The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290 camera combines style with power and intelligence. The W290 comes in 4 sophisticated colors and has a stylish look. With the W290 taking great pictures is now easier than ever.
The iAuto mode goes beyond the traditional auto mode, thinking and working for you; recognizing scenes, lighting conditions, faces, and automatically adjusts camera settings resulting in clearer images, and faces with more natural skin tones and less blur.
The W290 also features HD Movie mode, recording in 720p for capturing your precious moments on video. Compose, review, and share your memories on the large 3.0” (230k pixels) LCD.
Cyber-shot DSC-W290 Highlights
12.1-megapixel Super HAD CCD Image Sensor
A powerful 12.1-megapixel, 1/2.3-inch Super HAD CCD image sensor helps you capture gorgeous images with superb contrast and clarity down to the finest detail. With 12.1 megapixels, you can create stunning, photo-quality prints up to A3+ (13x19-inch) size, or crop your images and still come away with high-resolution shots.
Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar Lens with 5x Optical Zoom
The professional-quality Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar 5x optical zoom lens brings distant subjects closer for great outdoor, sports, and travel photos.
Wide-angle lens
A 28mm wide angle lens shows more of the scene you're shooting, helping you capture more complete images when shooting indoor group portraits, expansive landscapes, or architectural scenes.
3.0-inch Clear Photo LCD display (230k pixels)
Generous 3.0-inch (230K pixels) Clear Photo LCD display features sharp, natural color that makes it easy to compose shots, read menus, and view photos, even in bright sunlight.
BIONZ image processor
The BIONZ image processor delivers the high resolution and fast performance you expect from a Sony digital camera.
Intelligent Auto Mode
Unlike traditional auto mode, Intelligent Auto (iAuto) thinks for you, recognizing scenes, lighting conditions, faces, and adjusts settings resulting clear images, faces with natural skin tone and less blur. Take advantage of all the technology without leaving Auto mode. Take a picture from a kid on the playground, to landscape shots, to a beautiful flower or an indoor birthday party.
HD Movie
Capture more of your memories in high definition (720p) video. Record HD movies in 720p high definition MPEG4 format for stunning large-screen home movie playback. Record up to 29 min in 720p format (or up to 2GB) per movie.
Intelligent Scene Recognition
Intelligent Scene Recognition (iSCN) Mode automatically detects eight different types of scenes conditions (Backlight, Backlight Portrait, Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Twilight using a Tripod, Portrait, Landscape, and Macro) and within 1/30th of a second selects the appropriate camera settings. iSCN has 2 modes: Auto and Advanced. In Auto Mode, the camera takes a single shot using the optimal settings. In Advance Mode, the camera takes a photo with the standard automatic settings and, in difficult lighting (low light or back light) immediately takes a second photo with optimized setting so you can choose which to keep.
Face Detection technology
Face Detection technology detects up to eight individual faces and controls flash, focus, exposure, and white balance to deliver accurate, natural skin tones with reduced red-eye. It can also give priority to children or adults. Newly added Face Motion Detection adjusts ISO sensitivity and accelerates the shutter speed when facial movement is detected, reducing blur in the subjects face.
Priority Face Selection
Optimizing focus, exposure, and white balance for a specific face is easier now with selectable facial memory, even when the subject leaves the frame. This feature is perfect at weddings and other events the goal is always to focus on a certain person.
Anti-blink Function
It's frustrating to think you've captured that perfect shot, only to review it later and discover one of your subjects blinked just as you pressed the shutter. The Anti-blink function works to help counter blinking and squinting. When the camera is set to Soft Snap, the Anti-blink function captures two images, recording only the photo with less squinting. If a blink is detected in other shooting modes, a warning will be displayed after you take the shot.
Red-eye Reductions
Helps reduce common red-eye problems.
Smile Shutter Technology
The popular Smile Shutter technology automatically detects and captures a smiling face. Simply activate by pressing the Smile Shutter button and the camera will capture a smile the moment it happens. You can also select subject priority (Adult or Child Priority or using the cross key buttons on the camera) and indicate the degree of Smile Detection Sensitivity to high (small smile), medium (laugh) or low (grin). Great substitute of self timer, smile once all are ready and the camera will capture the smile.
Double Anti-blur Solution
The combination of Optical SteadyShot image stabilization and High ISO sensitivity helps compensate for shaky hands, minimizes blur, and allows flash-free shooting to preserve the mood.
Optical SteadyShot Image Stabilization
Optical SteadyShot image stabilization uses a built-in gyro sensor to detect camera shake and automatically shifts the lens to help prevent blur without sacrificing image quality.
High Sensitivity Mode (ISO 3200)
High ISO allows for faster shutter speed, so you can take photos indoors or in low light without the need for a flash. In addition to High Sensitivity Mode (ISO), you can select up to eight ISO settings (Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200) when shooting in Program Auto Mode to adjust sensitivity to your shooting conditions.
Dynamic Range Optimizer Standard and Plus
Dynamic Range Optimizer (DRO) Standard and Plus uses a sophisticated algorithm to determine the best exposure and contrast settings for almost any shooting environment. The result is more natural images with clearer details that more closely match what your naked eye sees. DRO is particularly effective when shooting backlit portraits or any scene with a dramatic contrast between background and foreground lighting. DRO Plus allows for even greater optimization by analyzing each region of an image and performing additional image processing.
Convenient Photo Modes
Choose from 13 convenient photo modes to quickly adjust for specific shooting conditions. Photo modes include iAuto, Easy, Program, and Scene Selection such as High Sensitivity, Landscape, Soft Snap, Twilight Portrait, Twilight, Beach, Snow, Fireworks, Underwater and Gourmet Mode. Gourmet Mode lets you capture mouth-watering culinary creations with all the color and clarity of images you see in gourmet magazines.
