14 megapixels, but how’s the noise?
Camera Labs does their review thing of Sony’s cleverly featured camera, the A350. I say clever, because by adding the impressive megapixels on a budget camera, Sony might just be able to peel away consumers from the major camera brands. It is essentially the same camera (body, menus, etc.) as the A300, which itself is essentially the same camera as the new A200, other than the very cool LCD.
In previous reviews it has been mentioned that the A200 has a little noise trouble after ISO 800, and in most reviews, the A300 seems to be following those same footsteps. So its not a real surprise that the A350 has similar troubles, which of course, are further enhanced by the high megapixel sensor. Not helping, the kit lens (Sony DT 18-70mm lens) probably isn’t going to keep up with the sensor’s ability, so potential A350 buyers of the serious amateur kind should just buy the camera body alone, or assume you’ll be making an additional lens purchase sooner rather than later, but here’s how camera labs puts it:
But perhaps the biggest thing you’ll notice below is the impact of the respective kit lenses. The Sony DT 18-70mm is a fine model for the money and it’s served the entry-level Alpha’s well, but the 14.2 Megapixel sensor in the A350 is pushing it a bit too far. So if you want to see what the A350 is really capable of, you’ll need to equip it with a better quality lens, such as the Sony DT 16-80mm.
Camera Labs review does seem to bear out most of the predicted concerns, but still for the money, this is a lot of camera, and it just adds yet another tough choice for the budget DSLR consumer to ponder.
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