Managing Editor Josh Goldman is a laptop expert and has been writing about and reviewing them since built-in Wi-Fi was an optional feature. He also covers almost anything connected to a PC, including keyboards, mice, USB-C docks and PC gaming accessories. In addition, he writes about cameras, including action cams and drones. And while he doesn't consider himself a gamer, he spends entirely too much time playing them.
The W220's photo quality is good, particularly at ISO 200 and below. Viewed at their full 12-megapixel resolution, there's some noise at all ISOs, but it's least noticeable at lower ISOs. Photos are still good at ISO 400, but soften a bit from noise reduction. Sharpness and detail decrease rapidly above ISO 400, but color remains fairly consistent. ISO 800 is usable for small prints, but everything above that is noisy and smeary.
2 of 6 Joshua Goldman/CNET
Center sharpness on the W220 is very good. However, it drops off to the sides making edges of photos look soft.
3 of 6 Joshua Goldman/CNET
The lens of the W220 displays modest amounts of pincushion distortion at the camera's longest position (top) and barrel distortion at its widest (bottom).
4 of 6 Joshua Goldman/CNET
A certain amount of purple fringing is to be expected, but the W220 was above average to the point where its clearly visible in prints above 4x6 inches.
5 of 6 Joshua Goldman/CNET
To help pull out shadow details in your photos, Sony includes its Dynamic Range Optimizer Standard and Plus technology on the W220. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to do much on this series of shots. However, I have used it on other Sonys and it does work, so maybe the camera or I was having a bad day.
6 of 6 Joshua Goldman/CNET
While they're not quite accurate, the colors produced by the W220 are nice and natural looking.
