize the trademark Sony approach to controls on point and shoot cameras. A new, self-explanatory menu system explains each menu option, and the system is mastered in short time. The camera feels solid and well-built in spite of its light 15-oz. weight. Beyond the normal rotary knob that places the camera in its various modes, a number of dedicated buttons control image playback, burst mode, slideshow mode, and "night shot" mode.
Picture quality also appears to be generally good. The DSC-H50 may be of interest to more demanding photographers who are looking for a secondary camera when not wishing to lug around a full set of lenses and a DSLR, albeit with a necessary amount of post processing to remove sensor noise and the chromatic aberration that appears in some shots. Macro performance is excellent, and the "Steady Shot" technology appears to work well. It is important to remember that this camera, though having a full 15x telephoto lens, is not a "true" wide-angle lens, with the wide end only reaching 31mm. Nevertheless, this is wider than most point and shoot cameras, with only a very few select models reaching the 28mm width so usefulfor landscape and close-up group shots. The DSC-H50 is a coated Zeiss Vario-Tessar, and seems well suited to take high-quality shots, as long as one understands the limitations of the unit.
The camera is designed to make general point and shoot photography very easy, and the camera certainly meets those goals. There is automatic scene detection, face detection, ISO detection, and many other features that will appeal to the typical home user. When shooting in automatic mode, the camera produces good quality images that will satisfy the average user. From my preliminary results, it looks as though the DSC-H50 will make happy a large number of users who are looking for this type of a camera.
There are also a few other unusual "plusses" for this camera. First, the camera comes standard with a wireless remote control, which is almost unheard of. And the remote control is not a simple shutter release control: you can do almost anything you can do by holding the camera, including using the menus, with this remote. Next, the camera comes standard with a lens adapter, which in the past has been a $30 or $40 accessory necessary if you wish to use add-on lenses. Further, both a wide-angle and an additional telephoto lens are available for the camera. And last, but certainly not least, Sony has finally adopted a small and lightweight battery charger that does not use the cable-and-brick approach, but rather, plugs directly into a wall socket. All of these are welcome additions to the camera.
PROS
- Very good optical lens range, from somewhat-wide (31mm) to 15x zoom (465mm)
- Generally good image quality
- Excellent macro performance
- Effective image stabilization
- Outstanding, pivoting 3" LCD screen
- Feels solid and well-built
- Lightweight
- Good ergonomics
- Full set of customizable photographic settings
- Extrememly bright flash (strongest I've seen on a point-and-shoot)
- Intuitive, redesigned user interface/menu system with descriptions
- Can use up to 16Gb Memory Stick Duo
- Very easy to use, even for novice users
- Comes with remote control and other accessories
- Both super zoom lens and wide-angle lens are available accessories
CONS
- Not quite wide-enough short end (only 31mm, not 28mm)
- Small sensor makes noise both inevitable and present, even at low ISO levels (noise reduction can be adjusted in-camera)
- Chromatic aberration/purple fringing under certain conditions
- No true HD video (compare Panasonic DMC-TZ5)
- No RAW mode (but commonly missing now in "bridge" cameras)
- Camera carrying case not included
- Can turn camera on with lens cap in place, allowing lens to push into lens cap; lens cap also pops off occasioanlly
In summary, this lightweight camera with loads of features, generally good picture quality, and aggressive pricing makes the DSC-H50 appear to have hit all the major marks quite well, particularly for the average user who wants to shoot decent pictures with little effort.
 Amazing camera May 13, 2008
T. Riley (Indiana)
72 out of 72 found this review helpful
Okay, so I originally had a Sony Mauvica digital camera. That was my first taste of Sony camera's. My husband and I decided that the Carl Zeiss name was enough to invest in a camera. That camera was amazing. I then went to the Sony Cybershot DSC-W80 because I wanted something smaller and those little bitty pocket cameras came out from everywhere. That is a good camera as well, but nothing like the mauvica and especially this H50. I was a little worried buying this camera because it had so little reviews out there. I'm glad I did. It's really great. The zoom feature is wonderful. I have children and we really need a good zoom for their school concerts and musicals. I have tried this zoom in every atmosphere I can think of. It does so good outside. The steady feature is great because I don't always have a steady hand. Inside in low light, the zoom is good and doesn't look too grainy on the computer unless you zoom into the picture really close. Good for printing 8 x 10's. I haven't tried anything over that.
