Sony DSC-T1 Cyber-shot camera features Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar zoom

"Our new Cyber-shot DSC-T1 represents a breakthrough in digital camera design," said Adam Williams, Product Manager for Digital Still Cameras, Sony United Kingdom. " Almost every component has been re-engineered to be smaller and optimised for the slim-line stainless steel casing. Coupled with the ultra compact storage provided by Memory Stick Duo and the new slim line InfoLITHIUM battery (NP-FT1), we have built a device that is capable of incorporating a large and bright 2.5" LCD screen, yet remains portable enough to be carried comfortably in your pocket."

Slim line but fully featured
The Cyber-shot DSC-T1 packs a powerful 5.1 effective Megapixel CCD and a new Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens with 3x optical zoom. This innovative zoom lens has been specially designed for compact and slim cameras to operate within the camera body rather than extending out. Engineered for the DSC-T1, a folded path optical system with 11 elements in 8 groups including 3 aspheric lenses and optimised mechanical design all contribute to the compact nature of this quality camera.

The heart of the camera
The Cyber-shot DSC-T1 takes advantage of Sony's latest Real Imaging Processor, which offers more precise, better picture quality at a higher operation speed and with 30% improved power consumption. The response time of the camera is also significantly improved: simply slide the lens cover down and the camera is ready to take photos in just over one second. It shoots full resolution images in one-second intervals and both the reduced release time lag of 0.009 seconds and shutter lag of 0.29 seconds contribute to a stress-free operation. On top of that it can capture four high-speed burst shots.

The Real Imaging Processor also enables the Cyber-shot DSC-T1 to record high-resolution video using MPEG Movie VX Fine (640x 480, 30 frames per second), which is of good enough quality to be played back full-screen on TV, with sound. The recording time is only limited by the capacity of your Memory Stick media.

Always great pictures
Shots in difficult conditions are now worry-free with 8 different Scene Selection modes. With the new Magnifying Glass Mode you can take a macro picture with a distance of 1cm. Additionally the subject that appears on the LCD screen is magnified up to 3.3 times, which allow users to see details that would otherwise be difficult to confirm with the naked eye.

The camera offers three settings for greater control over the saturation, contrast and sharpness of the picture. Saturation adjusts the vividness of the colour of the picture; contrast modulates dark and light; and sharpness increases the definition of the object outlines, without reducing the quality of the image by any gain in noise. This means users can adjust the final picture result much more to their satisfaction.

Another feature is Continuous Auto Focus, which allows users to maintain accurate focus using the shutter button even when the subject is moving. There is also extensive noise reduction on the camera to create clearer images with finer detail. Clear Colour NR analyses the colour and light frequency of the image and smoothes out distortion, leading to a more natural colour reproduction. This is particularly useful when shooting landscapes, when large areas with the same colour benefit from a richer colour definition. In addition, clear skies, dark blue seas and green forests are all reproduced more realistically. Clear Luminance NR meanwhile deals effectively with high luminance in the image. It is particularly good at reproducing details in large, even areas. Unlike conventional noise reduction systems, it suppresses image luminance noise without affecting image detail.

Slim camera, big Screen
The exceptional feature of the Cyber-shot DSC-T1 is its large 2.5-inch Hybrid LCD screen, which covers two thirds of the camera's back surface area. The hybrid display uses special imaging technology to let you see your subject as clearly in bright, outdoor conditions, (such as at the beach or ski resort), as you would in indoor or lower light environments. As well as allowing easier framing of shots, this well-sized screen becomes a great photo viewer with which to show off your images, wherever you are. It can also simultaneously display 16 index pictures from memory. The large screen also simplifies operation of the menu.

Connectivity
Sony products are designed to connect quickly to each other and to the world beyond so that users can easily enjoy the benefits of digital networking. Digital images in the Cyber-shot DSC-T1 are saved to removable storage in the form of the highly compact Memory Stick Duo and the Memory Stick PRO Duo (parallel interface), both capable of transferring your images between a wide range of Memory Stick compatible products. The DSC-T1 comes supplied with a Memory Stick adaptor, which makes it possible to play back content captured on the camera and stored on the Memory Stick Duo on to devices with standard size Memory Stick slots.

Also supplied with the DSC-T1 is a convenient cradle to offer connectivity to a PC or AV device and to recharge the battery. Simply slot in the camera and attach the cradle to a computer or TV to easily view your images. Additionally the Cyber-shot T1 is equipped with a USB 2.0 high-speed interface, which connects the camera by cable to a PC for fast image transfers.

Accessories
To get more out of the Cyber-shot DSC-T1, Sony also offers a variety of optional accessories: MPK-THA, a marine housing for the Cyber-shot T1; BC-TR1, a compact travel charger; LCS-THA, a stylish leather carrying case; and MSX-M256A and MSX-512A, compatible Memory Stick PRO Duo media in the size of 256MB and 512MB respectively.

The Cyber-shot DSC-T1 will available in the UK during January 2004.