Product Summary
Very good
The good: Capable of shooting some very nice photos; fast Live View AF and single-shot performance; tiltable LCD; dual card slots; relatively simple operation; built-in wireless flash and image stabilization. 7
out of 10View score
The bad: Smallish grip; middling viewfinder; color shifts with default settings.
The bottom line: While the Sony Alpha DSLR-A380 is a solid inexpensive dSLR with a few nice features that will probably satisfy many shooters, it doesn't deliver quite enough on any front to outshine competitors.
Read full review of the Sony Alpha DSLR-A380 »
Average User Rating
CNET Asia Review
When Sony released the Alpha DSLR-A350, it stood out from the crowd primarily for its robust feature set at an aggressive price. A year later, everyone else has caught up, and its successor, the DSLR-A380, isn't quite so novel for the money anymore.
The A380 is nearly identical to its cheaper sibling, the A330. The only difference is the A330's lower-resolution, 10.2-megapixel sensor. You can get the A380 in two kits: One with an 18-55mm lens and a dual-lens kit that includes 55-200mm optics. At the moment there's no body-only version of the A380, but one could possibly surface later in its lifecycle. As with all Sony dSLRs, you should be able to use any Minolta A-mount lens with the camera.
The mode dial, which provides the usual access to a handful of scene program modes and the typical manual, semi-manual, and full automatic exposure modes, sits to the left of the viewfinder, while a large Live View/optical viewfinder toggle switch sits to its right. Also on the top right is a cryptic button for the Smart Teleconverter, a 1.4x or 2x digital zoom that produces results identical to cropping and works only in Live View mode. On a ledge behind it is the exposure compensation button. We don't particularly like its position or feel. It's hard to feel and you have to move your whole hand to reach it with your thumb, and I think that will discourage people from using it.
Sony provides both an SD and Memory Stick Pro Duo slot in all its entry-level models, with a manual switch to choose between them. In this way, you don't have to commit to the less popular proprietary Memory Stick format. In an unusual design, the slots and the USB and mini-HDMI connectors sit under a sliding door on the left side of the camera instead of the more common right side. (The half-height grip probably necessitated this.) But this doesn't seem to affect usability.
The back controls are fairly typical for a modern dSLR and will be instantly recognizable to advanced point-and-shoot users. A four-way navigation switch with a center AF button is just below the indented thumb rest. With it, you conjure up flash options (including a no-brainer wireless on/off), ISO sensitivity settings, display choices, and drive mode options. The latter includes an interesting three shots-in-10 seconds self-timer mode and rather limited exposure bracketing for three shots in 1/3 or 2/3 stop increments. Above the navigation switch is the Fn button with which you access all your frequently needed shooting settings plus some others: Autofocus mode, AF area, metering mode, D-Range Optimizer, white balance and Creative Style. There are no novel options here, but in a nice interface touch, some text pops up to clarify the purpose of a setting if you pause for too long without making a selection. You have to go into the menu system to set image quality and toggle the image stabilization, but there's nothing truly buried or misplaced in the user interface. Of course, with the relatively basic feature set, there's not a lot to hide.
The A380 uses the same viewfinder which we complained about in its predecessor. As with many budget dSLRs, the viewfinder isn't very good: It's small and difficult to see the focus dots blink red, especially against dark objects. At least the focus lock indicator is close to the middle of the bottom readout.
Tags: DSLR, Mode, Sony Corp., Camera, SD Card
The A380 is nearly identical to its cheaper sibling, the A330. The only difference is the A330's lower-resolution, 10.2-megapixel sensor. You can get the A380 in two kits: One with an 18-55mm lens and a dual-lens kit that includes 55-200mm optics. At the moment there's no body-only version of the A380, but one could possibly surface later in its lifecycle. As with all Sony dSLRs, you should be able to use any Minolta A-mount lens with the camera.
Editors' note:
This review is based on tests done by our sister site CNET.com. As such, please note that there may be slight differences in the testing procedure and ratings system. For more information on the actual tests conducted on the product, please inquire directly at the site where the article was originally published. References made to some other products in this review may not be available or applicable in Asia.Design And Features
Most of the redesign over its predecessor works for the better, though we do have a couple of quibbles. It's lighter, though it still seems to fall in the middle of the sub-S$1,500 (US$1,058.95) dSLR herd for size and weight. The new grip design doesn't work for us, however. It's only three-quarters the height of the body and doesn't feel as secure as full-height grips. That said, we do like the rubberized texture that covers it on the left side of the body.)
The mode dial, which provides the usual access to a handful of scene program modes and the typical manual, semi-manual, and full automatic exposure modes, sits to the left of the viewfinder, while a large Live View/optical viewfinder toggle switch sits to its right. Also on the top right is a cryptic button for the Smart Teleconverter, a 1.4x or 2x digital zoom that produces results identical to cropping and works only in Live View mode. On a ledge behind it is the exposure compensation button. We don't particularly like its position or feel. It's hard to feel and you have to move your whole hand to reach it with your thumb, and I think that will discourage people from using it.
Sony provides both an SD and Memory Stick Pro Duo slot in all its entry-level models, with a manual switch to choose between them. In this way, you don't have to commit to the less popular proprietary Memory Stick format. In an unusual design, the slots and the USB and mini-HDMI connectors sit under a sliding door on the left side of the camera instead of the more common right side. (The half-height grip probably necessitated this.) But this doesn't seem to affect usability.
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The back controls are fairly typical for a modern dSLR and will be instantly recognizable to advanced point-and-shoot users. A four-way navigation switch with a center AF button is just below the indented thumb rest. With it, you conjure up flash options (including a no-brainer wireless on/off), ISO sensitivity settings, display choices, and drive mode options. The latter includes an interesting three shots-in-10 seconds self-timer mode and rather limited exposure bracketing for three shots in 1/3 or 2/3 stop increments. Above the navigation switch is the Fn button with which you access all your frequently needed shooting settings plus some others: Autofocus mode, AF area, metering mode, D-Range Optimizer, white balance and Creative Style. There are no novel options here, but in a nice interface touch, some text pops up to clarify the purpose of a setting if you pause for too long without making a selection. You have to go into the menu system to set image quality and toggle the image stabilization, but there's nothing truly buried or misplaced in the user interface. Of course, with the relatively basic feature set, there's not a lot to hide.
The A380 uses the same viewfinder which we complained about in its predecessor. As with many budget dSLRs, the viewfinder isn't very good: It's small and difficult to see the focus dots blink red, especially against dark objects. At least the focus lock indicator is close to the middle of the bottom readout.
Tags: DSLR, Mode, Sony Corp., Camera, SD Card
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