Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7 Review
Image Quality
All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 12 megapixel JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 4Mb.
As we were shooting a lot of our test samples on sunny days, the TX7's backlit correction function was kicking in more often that usual; lending images an overall slightly washed out feel. Otherwise colours are well saturated and a reasonable amount of detail is delivered even at maximum telephoto setting if there's sufficient light around and the camera is held good and steady. Although at a pinch there's ever so slight softening of the edges at maximum wide angle setting, most users of the TX7 would be perfectly happy with results straight out of the camera.
In terms of what this diminutive Cyber-shot offers to make it stand out from the crowd, once again the Sweep Panorama feature is fun for anyone wanting extra wide landscapes (wider than the 25mm lens will already allow that is), though the resultant images are somewhat soft when downloaded and viewed on a desktop. Results worked best for us when there were no moving people or objects in the frame - otherwise it's possible to end up with half a car or a third of a person.
Still, it does prompt the user to take a wider range of photographs than they might otherwise and get an overall view of a scene that's closer to what the human eye captures than a camera lens could normally provide.
In terms of low light photography, with an adjustable ISO range stretching from a higher than usual starting point of ISO 125 though to ISO 3200, there is theoretically the ability for the camera to cope with a wide range of lighting conditions. Whilst the additional auto ISO setting works well, surprisingly good results are to be had up to and including ISO 1600, what visible noise there is at this setting comparable with performance at ISO 800 from rival point and shoots, as we found in our review of the TX5. So if you need to push things a bit in low light - despite the fact that there's a lack of anything approaching a decent grip on the camera - the TX7's Exmor R CMOS sensor does seem to live up to its manufacturer's hype.
Noise
There are 6 ISO settings available on the Sony CyberShot DSC-TX7. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting.
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ISO 125 (100% Crop) |
ISO 200 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 400 (100% Crop) |
ISO 800 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 1600 (100% Crop) |
ISO 3200 (100% Crop) |
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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 a little soft and ideally benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop. You can't change the in-camera sharpening level.
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Original (100% Crop) |
Sharpened (100% Crop) |
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Chromatic Aberrations
The Sony CyberShot DSC-TX7 handled chromatic aberrations well during the review, with limited purple fringing present around the edges of objects in certain high-contrast situations, as shown in the examples below.
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Example 1 (100% Crop) |
Example 2 (100% Crop) |
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Macro
The Sony CyberShot DSC-TX7 offers a Macro setting that 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.
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Macro Shot |
100% Crop |
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Flash
The flash settings on the Sony CyberShot DSC-TX7 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.
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Suppressed Flash - Wide Angle (25mm) |
Forced Flash - Wide Angle (25mm) |
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Suppressed Flash - Telephoto (100mm) |
Forced Flash - Telephoto (100mm) |
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And here are some portrait shots. Neither the Forced Flash setting or the Red-Eye Correction option caused any red-eye.
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Forced Flash |
Forced Flash (100% Crop) |
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Red-eye Reduction |
Red-eye Reduction (100% Crop) |
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Night Shot
The Sony CyberShot DSC-TX7's maximum shutter speed is 2 seconds, which is not good news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 1/18th second at ISO 800.
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Night Shot |
Night Shot (100% Crop) |
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Sweep Panorama Mode
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7 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 now even successfully compensates for moving subjects. The main catch is that the resulting image is of fairly low resolution.
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Sample Images
This is a selection of sample images from the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7 camera, which were all taken using the 12 megapixel Fine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.
Sample Movie & Video
This is a sample video from the Sony CyberShot DSC-TX7 camera at the highest quality setting of 1280x720 pixels at 30 frames per second. Please note that this 29 second movie is 61Mb in size.
Product Images
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Front of the Camera |
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Front of the Camera / Lens Cover Open |
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Isometric View |
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Isometric View |
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Rear of the Camera |
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Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed |
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Rear of the Camera / Turned On |
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Rear of the Camera / Movie Displayed |
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Top of the Camera |
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Bottom of the Camera |
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Side of the Camera |
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Side of the Camera |
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Memory Card Slot |
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Battery Compartment |
Conclusion
The main negatives with regard to the Sony Cyber-shot TX7 are a short-ish battery life, a screen that quickly becomes smeared with fingerprints, a lens location that means it's all too easy for digits to drift into shot, occasional camera shake, and, er, that's about it.
The positives are a reliably consistent snapper that will slide easily and unobtrusively out of, and into, any pocket or handbag and look good whilst doing it. This means that it's yet another contender for your travel camera of choice in an already over-crowded marketplace. While to our mind Fuji's similarly slide-open-and-shoot Z800EXR model offers slightly better value, the Sony nevertheless feels fairly priced if you go by current street prices given the metal construction and a feature set more expansive than the average point and shoot model.
