[Rob20]

I'm looking to get a digital camara and have narrowed it down to either the 7.2 MP P200, or the smaller, pocket friendly 5.1 MP T7. However, I'm not sure which to go for. On the one hand the P200 has the higher pixel count, the battery takes twice as many photo's, on the other the T7 would be perfect to take out clubbing etc. Basically, would I really need the extra resolution of the 200, or would 5.1 MP be sufficient. I'm leaning towards the T7 mainly due to size, though perhaps someone has a P200 and reckons it isn't too heavy to carry in Jean pockets at a club/festival!?

Any advice would be gratefully received as I would like to get a camara before my brothers stag do coming up in 2 weekends time. Cheers in advance.

Sony 7.2 MP DSC-P200

Sony 5.1 MP DSC- T7

[RobertP]

I have not looked at the specs but I would expect no visible difference between a 5MP and 7MP picture.

When I went from 2MP to 5MP I was surprised that I could see little difference. The 5MP was better in many ways but pixel count was only a small part of the benefits of the upgrade.

[Rob20]

Thanks for the quick reply. TBH, I can't imagine the difference would be that imortant to me. Does anyone else have either camara, or an opinion on their relative merits?

[dood]

I have a P120 - similar to P200 but 5 MP. Great pictures. I think the 2 you're selecting both have carl zeiss lenses so not much between them. The T7 has a bigger LCD screen I think which is a plus. More megapixels are only important if you want to blow up your pics eg to A3 size, which I think is unlikely based on your usage. Covenience is king as you will use your camera more if it is always accessible. Hence I would say go for the more pocket friendly one. The only downside of small cameras is that they can be fiddly to use, and if you use them with one hand (as you probably will since they are palm sized) then expect some blurred images, especially since you will be pushed and shoved in clubs and the alcohol won't help either.

[peteyoung]

Ive got the P200 and was at first reluctant to even think of buyin it because of the size. But once i got to use it in store i was really suprised how tiny and so damn light and the thing is!

Okay the t7 is obviously smaller and has a bigger screen, but to me personally, thats a disadvantage because id be scared of damaging the screen. But on the other hand because of its size itd be easy to put in any pocket easily. Considering u want one pretty much solely for that reason i would recommend the t7, although if it didnt have to fit really nicely in your pocket then definitely the p200.

It is hard to tell the different in the quality of the photos but it does become obvious when u start to manipulate your photos; for example i took a picture of a resort on holiday from the balcony and then noticed some of my family were sitting right down the far end of the beach. So i zoomed in 'without using digital zoom' and still they werent close enough, but i still took the shot. When i got back home and went through my photos i started playing around with it and i could easily zoom right upto them and even see the logo on the can of coke one of them was drinking! this must have been hundreds of metres away! totally amazed me, but for the kind of shots i think u want and where u want to take them then maybe the t7 is ur best bet.

hope this helps

[Rob20]

Thanks for all the replies. It's thrown up some interesting points I hadn't considered. i.e a smaller camara better for your pocket but maybe more difficult to get good quality pictures from. I think the only way to resolve this is to actually try out the 2 camaras at the Sony store in town and see whether the P200 is that much bigger.

You get Sony "quality" with both cameras.

As megapixels increase, the lenses are struggling to resolve these huge amounts of pixels. Those lenses arent any bigger than on 3mp cameras.
Just look at one of any of the popular dslr cameras, with the huge interchangeable lenses but still only 6mp or 8mp ccds? Theres a reason for that.
So with that in mind, extra pixels make bigger pictures but not necessarily better pictures.

i.e. Ideally extra pixels make better cropped pictures if the need arises(useful), but a loss in sharpness, so post process sharpening will be required.

I would go for the camera which answers all your requirements and forget about ccd resolution unless an A3 print is an ultimate requirement: for most it isnt.
Size and features are the two most important, dont pay for extra pixels if you dont need them. Most Sony has hologramatic low light focusing sensor, thats neat and it really works.
Sony doesnt make crap cameras. Go for the feature set that meets your needs. Be happy in your decision.

[AFC]

I had the same dilema but in the end opted for the T7 because I really didn't the need for 7M pixels and figured I would get more use from a camera the smaller it is as I'll be more likely to carry it around.

Let's hope it's as good as it sounds when it arrives......

[nabby]

I too had the same choice and went for the P200 as I preferred the shape and it has an optical viewfinder which I find helps me take better photos due to less shake.

But neither would be a bum choice

I bought a P200, it's fast, it's flexible (with the lens adapter), it's small enough and it's discreet. I rarely use the full 7mp, but it's nice to know it's there.
The T7 is a really lovely camera, but I prefer the traditional feel of the P200.

[MPK]

I don't know the P200 well enough, but I've had a T1 for a few years and a few weeks ago extensively tested a T7 as I was thinking of getting one.

The T7 looks absolutely awesome and is a masterpiece of engineering. However, the problems that the T1 already had were made worse with the reduction in size. The flash is pretty much useless for anything further than 1.5m. The buttons are so small that you'll have trouble finding shutter release or zoom button when you need it. Pictures have a lot of digital noise, compared to e.g. Canons. The lens protection flap opens too easily, i.e. in your pocket, draining the battery. All in all, I decided to stay with my T1.

The Sony T series is great for snapshots when you're out and for showing photos to your friends as the screen is great. The ideal camera to have together with a digital SLR as you can take it anywhere and use it for those shots you'd never take otherwise. It's the perfect party camera. However, if you have any kind of photographic ambitions I would leave the T series alone.

[dfield2000]

Originally Posted by longleyc

i.e. Ideally extra pixels make better cropped pictures if the need arises(useful), but a loss in sharpness, so post process sharpening will be required.

Apologies if this is going slightly the topic of the original post, but I'm intrigued by your comments above.

I've got a P200 and I'm generally happy with it, but I've always felt that the images are never sharp enough in focus. I notice this alot when comparing the Sony's images to ones taken on my old 1.2 megapixel Fuji. Considering the Fuji is many years old and has a much lower resolution, the images often appear much more 'crisper' than the Sony.

Are you saying that the lack of sharpness is an inherrant problem with the large number of pixels on the P200 ? I was thinking that perhaps it was down to me not holding the camera still enough, but it sounds like it might be the camera itself. Is there anything I can do get my images sharper ?

Cheers.


P.S.

To get back on topic - I was also thinking that smallest was best, but after holding the T7 it just felt too small and fragile. The P200 can easily fit in jeans pockets, and the extra size and weight give you something to grip onto.

If memory serves, I think the T7 doesn't have a viewfinder either, so it's just as well that it has a slightly bigger LCD screen than the P200.

the DSC-P200 has better editorial reviews than the DSC-T7

here are the reviews VS found :

Sony CyberShot DSC-P200

Sony CyberShot DSC-T7

hope you find that helpful