9-Point Auto Focus
Because an off-centered subject can make your shot more interesting, a 9-point auto focus system measures nine precision focus points, giving you greater creative freedom to compose your images.
Burst Mode
You can fire up to 100 shots at approximately 0.62 second intervals (at any resolution; VGA to high resolution mode. Results may vary based on settings and Memory Stick media being used).
Function Guide
This beginner-friendly optional function helps navigate through the various functions and settings displaying the description of chosen functions or settings on the LCD screen.
Simplified Buttons
Buttons and menus have been simplified to get the fastest and easiest customer experience. Shooting dial focus on the type of customer: Easy, intelligent Auto, Scene, Program and Movie. Also most common used functions such as Zoom, Play and Delete are handy in hard buttons. All other functions can be found under one menu button.
Easy Shooting Mode
With Easy Shooting Mode, even beginners can take great photos. In Easy Shooting Mode, easy-to-understand basic instructions are displayed on the LCD screen and the camera switches to all automatic settings with iSCN so you can just take the photo without worrying about settings. The menu is also simplified on playback to provide limited but straight forward operating functions for those afraid of choosing wrong settings.
16:9 High Resolution Mode
Using the 16:9 High Resolution Mode, you can record high resolution images in the 16:9 aspect ratio favored by HDTVs. This setting is ideal if you plan to view your images on a compatible HDTV and invite friends and family members under for a slideshow.
Memory Stick Duo Media Convenience
The Cyber-shot DSC-W290 camera accepts Memory Stick PRO Duo media (sold separately).
Stamina Battery Power
Provides extended battery life and shooting capacity when using a fully-charged lithium-ion battery. The included battery supports up to 220 shots.
Easy Image Management
Easy Image Management takes the hassle out of sorting through large volumes of image data, so you can quickly select and view your desired photos. Photos can be browsed in four convenient ways: by Standard Folder view, Date view, Event view, and Favorites showing only user-selected images. You can also harness the power of Face Detection technology to filter by face type (choices include All People, Children, Infants, and Smiles).
In-Camera Retouching Tools
Retouch and enhance your pictures on the go with 10 in-camera editing functions: Trimming, Red-Eye Correction, Soft Focus, Partial Color, Fisheye Lens, Cross Filter, Radial Blur, Retro, Happy Face and Unsharp Masking effects.
Multi-purpose Resize function
The Multi-purpose Resize function lets you change the aspect ratio of an image right in the camera, so you can adjust images as necessary, whether you want to display them on a compatible HDTV, or e-mail them/upload them to a blog.
HDTV Compatibility
View your photos and videos in glorious high definition on a Sony BRAVIA or similar HDTV using the optional VMC-MHC2 HD output adapter cable (sold separately).
PhotoTV HD
Bring your photos to life and enjoy highly detailed, high definition images with PhotoTV HD-capable Sony BRAVIA HDTVs. PhotoTV HD fine tunes settings on your HDTV, such as sharpness, gradation, and color to display images that look more like actual printed photos.
Wide Zoom display
To use the entire image area of the compatible HDTV screen (sold separately), Wide Zoom display automatically expands standard 4:3 and 3:2 images to 16:9.
PHOTOMUSIC feature
PHOTOMUSIC combines images with music (5 minutes per track) to produce fun and entertaining slide shows. The standard visual effects (Simple, Nostalgic, Active, and Stylish). Select from pre-loaded tracks on camera or transfer your own from your compatible PC (sold separately).
Picture Motion Browser ver. 4.2.02
Sony PMB (Picture Motion Browser ) PC software provides a simple, easy-to-use way to transfer video and still images to your PC, as well as sort, edit, and output to data disc and the Web (compatible PC with internet connection required). Finding your images with PMB is easy with Calendar view and Face Search. Face Search allows you to filter by faces (one or many) and also a specific person’s face. Share images and videos on popular sharing sites with Media Services function.
Product Features
- 12.1-megapixel Super HAD CCD image sensor
- 5x optical zoom, 28mm wide-angle Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens; Optical SteadyShot image stabilization
- 720p high-definition movie capture; BIONZ image processor
- 3.0-inch (230K pixels) Clear Photo LCD; Face Detection and Smile Shutter technology
- 11MB built-in memory; capture images to Memory Stick Duo/PRO Duo Media (not included)
Technical Details
- Brand Name: Sony
- Model: DSC-W290/B
- Optical Sensor Resolution: 12.1 MP
- Optical Sensor Technology: Super HAD CCD
- Optical zoom: 5 x
- Maximum Aperture Range: F/3.3-5.2
- Minimum focal length: 5 millimeters
- Maximum focal length: 25 millimeters
- Lens Type: Zoom lens
- Optical Sensor Size: 1/2.3"
- Included Flash Type: Built-in flash
- Display Size: 3 inches
- Light Sensitivity: ISO 100, ISO 800, ISO 400, ISO 200, ISO 80, ISO auto, ISO 1600, ISO 3200
- Image types: JPEG
- Shooting Modes: Frame movie mode
- Exposure Control Type: Beach, Snow, High sensitivity, Landscape, Hi-speed shutter, Gourmet, Twilight portrait, Fireworks, Soft snap, Underwater, Twilight mode
- Viewfinder Type: None
- Width: 0.9 inches
- Depth: 0.9 inches
- Height: 2.4 inches
- Weight: 0.38 pounds
