Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T99 review

The Sony T99: An impressive compact for a reasonable price

The first thing that strikes you about the Cyber-shot DSC-T99, the latest addition to join Sony’s compact camera range, is its oh-so minimal design. Its sleek, slimline metal exterior exudes quality, while the buttons on

top – On/Off, Playback, Shutter and Zoom – present the same impressive build quality and are satisfying to press. Its lens cover slides up and down manually, reinforcing its ‘no-fuss’ design. On the bottom of the camera, the SD card and battery slot cover is sturdy and doesn’t feel like it’ll break after one pub trip too many.

Turn to the back of the camera and you’ll see that every spare millimetre of space has been dedicated to providing a pretty decent three-inch LCD to view your pictures on. Exactly how the DSC-T99 manages this is by incorporating its functions into a touch-screen navigation setup. Features such as the menu, flash, smile detection and image size functions are all stashed away neatly here and are incredibly easy to access. It’s refreshing to see a compact camera that’s so well organised and user-friendly.

So, Sony’s Cyber-shot scores well on build quality and usability, but what of the pictures? You’ll be pleased to know that the DSC-T99 doesn’t disappoint. Its wide-angle lens is great for landscape shots and group pictures, and the quality of these shots is very good. There were a few instances where a little detail became lost in low-light conditions, but overall we were pleased with the outcome of our photos. Its macro function offered up some excellent and accurate representations of our subjects, too.

While the DSC-T99 doesn’t offer lots and lots of scene modes (such is common with many other brands of compacts for the same or less money), we’d argue that you’re not at a disadvantage. The Cyber-shot offers true point-and-shoot photography here. Its Auto function is more than adequate for many situations, effectively doing the thinking for you for the majority of shots.

Nevertheless, if you do decide to tweak any of the settings, you can do so by navigating through the Menu option via the touch screen. Though we were initially sceptical about this feature, our concerns were put to rest once we used it. While it’s not as responsive as the iPhone’s controls, and some buttons do need a second press before it registers, it works quite well overall. One feature we did find slightly disappointing, though, was its battery life – its li-ion battery provides 230 shots from a full charge (115 minutes with the LCD screen on). For this reason, you might want to consider packing a spare if you’re embarking on a day out.

The Cyber-shot’s price tag has to be taken into account, and when you consider it retails for under £200, it’s inevitable that one or two sacrifices have to be made. Like many luxuries in life, the camera’s price does vary depending on your colour choice. There are five options to choose from, including pink, violet and green, plus the more standard black and silver shades, which will no doubt have a wider appeal.

You’d be forgiven for thinking this slimline beauty is purely aimed at the younger generation, but there is substance behind the style. Whether it’s the 14.1 megapixels capability, the camera’s impressive build quality and tough outer shell, its reasonably responsive touch-screen controls or the three-inch LCD, the DSC-T99 is a mid-priced compact that performs well and offers wider appeal. It’s so thin and lightweight that it’ll fit in pockets and small bags with ease, and it’s more than up to the challenge of capturing those special moments on holiday or on a night out.