Sony drops latest low-cost D-SLRs

The Gadget Show  Wednesday 09 June 2010

Sony's new DSLR range

Sony’s mission to bring removable lens photography to the man on the street continues with the a390 and a290, the latest additions to its ever-expanding Alpha digital SLR armada.

They’re aimed very much at the cash-sensitive first timer, too, replacing the entry-level a230 and a380 in the range. The bottom-end a290 features a 14-megapixel sensor, a revised grip design and button layout and a 2.7in TFT. It’s a lightweight customer too, coming in at just the wrong side of 500g – without a lens. Choosing to spend a bit more on the a390 will bulk up the spec a little courtesy of a swivel screen and Quick AF Live View.

Video fans will like the Bravia Sync support and mini-HDMI port for showing off your shaky-handed clips on your big-screen telly, which will otherwise be stored on Memory Stick or SD cards.

Sony promises a “dramatic step up in picture quality and creative options from point-and-shoot compact cameras”. You can find out how true this is for yourself later this summer, though Sony is keeping mum on how much its new snappers will cost.