Sony DSLR-A500 reviews

Sony DSLR-A500

Overall rating:

- 4

You can find here the most interesting reviews / ratings from the well-known expert sites about the Sony DSLR-A500 Camera. Here are the reviewers:

CNET	- 19 July 2010 -	- 3.5
TrustedReviews	- 19 February 2010 -	- 4.5
Steves Digicams	- 15 February 2010 -	- 0
PhotographyBLOG	- 15 February 2010 -	- 4.5
AlphaMountWorld	- 13 December 2009 -	- 0

“ The camera stands out from its line mates as the best overall value, but the Sony DSLR-A500's quirky design and interface leave the otherwise nice mid-to-entry-level dSLR lagging just a little behind the rest of the pack... ”

CNET's rating:

- 3.5

Complete review here

“ The Sony Alpha A500 is a well-designed mid-range camera ideal for anyone upgrading from an entry-level model. It is rather bulky compared to its main rivals, but it is solidly made and handles well. It has a good range of features, excellent performance and reliably good image quality. If the lack of a video mode is no handicap then it's certainly worth looking at... ”

TrustedReviews's rating:

- 4.5

Complete review here

“ The Sony A500 is a camera with a wide variety of interesting features, including very fast Autofocus when using Live View (something you don't find with competing dSLR models), and a unique Hand Held Auto HDR mode. Yet, the A500 still offers a number of features that appeal to first time dSLR owners, too (including a variety of scene modes, and easy to navigate screens for other camera settings). We only had a handful of minor complaints, and found that the A500 was fun to use with it's nice ergonomics, easy to use control layout, and performance oriented features, making it a great choice in it's market niche for virtually any type of still photography. With a current MSRP of only $749, we can easily recommend this camera to dSLR owners looking for a unique product in this already crowded dSLR segment... ”

Steves Digicams's rating:

- 0

Complete review here

“ The Sony A500 marks a return to form for Sony in the mid-range DSLR market after the backwards step of the A330 / A380 models, which although cheaper and lighter suffer from an un-intuitive control layout and poor handgrip.

Live View mode is an area where we didn't expect too many improvements, but Sony have made several advances that puts their system even further ahead of their main rivals. Face Detection and Smile Shutter may be squarely aimed at beginners, but they are useful technologies for the uninitiated, while the new Manual Focus Check Live View is a real boon to accurate focusing for macro shooting. The A500 makes a great choice for a compact camera user looking to upgrade to the scary world of DSLR photography.

Equally excellent is the A500's image quality, with the new 12.3 megapixel CMOS sensor and improved BIONZ processor combining to produce great looking images all the way up to ISO 3200. The Dynamic Range Optimizer reliably improves shadow detail and highlights, while the new High Dynamic Range Optimiser combines two exposures into one image and produces quite natural HDR images (if you could ever call HDR images 'natural').

Our main criticisms of the Sony A500 are what it doesn't offer, namely a large and bright optical viewfinder and any form of video recording. The first issue is a necessary by-product of the excellent Live View system, which leaves the OVF rather small when compared to other DSLRs, even those with a similarly sized sensor. Manual Focus Check Live View partially alleviates this problem, but is no substitute for a better OVF.

The second issue is also presumably a technical limitation of Sony's Live View, and one that is even more pressing now that many competitors offer 720p video, and even full 1080p with the recent launch of the Canon EOS 550D / Rebel Ti2. It's obviously not a problem if you have no interest in using your DSLR for moving images, but Sony must be losing customers lured away by all the excitement surrounding video on a DSLR. With the annual PMA show literally around the corner, it surely can't be too long before Sony introduce a range of video-capable DSLR cameras...

Despite these shortcomings, there's no denying that the Sony A500 is a user-friendly DSLR camera that delivers excellent results for both beginners and shutterbugs alike, and is easily worthy of our Highly Recommended award... ”

PhotographyBLOG's rating:

- 4.5

Complete review here

“ For A300 owners who are itching to upgrade I think the A500 might just be the camera you are looking for, and it's not a bad body for backpacker landscapers to carry either. It is a pretty lightweight DSLR that doesn't take up much room, takes excellent raw images, and hand held HDR's unlike any DSLR I've used to date (all other makes and other Alphas less the A550 require a tripod- as of the date of this article).

One very important mention, is that the A500 is the reigning champ of battery life of any Alpha camera and probably over any DSLR in its class in the marketplace. For one charge, I shot nearly 1,000 images with 50% battery life remaining. You do the math. This trumped even the Alpha A550. It's not a camera you'll need to worry about in terms of battery life obviously, even when using live view on and off. Using the main sensor live view seems to draw a bit more power because of the bigger sensor, but that was mixed in the first 1K shots as well. Not too shabby.

Considering I have now used almost every DSLR under the sun and own quite a few of them, I find the A500 to fit a very specific niche in my stable. I find that for its price - which is worth swallowing- the A500 begs you to experiment with HDR photography (which I believe is one of the goals in the future of still imaging) and, has the best live view experience of any DSLR to date that has a real practical, accessible, and methodical application even for enthusiast/professional photographers. I noted/hinted in the A550 review that I wasn't quite sure I'd want it for a personal camera or not, yet this Alpha indeed I will be keeping after all.

While most of my conclusions here also translate to the A550, there are some that do not. The A500 overall is the best DSLR Sony has made this year (less the Alpha A850) for its price point, which I am unable to say the same re: the A550. I think the A500 competes well in the marketplace against other DSLRS such as Canon and Nikon, Pentax, and Olympus, and gives a buyer a real unique and alternative product when looking at the market as a whole.

It's bright spots strike a blow across the bow of all other manufactures, and if these are important to you as a buyer, the A500 should be your clear choice. If you'd like more features and control such as video and other menu items, look elsewhere. As a photographic instrument that takes great snaps and is fun and easy to use (for the most part), the A500 earned a smile and a bit of respect from me. I can honestly say that I like using it as an alternative way of shooting along with my A900, doing tasks as a tool that the A900 cannot do nearly as easily, or fluidly which mostly revolve around using live view to achieve.

While I do have my frustrations with the menu system in terms of hitches in the work flow and ease of use department at times (just as I did with the A550), I have grown used to them by now and find that overall the A500 isn't that difficult to use. After all, no camera is going to keep me from getting a shot, but the path to that shot could certainly be easier to walk at times.

The Alpha A500 (and A550 ignoring the price) strike me as fun to use DSLRS that are generally easy to operate in live view mode, that are capable of impressive results in certain image quality categories (raw is best but raw shooting doesn't appeal to the majority of shooters in the world). These cameras are not a stand alone recommendation for enthusiast shooters who for the most part desire much more control over the photography process as possible, and, that demand a well heeled list of advanced (and traditional) DSLR features to boot. This opinion is of course dependent on whether or not you are adding the A500 as a secondary body to your system.

In terms of product value for price, the A500 gets a much higher score from me, and I believe is a better product for Alpha on the market than the A550 as a result of that. That goes a long way with me. Beginners will appreciate the fun to use A500 and some of the characteristics this camera has will undoubtedly inspire them to use the camera.

I can't help but wonder though how well this camera would have done on the market given it had some additional features that appealed to enthusiasts, a bit better button and control wheel layout/placement, and a higher quality plastic that gave it a more quality feel overall. As is though the A500 should do well on the market, and my hope is that it is considered first between it and the A550 because I feel it targets its intended audience better. Throw some nicer glass on the front of it and have a ball... ”