The portrait mode is fabulous. I love taking close up pictures of flowers, the kids and animals with this.
The new smile detecting feature is really cool. I didn't really think it would work, but it does. I tried this by having my kids not smiling and then waiting a second to smile. It does seem to detect a smile. There is a setting you can change to detect smiles, low, medium and high. It is suppose to have an editing feature to be able to add smiles after you take the picture... I couldn't get this to work. If I do get it to work, I will add more later.
The editing program that this camera has is very cool. You can change the photos you've taken to black & white and the other basics like red eye and sepia also, but it has an option to select one object to stay in color and put the rest of the picture in black and white. It's a really cool feature in my opinion. There are other effects also like blurring everything around one center item. I posted some pics that I took and edited. I will also say that once you upload those pics to Amazon, they lose a lot of their quality.
One of the reasons I love sony cameras is because it has a night shot option. It's infrared and lets you shoot in complete dark areas. You can also record video in night shot. I have used night shot in the past with a Sony camera when I couldn't use a flash and it worked great in Disney's "It's a Small World" ride.
Another cool feature is when you view your pictures, you can do so with music. Now what I like about this is you can upload your own songs to the camera from your PC.
There is a noise reduction feature that lets you automatically set to low, medium or high. This is a great feature once you learn what you need to use. It eliminates a lot of the grainy photos.
I can't say enough about face detection, it makes photos of people turn out better. It has no problem detecting faces for me.
The LCD screen comes out and tilts. I really don't know what I will use that for, I wish that it would turn around for self portraits.
It comes with a lens hood, I have to admit that I haven't even tried using this yet.
I hope I have listed enough to tell you about the features of this camera. I usually look at user reviews as well as professional ones to determine what camera I purchase. There is more to talk about, but for the semi-novice user that I am, I feel like these are some important qualities. Overall, I believe this is well worth the money. I do believe it will come down in price after time, just like everything else. Next to a DSLR, this is a camera worth having.
This is one spectacular camera April 30, 2008
S. Banks (Houston, Tx United States)
49 out of 54 found this review helpful
I have had my eye on this camera for a while. With the specs and the price it seemed an amazing deal. Just got it yesterday so I haven't used it a ton but so far its a dream. The includes are great also, you get a battery charger, not a brick and a power cable, but a cool wall charger. You get a shoulder strap, a lens hood and an attachment ring thingee (not sure what its for yet.) The HUGE lcd on the back pivots and is staggering clear & bright. The OS for the camera is easy to use and very responsive. The pics are sharp and bright and clear. And the flash is a MONSTER. Its very powerful as advertised! Will add more later.
 Sony DSC-H50 - Very disappointed - Do NOT recommend June 4, 2008
Jay (Los Angeles, CA United States)
33 out of 40 found this review helpful
First, so you know, I am a die-hard Sony fan - My TV, camcorder, DVD players, PS3, PSP, last digital camera, even my PC and monitor are all SONY.
I've had this Sony DSC-H50 camera for about a week, taken over 200 photos and unfortunately, I do not like it. Many pictures are simply unusable. My old Sony DSC-S90 took better pictures - better color, better clarity, less noise. Every once in awhile I'll get a nice shot, and I wonder - how did that happen? I haven't touched the controls - I left the camera on automatic.
Taking several shots in a row of the same subject produces different results - some are noisy and others slightly blurry, while still others look great. When viewing the pictures at actual size, blurry and noisy results are even more pronounced. At times, I get an annoying "Processing" message for awhile and the camera refuses to take another shot. I guess this is referred to as "lag time." Well, I can understand 2 seconds of lag time, but sometimes I literally have to wait for almost 10 seconds!
