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SONY A700KRs 89,990
Sony Swallowed Konica Minolta’s camera division a few years back, and is now burping up quasi-pro SLRs like this. As it’s aimed at pros, it’s more expensive, but it does have superb levels of sharpness and detail, boasts the 12-megapixel images of a top-end Minolta and the build of a Chieftain tank.
You’ll love the razor-sharp LCD, image stabilisation, automatic lens focusing on what your eye is trained upon (!), dust cleaning, natural colours and a seamless interface. You might not love the wrist-twinging weight and the price-tag quite so much.
Love: Best screen ever. Easy to use.
We Say - Serious features, serious weight, serious price. Seriously.
Lens/Sensor - 18-70mm/12.24 megapixels
Screen Size/Res - 3-inch, 921,000 pixels
Storage - CF, MS Duo
Body Size/Weight - 142x105x80/690g
CANON EOS 400D
Rs 42, 995
Canon Always Gets the basics right, and the EOS 400D proves the rule, with its 10-megapixel CMOS chip dishing up tasty colours and lashing of sharp detail. Burst mode is a modest 3fps and there are few fancy gimmicks on board – just a sensor cleaner.
Menus are legible, if a little cryptic, and all the buttons and dials are thumb-friendly. Autofocus shutters in the dark, and manual focusing on the basic lens is a bit sloppy, but it remains a sound choice – watch for price recutions as it nears the end of its shelf-life.
Love: Reliable 10-meg images. Good controls.
Hate: Weak low-light autofocus. Budget lens.
W Say – A very competent SLR. Rock Solid.
Lens/Sensor - 18-55mm/10.1 megapixels
Screen Size/Res – 2.5inch/ 230,000 pixels
Storage - CF
Body Size/Weight – 127x94x65mm/510g
NIKON D40X
Rs 43,000
On The Face of it, there’s little to justify the extra that Nikon charges for the D40X over its six-meg little sister, the D40. Both ship with a cheap 3x zoom lens that adds a twist of distortion, and both share a simplistic interface and helpful one-touch button.
The D40X boosts the resolution to 10-megapixel to add bite to detail and is a touch faster at 2.5fps, while build quality and portability remain very good, but for everyday operation, you’d be better off buying a D40 and spending the difference on a flash or longer lens.
Love: Simple operation. Good picture detail.
Hate: Lightweight lens. Overpriced.
We Say – Friendly and competent, but really an unnecessary upgrade from the D40.
Lens/Sensor - 18-55mm/10.2 megapixels
Screen Size/Res – 2.5inch/ 230,000 pixels
Storage - SD
Body Size/Weight – 124x94x64mm/495g
PENTAX K100D SUPER
Rs 42,990
The Super Is well put together, with a small, bright screen, good-enough burst mode and really nippy autofocus. Pentax’s stabiliser kicks the butt of the Sony’s, despite being cheaper, and only a slightly soft lens betrays its budget origins.
Sure, the Super comes with “only” 6-megapixels, but how often do you print at over A3 size anyway? The interface is slow and colours occasionally wander, but the stunning portraits it produces compensate handsomely and it’s greenish too, using AAs instead of a custom battery pack.
Love: Cheap. High quality snaps. Good Build.
Hate: Soft optics. Slow menus.
We Say – Super by name, super by nature.
Lens/Sensor - 18-55mm/6.1 megapixels
Screen Size/Res – 2.5inch/ 210,000 pixels
Storage - SD
Body Size/Weight – 130x93x71mm/570g
OLYMPUS E-510
Rs 44,995
The E-510 Is the smallest and lightest camera on test, yet is also arguably the most powerful, thanks to a top line spec that flaunts image stabilization, sensor cleaning and this year’s hot feature – Live View. This lets you frame 10-megapixel shots on its averagely good 2.5inch screen, just like a compact.
There’s nothing compact about its images, though: they combine killer detail with solid colours. The interface is a touch finger sensitive, but this is still the camera to beat.
Love: Great pics. Top gadgets. Small and light.
We Say – State of the digi-SLR art.
Lens/Sensor - 14-42mm/10 megapixels
Screen Size/Res – 2.5inch/ 230,000 pixels
Storage – CF and xD
Body Size/Weight – 136x92x56mm/460g
For further suggestions and comments, do write to us at: t3@infomediaindia.com
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