List price as of Oct 17, 2007:
S$2199
S$2199
Product Summary
Excellent
The good: Exceptionally streamlined, comfortable shooting design; broad, functional feature set, including sensor-shift image stabilizer; excellent photo quality; generally fast performance. 8.3
out of 10View score
The bad: A few design quirks; proprietary hot shoe.
The bottom line: A top-of-the-line amateur digital SLR camera, the Sony Alpha A700 will delight Konica Minolta diehards and makes a great choice if you don't already have a stake in other lens systems.
Read full review of the Sony Alpha DSLR-A700 »
Average User Rating
from 2 users
CNET Asia Review
We know Sony's older, entry-level Alpha A100 has its share of fans, but we never got a chance to shoot with it, which made the 12-megapixel Alpha A700 my introduction to Sony's take on dSLRs. And we soon found that the unprepossessing, very un-Sony-like design camouflages a sophisticated dSLR that's enjoyable to shoot and can hold its own quite well against models from veteran camera manufacturers such as Canon and Nikon. True, much of the DNA for Sony's dSLRs comes from the company's acquisition of deceased long-time player Konica Minolta, but simply relying on good genes never gets you very far in a fickle consumer electronics market.
Sony offers several bundles for the A700: body only (S$2,199); a kit with a Carl Zeiss 16-80mm lens (S$3,399) and a kit with an 18mm-to-70mm lens (S$2,399).
One of the few issues we have with the A700's operation is the way it handles switching among the three user-definable custom presets. Rather than allocating three separate slots on the mode dial as on the 40D, there's a single Memory Recall slot that brings up a selection screen when you rotate the dial to MR. Once you make your selection, however, the screen disappears until the next time you rotate the dial.
So if you shoot for a while using MR1, for example, you must then rotate the dial away and back to MR in order to select a different preset. How much this bothers you will depend upon how heavily you depend on the custom settings; we use them increasingly as time goes on, which inflates our annoyance a bit. On the other hand, and more importantly, the A700 doesn't seem to lose overrides when it goes to sleep the way the 40D does.
Sony offers several bundles for the A700: body only (S$2,199); a kit with a Carl Zeiss 16-80mm lens (S$3,399) and a kit with an 18mm-to-70mm lens (S$2,399).
Design
The body itself is dust- and moisture-resistant, with an aluminum chassis and a magnesium outer shell. Weighing 690g, the A700 feels solid and well made. Thanks to a deep indent on the grip beneath the ledge holding the shutter and a dial--much like the design of the Canon EOS 40D--the A700 also feels exceptionally comfortable and stable to hold. Like its Konica Minolta ancestors, the A700 implements a proprietary hot shoe. Though it doesn't really matter for flash units, which are proprietary as well, the odd connector may limit your choice of accessories that use the hot shoe as a dumb mount. Not a critical problem, but one to be aware of. However, I am not fond of the design of the switch on the A700; I find it awkward to manipulate.'))
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For more details on the Z75's features, click on the image.
One of the few issues we have with the A700's operation is the way it handles switching among the three user-definable custom presets. Rather than allocating three separate slots on the mode dial as on the 40D, there's a single Memory Recall slot that brings up a selection screen when you rotate the dial to MR. Once you make your selection, however, the screen disappears until the next time you rotate the dial.
So if you shoot for a while using MR1, for example, you must then rotate the dial away and back to MR in order to select a different preset. How much this bothers you will depend upon how heavily you depend on the custom settings; we use them increasingly as time goes on, which inflates our annoyance a bit. On the other hand, and more importantly, the A700 doesn't seem to lose overrides when it goes to sleep the way the 40D does.
Rate It Now
User Reviews
A very good mid-range DSLR for that price!
Jan 12, 2008Rating: 9 out of 10 (Spectacular)
Pros: Comfortable to hold, good performance & enough features to satisfy anyone.
Cons: Need to use OEM lenses for now until such time available from 3rd party manufacturers.
Opinion:
I bought this camera 3 days ago and went through it instruction manual and tried the camera with Sony kit lens and ex-Minolta Dynax lenses. They performed well. The kit
lens is pretty good but not outstanding and the Carl Zeiss
would be better of course. The camera body is made in Japan and that is what I like most. Up coming A 200 will compliment this A 700 and the new lenses line up is more than enough to satify most fussy photographers. Sony is
indeed coming up fast to join the DSLR market that is dominated by Canon & Nikon. It is good that we have another competitor with more choices!
Fantastic, easy to use cam with professional features
Oct 18, 2007Rating: 9 out of 10 (Spectacular)
Pros: Image quality, speed, build, built-in anti-shake, great lenses, VERY ergonomic
Cons: In SG, lenses are hard to find / expensive.
Opinion:
A fantastic camera that has yet to disappoint me. It's quickly reaching "you can pry it out of my cold dead hands" status. focus is fast, reviewing pictures is fast, the screen is gorgeous...
It's hard to find fault with this cam, and it certainly grabs the attention of Nikon and Canon users too (in a good way)
User Discussion
bobby38:
Looking for alpha700, I have seen the pricing in Europe is 1400 euros, not taking into account you have ...
