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Over one year after Sony launched the A100, finally the A700 is here.

It has been well over one year since Sony, following the Konica Minolta acquisition, released the A100. Now, Sony expands the DSLR segment with the A700, a middle range camera expected to heavily compete with the newest releases from Canon and Nikon.

SONY A700: HIGHLIGHTS

• 12.2 Megapixel APS-C Exmor CMOS sensor
• 3″ LCD (640×480)
• Bionz Image Processor
• 11 point focus system
• New High-Speed Shutter
• Super SteadyShot
• Aluminum/Magnesium Case
• HDTV Output

SONY A700: a 12.2 MP beast

While it is still a big point of discussion if point & shot cameras really need the extravagant increase in resolution from the past years, for a dSLR it is definitely a plus.

Comparing with the A100, the SONY A700 features a completely new CMOS sensor delivering 12.2 effective million pixels for a maximum resolution of 4272×2848. The sensor was designed for low-noise (noise was much discussed for the A100) and speed. Together with the new Bionz Image Processor, the Sony A700 is now capable of delivering 5 fps up to 18 12MP RAW files.

SONY A700: Faster and better focus

The Auto Focus (AF) mechanism has also been redesigned. The Sony A700 features an 11 point focus system with a central double cross with two horizontal and two vertical sensors plus a high precision horizontal sensor in the middle.

Besides the obvious increase in focus accuracy, the physical mechanism and the AF algorithm have also been improved, resulting in what is possible the fastest AF in any dSLR today.

SONY A700: for the fast and the slow

And it seems that everything is new on this camera when compared to the A100. The A700 has a new carbon fibre shutter that allows up to 1/8000 sec. Sony also mentions that this new shutter can take up to 100,000 cycles. It is a lot of photos.

If slow is the word, the newly improved Super SteadyShot (the mechanisms that physically adjusts the sensor to minimize motion blur) is functional up to 4 stops. This basically means that at low shutter speeds, the motion blur is drastically reduced even without the use of a tripod. As a A100 user, I’ll have to say that this is one of the best features of these cameras.

SONY A700: Punch it hard, it can take it

Well, don’t do it. Kicking your camera is probably not the best option (even if your photos are not coming out as you want). Nonetheless, the Sony A700 has a new case with an aluminum chassis and magnesium body. 5% lighter and 3x stronger than the A100, the A700 seems to be able to take some tough work. To top it, the buttons are sealed for better protection against dust and humidity.

SONY A700: Watch it BIG

The 3″ LCD really catches the eye. It’s big and for locally reviewing your photos you don’t need anymore than this. Also, to prevent obfuscation, the contrast levels of the LCD have been improved.

Want it even bigger? What about connecting it to your HDTV? With the A700 you can do it directly. the Sony A700 has an HDMI terminal and offers full 1080i HDTV output.

SONY A700: Overall conclusions

With this camera Sony really establishes itself as a major player in the DSLR world. Without question, the A700 was made to compete with the big names.

Although it still looks and feels much like part of the Konica Minolta segments, the A700 stands out from the previous models while keeping the same lens mount allowing for not only the Sony lenses but the whole range of Konica Minolta lenses to be used.

Lot’s of new features are sure to make the A700 a worthy buy for the aspiring hobbyist.

As for price… Well, it’s a new camera with lots of new high tech on it. Around $1400 is the price for the body. If it follows the same trend as the A100 did, it’s very likely that the price will drop in the near future.