Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 18 megapixel JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 5Mb.

The Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V produced images of very good quality during the review period. This camera handled noise well, not becoming obvious until ISO 800, and then becoming progressively worse at the faster settings of ISO 1600 and 3200, an excellent performance for such a small image sensor with such a high pixel count. It's not really worth using the new fastest 6400 and 12800 speeds though.

Chromatic aberrations were in evidence but were well-controlled, with some limited purple fringing effects appearing in high contrast situations. The 18 megapixel images were a little soft straight out of the camera at the default sharpen setting and require some further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop, or you can increase the in-camera sharpening level.

Macro performance is outstanding, allowing you to focus as close as 1cm away from the subject. Commendably barrel distortion is well controlled even at the 25mm wide-angle focal length of the versatile 20x zoom lens. The built-in flash worked well indoors, with no red-eye and adequate overall exposure. The maximum shutter speed of 30 seconds allows the cameras to capture enough light for most after-dark situations.

The Backlight Correction HDR feature dramatically increases the detail in the shadow and highlight areas, although we miss being able to choose just how much correction is applied. There's a good range of Color Modes and Picture Effects on offer, while the Sweep Panorama mode makes it simple to take wide-vista shots.

Noise

There are 8 ISO settings available on the Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting.

ISO 100 (100% Crop)	ISO 200 (100% Crop)
ISO 400 (100% Crop)	ISO 800 (100% Crop)
ISO 1600 (100% Crop)	ISO 3200 (100% Crop)
ISO 6400 (100% Crop)	ISO 12800 (100% Crop)

Focal Range

The Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V's 18x zoom lens offers a very versatile focal range, as illustrated by these examples:

25mm	500mm

Sharpening

Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the camera images are just a little soft and ideally benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop. Alternatively you can change the in-camera sharpening level.

Original (100% Crop)	Sharpened (100% Crop)

Chromatic Aberrations

The Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V handled chromatic aberrations well during the review, with some purple fringing present around the edges of objects in high-contrast situations, as shown in the examples below.

Example 1 (100% Crop)	Example 2 (100% Crop)

Macro

The Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V allows you to focus on a subject that is just 1cm away from the camera when the lens is set to wide-angle. The first image shows how close you can get to the subject (in this case a compact flash card). The second image is a 100% crop.

Macro Shot	100% Crop

Flash

The flash settings on the Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V are Auto, Forced Flash, Slow Syncro, No Flash, with a Red-eye Reduction option in the Main menu. These shots of a white coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.

Suppressed Flash - Wide Angle (25mm)	Forced Flash - Wide Angle (25mm)
Suppressed Flash - Telephoto (500mm)	Forced Flash - Telephoto (500mm)

And here are some portrait shots. As you can see, neither the Forced Flash setting or the Red-Eye Correction option caused any amount of red-eye.

Forced Flash	Forced Flash (100% Crop)
Red-eye Reduction	Red-eye Reduction (100% Crop)

Night Shot

The Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V's maximum shutter speed is 30 seconds in the Manual mode, which is great news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 25 seconds at ISO 100. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like.

Night Shot	Night Shot (100% Crop)

Background Defocus

Background Defocus attempts to mimic the sharp subject and out-of-focus background effect that DSLR owners typically enjoy, shooting two frames in quick succession and varying the aperture between each one.

On	On (100% Crop)

Backlight Correction HDR

DRO is Sony's solution for improving shadow and highlight detail in photos taken in contrasty light, significantly increasing the image's dynamic range. The examples show the rather dramatic effect of turning this feature on.

Off	On

Color Modes

There are 5 Color Mode preset effects that you can use to change the look of your images.

Standard	Vivid
Real	Sepia
B/W

Picture Effects

The Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V offers a range of 9 creative Picture Effects.

Off	HDR Painting
Rich-tone Monochrome	Miniature
Toy Camera	Pop Color
Partial Color (Red)	Soft High-key
Watercolor	Illustration

Intelligent Sweep Panorama

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V allows you to take panoramic images very easily, by 'sweeping' with the camera while keeping the shutter release depressed. The camera does all the processing and stitching and even successfully compensates for moving subjects, with the new High Resolution mode successfully creating a 40+ megapixel image.

Standard

Wide

High Resolution

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V camera, which were all taken using the 18 megapixel Fine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample Movie & Video

Product Images

Front of the Camera

Front of the Camera / Lens Extended

Front of the Camera / Flash Raised

Isometric View

Isometric View

Rear of the Camera

Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed

Rear of the Camera / Turned On

Rear of the Camera / Main Menu

Rear of the Camera / Main Menu

Rear of the Camera / Custom Menu

Rear of the Camera / Shooting Menu

Top of the Camera

Bottom of the Camera

Side of the Camera

Side of the Camera

Front of the Camera

Front of the Camera

Memory Card Slot

Battery Compartment

Conclusion

The Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V is a more capable and more refined version of our favourite travel-zoom camera from 2011, the HX9V, with a longer lens, higher resolution and extra features helping to maintain Sony's lead over the competition in this ultra-competitive part of the camera market.

The move to a headline-grabbing 18 megapixel sensor may elicit groans amongst more experienced photographers, but in reality Sony have been able to maintain the excellent image quality that the previous 16 megapixel HX9V offered. The 18 megapixel backlit sensor provides excellent results from ISO 100-800, with only the fater settings of 1600 and 3200 suffering from too much noise and smearing of fine detail. You should ignore 6400 and 12800 though unless there's really no alternative. Chromatic aberrations are well controlled and colours accurate, and the 20x 25-500mm lens commendably doesn't suffer from too much distortion at either end of the mammoth zoom range.

The Manual shooting mode lets you set a shutter speed of up to 30 seconds for effective night-time shooting, although I missed the Aperture and Shutter Priority modes that several rivals offer, and only having two possible apertures in Manual mode does somewhat limit what you can achieve creatively. Less expereinced beginners shouldn't be scared off the HX20V either, as Sony's excellent hand-holding Intelligent Auto modes are as effective as the competition's, while the new Photo Creativity menu lets you experiment with the camera's core settings without having to know all the photography jargon.

In addition to the excellent still images, the Sony HX20V also offers full 1080p video recording, and you can even take a high-res still whilst shooting your movie masterpiece. You can use the full 20x zoom during recording, sound is stereo rather than mono, and the AVCHD format ensures that file sizes don't get too out of control. The built-in GPS also works well, unobtrusively and reliably recording your every movement, although the camera takes a few minutes to sync with one or more satellites and the battery life is reduced by around 25% if you leave it constantly switched on.

Add in the 3D Sweep Panoramas and 3D Still Images, amazing 10fps burst shooting mode, 0.13 second auto-focusing, closer macro mode, extensive range of in-camera Picture effects and the high-resolution 921K dot LCD screen, and it's still easy for us to recommend the Sony CyberShot DSC-HX20V above all of its travel-zoom rivals. Essential!

Ratings (out of 5)
Design	5
Features	5
Ease-of-use	5
Image quality	4.5
Value for money	4.5

Review Roundup

Reviews of the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V from around the web.

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