The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 is a 12.1 Megapixel compact with a 3x zoom lens and optical stabilisation. Launched in February 2007 as part of an update across Sony’s W-series, it shares the title of highest resolution compact with Panasonic’s Lumix FX100.

Along with the lower resolution W80 and W90 models, the W200 sports an optical viewfinder in addition to a 2.5in screen – something of a rarity in today’s compacts. The W200 also features a reasonable degree of manual control and a surprisingly wide variety of optional accessories including a component video cable for HDTV slideshows and lens converters to widen or lengthen the basic 35-105mm equivalent range.

When Sony announced the Cyber-shot W200 though, you could almost hear a collective groan from reviewers and savvy buyers alike. We’ve all seen the image quality of compacts decrease in recent generations with noise levels becoming a serious problem as manufacturers continue to squeeze more pixels onto the limited real estate of compact sensors. It seems numbers still sell, and for digital cameras that means ever-increasing resolutions, even if it’s at the cost of compromising other aspects.

to continue to read the full article click here ...