At the end of the day though this is 'just' a snapshot model however, with limited control over how you shoot, but, if that doesn't bother you and getting decent results with the minimum personal input does, then the TX7 looks like another solid option from Sony, even if it does appear to be more of the same with an ever so subtle tweak from the seemingly infinite Cyber-shot 'T' series.
| Ratings (out of 5) | |
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| Design | 4.5 |
| Features | 4 |
| Ease-of-use | 4 |
| Image quality | 4 |
| Value for money | 4 |
Review Roundup
Reviews of the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7 from around the web.
cameralabs.com »
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7 is a slim 10.2 Megapixel compact with a 4x optical zoom lens and a wide 3.5in touch-screen LCD. Announced in February 2010 alongside the Cyber-shot HX5, both models feature the same Sony Exmor R CMOS sensor which claims superior low light performance. It also allows both the TX7 and HX5 to shoot Full HD video along with very fast bursts, the latter exploited in a variety of innovative modes including one which self-assembles Panoramas and another which stacks multiple images for better results in dim conditions.
Read the full review »
imaging-resource.com »
The sleek, sub-compact Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7 point-and-shoot camera carries over some of the same features of its sibling, the TX1. Both are outfitted with a 10.2 megapixel Exmor R, back-illuminated CMOS sensor that is designed to capture more light and deliver better low-light performance. Optical image stabilization, a number of easy to use point-and-shoot features and a touchscreen interface are a few of the additional features shared by these two cameras.
Read the full review »
Specifications
| Optical Zoom | 4x |
| Precision Digital Zoom | Approx.8x(Total) |
| Smart Zoom | up to 22x (with VGA) |
| F | 3.5-4.6 |
| Focal Length (f= mm) | 4.43-17.7 |
| Focal Length (f=35mm conversion) | 25-100 |
| Macro (cm) | iAuto(W:Approx.1cm(0.39'') to Infinity, T:Approx.50cm(1.64') to Infinity) / Program Auto(W:Approx.8cm(0.26') to Infinity, T:Approx.50cm(1.64') to Infinity) |
| Filter Diameter (mm) | NO |
| Conversion Lens compatibility | NO |
| NightShot | NO |
| NightFraming | NO |
| Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar Lens | YES |
| Sony G | NO |
| CCD Type | Exmor R CMOS sensor |
| Size (Inches) | 1/2.4 type(7.59mm) |
| Effective Pixels (Mega Pixels) | Approx. 10.2 |
| Bionz Processor | YES |
| Face Detection | YES |
| Smile Shutter | YES |
| ClearRAW NR | YES |
| Auto Focus Method (Single) | NO |
| Auto Focus Method (Monitoring) | NO |
| Auto Focus Method (Intelligent) | NO |
| Auto Focus Method (Continuous) | NO |
| Auto Focus Area (Multi Point) | 9 points (Under Face Undetected) |
| Auto Focus Area (Centre weighted) | YES |
| Auto Focus Area (Spot) | YES |
| Auto Focus Area (Flexible Spot) | YES(Touch) |
| Manual Focus | NO |
| Focus Preset | NO |
| Focus Preset (m) | NO |
| Aperture Auto Mode | YES |
| Aperture Priority Mode | NO |
| ApertureManual Mode | NO |
| Shutter Speed Auto Mode (sec) | iAuto(2" - 1/1.600) / Program Auto(1" - 1/1.600) |
| NR Slow Shutter | YES |
| Hand Shake Alert | YES |
| Exposure Control | +/- 2.0EV, 1/ 3 EV step |
| White Balance | Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent1, Fluorescent2, Fluorescent3, Incandescent, Flash, One Push, One Push Set |
| AutomaticWhite Balance | YES |
| Light Metering (Multi Pattern) | YES |
| Light Metering (Centre weighted) | YES |
| Light Metering (Spot) | YES |
| Sharpness Setting | NO |
| Saturation Setting | NO |
| Contrast Setting | NO |
| ISO Sensitivity (REI) | Auto / 125 / 200 / 400 / 800 / 1600 / 3200 |
| Scene Selection | 9 modes (Twilight / Twilight Portrait / Twilight using a tripod / Backlight / Backlight Porttait / Landscape / Macro / Portrait / Close Focus) |
| AF Illuminator | YES |
| Flash Mode | Auto / Flash On / Slow Syncro / Flash Off |
| Distance limitations using Flash (m) | ISO Auto: Approx.0.08-Approx.3.8m(Approx.0.26'-Approx.12.47')(W) / Approx.0.5-Approx.3.1m(Approx.1.64'-Approx.10.17')(T), ISO3200: up to Approx.8.0m(Approx26.25')(W) / Approx.6.3m(Approx20.67')(T) |
| Pre-flash | YES |
| Red-eye Reduction | YES |