I've tried other settings, as well, such as Noise Reduction, Color selection (i.e. "Vivid"), EV adjustments, etc. I've also lowered the resolution to 5 megapixels and to 3 megapixels. Still not impressed. My friend has a Canon that clearly takes better photos, and he joked at how his pictures were better than mine and his camera's over a year older (and cheaper.)
I suspect the problem is in the compression of the pictures to JPEG. I would much rather have Sony save full size pictures and let me compress them with my own software than have the camera automatically do it for me. Yes, I know that takes more memory, so I'll buy a bigger memory card - I don't care! The only thing I can't understand is why the compression on my old DSC-S90 worked fine but not on this camera.
The flash on this camera is impressive, lighting up and entire room at nighttime to produce a shot that looks like daytime. So I'll give it that. But forget the Nightshot - it's so grainy you won't be able to print it. Maybe it's good if you want to catch a drug dealer or a cheating spouse without a flash, but the quality is not nearly good enough to print.
The accessories are nice (the battery charger is good, the remote is cool, the lens adapter a nice add on.) But if I can't get good pictures, what good are the accessories?
As far as the Zoom is concerned....yes it does go pretty far. But again, results are mixed - sometimes you get a decent picture, sometimes not.
I bought this camera because my son graduated from school and I wanted to have nice pictures - and because my DSC-S90 finally died (after years of dedication and hard work and great looking pictures!) At the graduation ceremony, I specifically wanted 3 pictures - one where my son shook the hand of the principal, one where he accepted his diploma, and one where he was walking off the stage. Since I was about 15 rows back, I had to use the Zoom on the camera. Well, I got the first shot....but it came out blurry. And then....what...."Processing"...oh no....trying to click over and over...nothing...whoops, there goes...I got half of his back as he was walking away. So anyone who says the lag time is impressive is way off base - it ruined my pictures of this event that cannot be repeated!
It deeply saddens me to write this review....because I have always loved Sony products....but this time, I want to warn others before getting this model.
Will I buy another Sony? Yes, because I believe everyone (including Sony) is entitled to make one mistake. But it won't be this model. I'll try to get something that works as well as my old DSC-S90 4 megapixel. And probably for 6 times the price!
Amazing lens, Spectacular photos, easy to use! June 4, 2008
chickenbutt
29 out of 31 found this review helpful
I am really surprised at a couple reviews I've read here that state this camera takes poor photos and/or is difficult to use. I am NOT a pro, not even close, but I love shooting pics and I just go gaga over a spectacular photo. In the short time I've had this camera I have taken quite a few spectacular photos and I could not be more pleased.
I also wanted to speak to the issue of weight. I've seen a couple of reviews on this camera that it feels light and cheap. I absolutely do NOT find that to be true. It has a nice, substantial weight in my opinion.
I don't think I've shot a bad pic, even one time that I accidently hit the button shooting an unintended pic in my living room the first day.
It isn't even necessary to use manual settings to get a beautiful picture. I just wanted to start shooting, then figure out the more involved stuff after getting used to the basics. For the last few days I have shot almost everything on an auto setting for just that reason.
This is my first Zeiss lens and I just have to say - WOW! I love how wide this lens is also. I wasn't used to that with my previous Sony (I am a Sony girl and this is my fourth Sony digi cam). I also have had exceptional results with the zoom. The level of stabilization actually shocked me. No bad pics yet! I think that by the time I take the time to figure out all the manual settings I will be shooting like a pro.
Over all, this is just a wonderful camera for both the amateur and the experienced shooter in my opinion. I have taken some pretty decent pictures in my day, but nothing like what I can do with this camera. The level of clarity, ease of getting a focused shot without even using one of my tripods, and level of stability when super-zooming are all qualities of this camera that I have not experienced with any previous digital camera.
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