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User Reviews for
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H9/B Digital Camera
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Nice but not a H5 upgrade
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Reviewed
June 1 2007 9:54:48 AM
40
out of
45
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
4
out of 5
Pros:
Tilting screen, remote control, very quick, burst mode, night vision, good flash |
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Cons:
Sports mode is useless, no fine/standard setting, fiddly menu, image quality not consistent I sold my DSC-H5 to buy a DSC-H9 assuming that the DSC-H9 would be an upgrade. Feature wise yes it is but for image quality it is no better and the H5.
To start with the positives, the H9 is a nice camera and has some fantastic features. The tilting 3" screen is superb and along with remote control, you can take pictures that were previously impossible. The remote has quite a range to, I am able to operate the camera from the bottom on my garden - about 50 feet away.
In use the camera is fast, it focuses quick and the burst mode is amazingly nippy with about 2.5 frames per second. The menu has changed from the H5 and can take a while to get used to, but there are quite a few options for those who like to do stuff manually. As with all the H series the colour in the shots is also wonderful especially with the "vivid" colours option selected.
The 15x optical zoom does provide some great shots though a few had a bit of purple fringing but nothing that worried me. The zoom seems no greater than the 12x zoom on the H5 though since the H9 actually starts off from a lower angle (31mm) so at 15x zoom, it is only just a fraction more than the 12x on the H5.
The camera isn't perfect (but then what camera is for this price). The option of standard / fine for image quality has vanished and so you are at the mercy of the camera's noise reduction system. Often this strips noise and strips details as well leaving a photo that appears to have watermarks or brush strokes in it. It doesn't happen on all the shots, just random ones here and there. In low light situations the noise reduction can really kick in with a vengence so you can end up with a Monet masterpiece. You can of course select the higher ISOs but in my opinion they are only suitable for printing images around 4"x6".
I print images no larger than A4 and for me most shots are outdoors in good light so it isn't a problem but for people who want to print A3 it may be.
The biggest mistake on this camera to me is Sports mode. Sony advertise it as an advanced sports mode with a shutter of 1/4000 second - except it is no where near that. Sports mode seems flawed as it always defaults to 1/60s - that's useful for catching your granny asleep but there is no way it will give nice sports shots. Choosing Shutter priority mode though, you can select a 1/4000 shutter but as I'm a novice, it takes a bit of thinking to select the right ISO and aperture. I never needed to know about that with the H5 but my knowledge of photography has increased with the H9 as the manual modes are better than the auto modes.
The thumb wheel on the front of the H5 has also vanished and turned into a dial around the controls at the back. To me that is a step backwards as I have huge hands and preferred the old thumb wheel.
With the H9 I have taken some bad shots (more to do with being a novice than the camera) and I have taken some shots that I have been really pleased with. When it comes to macro shots, the camera really excels and I always seem to get good outdoor shots. The images are not DSLR quality and probably not quite as sharp as the H5 but it does have some fun features that make it more enjoyable to use than its predecessors.
For me I really like the additional features of the H9 and I can print in A4 and get images that I am happy with so I like the camera. For folks who do not really need a tilting screen, remote control and night vision - the H2 and H5 may be better alternatives.
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i'm liking it
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Reviewed
July 17 2007 12:42:21 PM
10
out of
10
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
4
out of 5
Pros:
image quality, colors |
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Cons:
noise , memory, battery I thought why not buy a nice H9 it has lots of X-es 15 to be more precise and 8.1 mp. well i haven't told you anything you couldn't have already known. so.. lets get to it.
I've had this camera for lets say a month or so. i only keep it on manual for , in my mind neither the automatic , portrait or sports feature are of any use.
in conditions of low light the picture quality is very poor. the noise is somewhat of a 1000 iso picture even if it's only at 100.
the nightshot feature is useless. at least in my case.
macros come out good so that's a pros. but it cannot focus correctly at over 9X.
the steady shot is not that useful , at least not in my case .
the colors are a big *thumbs up* especially in the vivid mode.
as all the other cameras that are not dslr quality the sepia mode is ... reddish but as we all know no better effect than the one you apply in photoshop. for the same amount of money i could have bought a G7.
if you want a wide lens and/or a tele lens be prepared to throw some more money at your sony dealer.
the battery life is quite short. i cannot say i take pictures all the time but it still stays alive for about two days. i had to buy a reserved battery just for a 3 day mountain-field-trip.
you'll have to buy a memory hard for the internal memory of the camera is 31Mb and with that on a 10*8 you can only take around 30 pictures. in 16*9 the amount is much smaller.
all in all i think it's too expensive for what can it do. i paid 549 $ at my local sony photostore. that did not included a 4 Gb memory card i purchased later neither a wide lens or a tele lens.