| Auto Daylight Synchronized Flash | YES |
| Super SteadyShot capability | NO |
| SteadyShot capability | NO |
| OpticalSteadyShot capability | YES |
| AF Illuminator | YES |
| Flash Mode | Auto / Flash On / Slow Syncro / Flash Off |
| Red-Eye Reduction | YES |
| Auto Daylight Synchronized Flash | YES |
| LCD Screen Size (inches) | 8.8cm / 3.5" |
| LCD Total Dots Number | 921.600 |
| LCD Monitor Type | TFT |
| Auto Bright Monitoring | YES |
| Optical Viewfinder | NO |
| Electrical Viewfinder | NO |
| Recording Media | Memory Stick™ Duo(still only), Memory Stick PRO Duo™(Mark2 only for movie). Memory Stick PRO Duo™ High Speed (Still only and no Speed Advantage), Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo™ (No Speed Advantage), |
| Recording Media-II | SD Memory Card(Class4 or Higher for movie), SDHC/SDXC Memory Card(Class4 or Higher for movie), Internal memory (45MB) |
| Recording Format | JPEG |
| Memory Stick™ Pro Interface | Parallel |
| DCF (Design rule for Camera File System) | YES |
| DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) | YES |
| Burst Mode (shots) | Approx.10 fps(10 shots) |
| Burst Interval (approximately sec) | 0.1 sec.(10 shots) |
| Still Image size (14 Mega 4320 x 3240) | NO |
| Still Image size (13 Mega 4224 x 3168) | NO |
| Still Image size (12 Mega 4000 x 3000) | NO |
| Still Image size (10 Mega 3648 x 2736) | YES |
| Still Image size (9.0 Mega, 3456 x 2592) | NO |
| Still Image size (8.0 Mega, 3264 x 2448) | NO |
| Still Image size (7.2 Mega 3072 x 2304) | NO |
| Still Image size (5.0 Mega, 2592 x 1944) | YES |
| Still Image size (3.1 Mega, 2048 x 1536) | NO |
| Still Image size (VGA, 640 x 480) | YES |
| Still Image size (16:9 mode, 1920 x 1080) | YES |
| Still Image size (16:9 mode, 3648 x 2056) | YES |
| Still Image size (3:2 mode, 4000 x 2672) | NO |
| Still Image size (3:2 mode 3648 x 2432) | NO |
| Still Image size (3:2 mode 3456 x 2304) | NO |
| Panorama | 7.152 x 1.080(258deg) / 4.912 x 1.080(177deg) / 4.912 x 1.920(177deg) / 3.424 x 1.920(123deg) |
| Moving Image Size (1280x720 30fps Fine Approx.9Mbps) | NO |
| Moving Image Size (1280x720 30fps Standard Approx.6Mbps) | NO |
| Moving Image Size (640x480 30fps Approx.3Mbps) | NO |
| Moving Image Size (320x240 30fps) | NO |
| Moving Image Size (AVCHD 1920 x 1080(50i, Interlace) Approx.17Mbps(Averagebit-rate)) | YES |
| Moving Image Size (AVCHD 1440 x 1080(50i, Interlace) Approx.9Mbps(Averagebit-rate)) | YES |
| Moving Image Size (MP4/AVI 1440 x 1080 Approx.25fps Progressive) Approx.12Mbps(Averagebit-rate)) | YES |
| Moving Image Size (MP4/AVI 1280 x 720 Approx.25fps Progressive) Approx.6Mbps(Averagebit-rate)) | YES |
| Moving Image Size (MP4/AVI 640 x 480 Approx.25fps Progressive) Approx.3Mbps(Averagebit-rate)) | YES |
| HD (High Definition) Playback | YES |
| Slideshow Playback | YES |
| Slideshow with Music | YES |
| Trimming | YES |
| Resize | NO |
| Playback Zoom | YES |
| Divide (MPEG) | NO |
| Cue & Review (MPEG) | YES |
| Index Playback | YES |
| Image Rotation | YES |
| Auto Image Rotation | YES |
| Battery Remaining Indicator | YES |
| Histogram Indicator | NO |
| Exposure Warning Indicator | YES |
| Disk / Memory Stick remaining indicator | YES |
| PTP (Picture Transfer Protocol) | YES |
| Print Image Matching | YES |
| PictBridge | YES |
| Shop Front Mode | YES |
| Start up time (approximately sec) | 1.4 |
| Menu Language | English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Greek, Croatian, Romanian, Bulgarian |
| Multi use Terminal with HD | YES |
| Multi use Terminal | YES |
| AV Out | YES |
| USB 2.0 Hi-Speed | YES |
| Battery System | Lithium N |
| Supplied Battery | NP-BN1 |
| Stamina (battery life) with the supplied battery(s) in normal shooting condition | 230 shots, 115min (CIPA standard with LCD screen on) |
| Battery for Clock | Manganese-Lithium (MS614SE) |
| Weight (g) | Approx. 133g (4.7oz.) |
| Weight with Accessories (g) | Approx. 149g (5.3oz.) |
| SuppliedSoftware | Picture Motion Browser Ver.5.0(Windows only) |
| Supplied Accessories | Rechargeable Battery Pack(NP-BN1), Battery Charger, A / V Cable, USB Cable, Power Cord, Wrist Strap, Paint Pen, CD-ROM, Multi-output stand |
| Width (mm) | 97.8 |
| Height (mm) | 59.5 |
| Depth (mm) | 17.5 |
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