Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX200V 18.2 MP Exmor R CMOS Digital Camera with 30x Optical Zoom and 3.0-inch LCD (Black) (2012 Model)

I purchased the sony hx200 and the nikon p510 loaded the same class 10 sd card, set the same auto functions for both camera's and took the same shots with both cameras. Wow, what a difference in function, photo quality and ease of use the Sony is. Using the sony zoom compared to the nikon there were interesting differences. The sony photo image has clear image detail along with excellent color rendition compared to the nikon. In fact, I had to take 6 photo's of the same image with the p510 to try to get a similar quality image as the sony and it still didn't show the fine detail and color the the sony did in the first try! (the nikon p510 going back). Just started using the hx200. But from the looks of the terrific image quality, ease of use for the menu navigation user interface, and overall quality features and options I will keeping this. I purchased the Case Logic DCB-304 High/Fixed Zoom Camera Case, which fits perfect and room for filters, small accessories and the shape of the case is easy to wear/use. This replaces a 4 year old panasonic smaller point and shoot. The sony hx200 does some excellent low light images and very quick image capture and shoots 10 fps! Very happy with the hx200 and would highly recommend this camera. **UPDATE 12/20/12 just finished a 2 week vaca and took more than 1500 images along with over 90 min of video with the hx200. Performance was accurate, color rendition is very crisp and impressive from no zoom to super full zoom. Was able to capture whale splashing in the ocean in full zoom with crisp definition and droplets of water. I enjoyed learning some of the functions to improve various images. Including a function to add high 'vivid' colors to landscape photos. It would be difficult to take a bad image with the well designed hx200. Overall ease of use was simple and quick. I have small hands and this camera fits well for me. The one thing I had to get used to for this camera was the lens cap. I took the hx200 on long hikes, sailing, flying ect. Low light performance is excellent! I took a little time to learn the functions and experiment to find what settings worked well for me. What a terrific camera and very happy to recommend the hx200. **another Update** 1/24/13 I wanted to note that I use this camera frequently on a daily basis. I purchased an additional battery but even after a day of 300 shots and 20 min of vid, I have not had to change my battery that came with the camera. Also: for those that are saying it is slow. Not the case! Are you using a class 10 card?? The card you are using may be what is making your camera record slow!! I use a class 10 card and I get no lag for camera shots. Still loving the camera :)

Ultra-zoom cameras are particularly good on safaris where the camera taker does not have the option of moving closer to the subject. On safari, we two couples took two Sony hx200v cameras and one entry level Nikon DSLR, as well as the newest high-end Nikon DSLR, both with Sigma zoom lenses. The latter lenses weighed about 4 pounds and were difficult to maneuver, but the high-end Nikon pictures were superior to the Sony pictures (as should be expected when the equipment costs about 12 times as much). The Sony cameras were very easy to use and produced excellent pictures, with greater magnification than the Nikon cameras were able to achieve without cropping. We considered purchasing the Canon SX40. However, the Sony has two very valuable attributes that no non-Sony camera has regardless of price. First, it has what is known as the backlit option. In taking pictures, sometimes part of the picture is in bright sunlight and the other part is in shade. If you adjust the camera settings for the bright light portion, then the part in shade is too dark, and if you adjust the camera settings for the dark portion, then the part in light is washed out. And going halfway means that neither the shaded portion nor the sunny portion looks right. What the Sony camera does is take two pictures at once, one automatically adjusted for the light and the other adjusted for the shade. Then it combines both pictures into one, where both parts are more balanced. The light part is still lighter than the shaded part, but both parts work. And all this is done, without any complicated manual adjustments. The second attribute is that under the "superior auto selection", the Sony camera takes 3 pictures in very rapid succession. It then throws out the random noise to produce a superior picture. Like the Canon Sx40 and almost all point and shoot cameras, the Sony hx200v has a very small sensor. This means that a lot of random noise enters the digital photo. By taking three pictures, the camera can eliminate most of the random noise as random noise is unlikely to affect the same pixels. This is a very easy to use camera that produces excellent pictures and very high-quality video. It also allows those who like to adjust camera settings in various ways to do so. I highly recommend this camera.

This is an excellent camera considering a point and shoot level camera. It has many smart features built in. For example, I don't have to change setting if I want to shoot a very close up object. All you need to do is keep the function selection dial at i-auto mode and bring the camera close to the object. Be careful using the zoom function because the telescoping lens may touch the object. Another nice thing this camera has is when I playback the video, I can snap shot a frame that I like to become a photo right on the camera. It comes in handy when you are bored on an airplane. The 30x feature is nice, 50x is even better. But, the size and weight become concern to me. Also, it will be harder to hold the camera still at full zoom. So it's a trade off. The thing I don't like so far is if you accidentally touch the power on button, the telescope lens will extend out to a default position, which will half way out the lens cover. It could be engineering a little better. Also, the video recording button is a little confusing. You can change the function dial to the video mode first and push a standalone red button to record, or, just just push the red button will let you record as well. Humm.. I have this camera for a few weeks now, and still learn to use it. One thing I want to point out: the seller of this camera is KNOCKOUT DEAL via amazon. Good price. But, there is no sony warranty document come with it. Also, the lens has a smear spot on it when I received the package. It looks like the seller has done something on it and repackaged. Don't know why?? Overall, I am very please with this camera so far. Oh, one more thing: Sony change the design, so I can directly connect the camera to my iPad now :)