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Great camera with superb features and photos
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Reviewed
July 22 2007 10:35:51 PM
10
out of
11
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
5
out of 5
Pros:
Creates great pictures, 15X optic zoom (plus at different settings), easy to use. |
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| Cons:
Shutter lag infrequently. This is a great camera. I have two other Sony cameras, the F717 and Cybershot 7.2 megapixel pocket camera. All take fantastic photos. I just purchased the H9 in June to take on an African Safari trip. I wanted more zoom capability than provided by the excellent F717 camera (5X optically). It performed beautifully. I have taken the other two camers on Western European trips and my friends and families rave about the quality of my pictures. It has most of the features of a digital SLR camera at a major lesser price or you may use it in auto mode. I wholeheartedly endorse this camera for casual and serious use.
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Great features
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Reviewed
June 10 2007 5:22:55 PM
11
out of
17
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
5
out of 5
Pros:
Huge LCD and great picture quality |
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Cons:
Getting used to all the settings. You have to really go through them to know which will work best for a situation. So far I am in love with this camera. It is not a pocket sized camera, but you get plenty of features to make up for it.
The zoom capabilities are fantastic for getting in close to wildlife.
The flash is pretty powerful. If anything, you need to back up a bit and zoom in because of its ability to illuminate.
Overall, love it.
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very disappointing
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Reviewed
February 13 2008 12:09:14 AM
2
out of
3
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
3
out of 5
Pros:
o.k. zoom and fps.modes .good on auto. |
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| Cons:
disappointed in the camera completely i went from an older minolta slr ,with a separate wide angle, and zoom lenses,,all kinds of filters, etc, but because of age, and not doing as much photography as i use to, i decided i wanted a digital camera. i bought a kodak easy share, with a 12xzoom and loved it, but wanted more zoom power and faster fps because i now do mostly wildlife and landscapes. i stepped up to(or thought i did) a 15x zoom, with the supershot. it isn't that much better, i also like to use a field flash when doing photos of people. i can't even figure out how to do that, or if it's possible to do that with my supershot. i also find the manual very difficult to understand. a lot of my problems may be because i just haven't figured out how to use it, but the manual should be eaiser to understand. for another 100.00 i could have gotten a digital slr, but decided this would be sufficent for the photography i do now. money wise the camera cost more than what i'm able to get out of it picture wise. wish now i had of upgraded to a better kodax share.
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SONY Cybershot H9
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Reviewed
July 7 2007 2:42:14 PM
4
out of
8
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
5
out of 5
Pros:
Very Easy to Operate / Control --- Amazing Features on Camera I was not aware of !!! |
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| Cons:
So Far........NO CONS! lol Decided to "Treat" myself to a gift. Very pleased with the camera overall........
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--
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Reviewed
August 11 2008 10:59:38 AM
0
out of
0
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
5
out of 5
Pros:
-- |
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| Cons:
-- --
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Wonderful Camera!
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Reviewed
July 3 2008 11:49:22 PM
0
out of
0
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
5
out of 5
Pros:
All features! |
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| Cons:
None I bought my camera from eBay and I am very happy with my purchase! For me, it is easy to handle and have had no problems with the settings. I love the 3-inch display and the fact that I can zoom in during movie mode. The picture quality as well as the movie quality is superb! I would recommend this camera to anyone!
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Amazing camera!!!!
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Reviewed
June 28 2008 11:53:02 PM
0
out of
0
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
5
out of 5
Pros:
easy to use...amazing quailty..great for beginners! |
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Cons:
tbd My first point&shoot was a Sony P72.
I got the Sony H9 for my birthday and had less than 24hours to figure how it works. The next day I went on a helicopter tour of Chicago with my new H9....Five shots that I took w/ my new H9 have been published.
Easy to use..you will not be disappointed! If your not ready for a D-SLR than this is your camera!!
I cant think of any "cons" for this camera after a year of use.
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a
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Reviewed
January 21 2008 12:01:59 PM
0
out of
8
users found this recommendation helpful.
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Ratings:
5
out of 5
Pros:
a |
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| Cons:
a a
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