PMA 2009

(Credit: Sony)

Camera manufacturers seem to have chosen megazooms as their latest battlefield--and thankfully, the fight isn't just about who's got the biggest lens. In this case, the latest player comes from Sony, whose new Cyber-shot DSC-HX1 incorporates several technologies from its Alpha DSLR products, including a 1/2.4-inch 10-megapixel Exmor CMOS sensor (for 9-megapixel images) and 20X f2.8-5.2 28-560mm-equivalent optically stabilized lens based on the company's higher-quality G series lenses.

In theory, the combination should deliver better photo quality than we're used to seeing in this class. (We haven't yet had a chance to review its primary--and also CMOS-based--competitor the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS, but it's been shipping overseas for a little while, so you can read CNET Australia's take on it).

In addition, Sony introduces several interesting continuous shooting modes: an intriguing Dynamic Ultrawide panorama mode that captures sequential images as you slowly pan across a scene and automatically stitches them into a 7,152x1,080 photo; a 10 frame-per-second 10-shot continuous shooting mode that uses a mechanical rather than electronic shutter for, the company claims, less distortion; and Handheld Twilight mode, which combines multiple exposures for a theoretically lower noise, higher detail low-light photo.

Pentax X70

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Better late than never? Pentax makes a surprisingly belated entry into the megazoom digital camera market with the $399.99 X70, a competitively spec'd camera. In fact, its lens and sensor specifications look amazingly similar to that of the Nikon P90: a 1/2.33-inch 12.7-megapixel CCD and 24x f2.8-5 26-624mm-equivalent zoom lens.

Unfortunately, there's not much here to differentiate it from the crowd, at least on the surface. The X70 incorporates a 2.7-inch LCD, but it's fixed--many competitors offer tilting or fully articulated displays. It doesn't support HD movie capture, instead maxing out at a 1,280x720-pixel resolutions at 15 frames per second using the rather inefficient Motion JPEG codec. While it offers sensor-shift image stabilization--every camera in this class has either mechanical or optical stabilization--the Movie SR (Shake Reduction) mode sounds like it's probably electronic. There's a high-speed burst mode, 11fps for 21 frames but at a reduced 5-megapixel resolution. And while it offers a full complement of manual and semimanual exposure modes, it lacks raw format support.

The weakest aspect of megazooms tends to be the lens: they're usually not terribly sharp across much of the zoom range, and prone to distortion and aberration. Nor are these models usually particularly speedy. So if Pentax's lens is a bit better or it's a faster shot than its competitors, then it's got a chance. I guess we'll find out when it ships in April.

(Credit: Sony Electronics)

(Credit: Sony Electronics)

A modest upgrade over last year's Cyber-shot DSC-H10, this spring's DSC-H20 nevertheless offers a few new nice improvements over its budget megazoom predecessor. Though it keeps the same 10x f3.5-4.4 38-380mm (35mm equivalent) lens and 3-inch LCD, the $279 camera bumps up to a 1/2.3-inch 10-megapixel CCD from 8 megapixels. We complained about the H10's lack of optical zoom in movie capture, and the H20 now supports it. Plus, it now shoots 720p MPEG-4 videos. Like many of the spring models, the H10 will include Sony's updated intelligent auto features, including more advanced automatic scene recognition and auto face detection.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H10

(Credit: Sony Electronics)

The DSC-H10 has a 230,000-pixel 3-inch LCD display, compared to the 115,000-pixel, 2.5-inch version on the DSC-H3 it replaces. Given the lack of an electronic viewfinder, that's a nontrivial enhancement, but pretty much the only one. Expect to see it in mid-April, for $299. Now go read something more interesting.

Olympus SP-570 UZ

(Credit: Olympus America)

From its inception, Olympus' Ultra Zoom series--simply referred to as "UZ" in recent years--has always led the telephoto field for sheer reach. Once again, the company jumps ahead of the paused-at-18x pack with its 20x lens-equipped SP-570 UZ.

Olympus SP-570 UZ (top)

(Credit: Olympus America)

Size matters most in this update to the SP-560 UZ: it's got a higher-resolution CCD, longer (and slightly wider-angle) lens, and slightly larger LCD display. In a nice design tweak, the lens now has a manual zoom ring; on the preproduction unit we toyed with briefly, it still had that odd servo feel that similar controls on camcorders have, but it did give a bit more control than with the zoom switches common on digital point-and-shoot cameras. The new model also supplies a hot shoe for use with external flashes and a built-in wireless flash controller (a capability that was enabled in the SP-560 UZ via a firmware upgrade).

Olympus SP-570 UZ (back)

(Credit: Olympus America)

Key features:

• f/2.8-4.5 26mm-520mm-equivalent (20X) lens
• 10-megapixel CCD (1/2.33-inch)
• ISO 50 - ISO 6400
• Mechanical stabilization (sensor shift)
• TruePic III image processor
• 1.2 fps/7-frame continuous shooting (full resolution, best quality available)
• LCD size: 2.7 inches/230,000 pixels, 140-degree viewing angle

The SP-570 UZ is slated to ship in March for $499.99