Sony Alpha a700 DSLR hands-on

We really stoked to finally have gotten our grubby meat hooks on Sony's latest DSLR, the Alpha a700. The first thing you notice: even without a battery pack, flash, or massive lens, the thing is as heavy as a friggin brick -- close to two pounds with the stock lens. The photographs we started shooting, though, were phenomenal. We won't patronize the extremely knowledgeable camera geeks in the house by trying to wax photographic, but if you get a chance to play around with one of these cameras, we highly recommend spending a bit of time with it.

Gallery: Sony Alpha a700 DSLR hands-on

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[Prashant @ Oct 2nd 2007 10:16AM]

how much will it retail for?

[Darkiewonder @ Oct 2nd 2007 10:19AM]

Best Buy has it for 799. Good price [Then again, I'm a sucker for anything that's over 500 and call it a "good price"] :D

[primetime4 @ Oct 2nd 2007 10:23AM]

I think you are looking at the A100 for 799. Lowest the A700 is available for right now is 1299 without a lens.

[Darkiewonder @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:24PM]

Ah you're right. i just realized it now. xD

[PhotoJoe @ Oct 4th 2007 1:34PM]

It looks like a PRESS HERE AND TURN THIS WHILE TILTING THE CAMERA monstrosity.

When will people learn that a dedicated control for each function is best? How will you keep the camera at eye level and quickly dial in -1 overall exposure comp, +1 flash comp, drop the ISO to 100, and set the correct color balance without having to hunt down multiple menu options? Minolta (the guys Sony bought their DSLR from) had the user interface perfect on the 7D(6 Megapixels, most important items have dedicated buttons, dials, multi-directional toggles, or switches. You could do all that I mentioned without taking your eyes out of the viewfinder.

PS: I did that adjustment dance just yesterday. I went from 0 EXP COMP, 0 Flash COMP, Daylight Balance, 400ISO to -1/+1, Flash Balance, ISO 100. Shoot outside at the 7 year old showing off his skateboarding, turn when hearing the 3 year old squeal in delight and see him standing in the doorway giving the cat an awkward carry hug. [Flash power up due to distance to subject, EXP at -1 due to dark interior of home behind subject and the dark blue he was wearing, ISO100 for less noise and better image quality, color balance set to flash because the aftermarket flash on the camera is not the same as daylight in terms of color temp. Two seconds max. Most of that was picking the color temp.

[Stuart @ Oct 6th 2007 7:52PM]

Actually; most people who have actually tried this camera (including ex-Minoltians) have liked the new design, and have found very quick and easy to use.

Everything either has a dedicated button - or else - is on the main display. You just toggle the joystick to move from a setting which has a dedicated button to any of those that do not.

My main reservation about the design is indeed the lack of controls or whatnot on the top right panel. They could have used that panel to greater use.

[Preston @ Oct 2nd 2007 10:20AM]

I'll be saving my money for a D3.

[Greg @ Oct 2nd 2007 9:28PM]

Same here. Sony might have some DSLRs nowadays and sure they might be cheaper and I'll even agree they are a good start, but Sony has alot more work to do before they are up to par with Nikon, Canon, or even Pentax. I much prefer the layout of buttons etc Nikon uses, not so much how Sony handles it. I've used a couple Sony's just messing around with them in stores and like I said they still need a lot of work. However, at the end of the day its the photographer that makes the photo, not the camera, although the camera either detracts or adds to the creative process.

[Stuart @ Oct 6th 2007 7:21PM]

Pentax is not even in the same league as Sony. Sony has better cameras than Pentax, more (and better) lenses, and better customer support too.

[Kevo @ Oct 2nd 2007 10:37AM]

What's the screen resolution on that? That's my complaint about my 40D. Navigating menus is fine, but it's still not that great for reviewing shots.

I'd hold out for the D300 at this point. I like the feel of Nikons much more than Canon. They will all take great pictures. Unfortunately for me, I already proposed to Canon and she accepted, so I'm locked in for the foreseable future.

[Shaocaholica @ Oct 2nd 2007 11:56AM]

Despite some small differences, the Sony design(s) feels a lot more like Nikon's than Canon's.

[PhotoJoe @ Oct 4th 2007 1:35PM]

The clincher is the LCD? What about resolution? Color accuracy? Noise suppression? Built in anti-shake vs paying for it in each lens you buy? Availability of lenses in the focal lengths you're likely to buy? I NEVER even considered the LCD as an important make or break component.

[Geir E @ Oct 2nd 2007 10:43AM]

Screen res is 640x480. Which is higher than the 40d (which i belive is 320x240 or something like that)

[Jason @ Oct 2nd 2007 10:49AM]

Looks great, I think I'll pick one up for Christmas. Have been very happy with my A100 so far.

[almostinfamous @ Oct 2nd 2007 10:50AM]

i'm going to wait for sony to drop their bogus proprietary hotshoe before i can support what used to be minolta again

[Shaocaholica @ Oct 2nd 2007 11:51AM]

Thats the Minolta proprietary hotshoe. Not Sony's. They(Minolta) came up with it quite some time ago(way before Sony bought them) because they didn't like the design of of the ISO one. I'm not going to say that it was a good/bad move but I hardly see the Canon/Nikon crowd use anything other than 1st party flashes anyway.

This is by far one of the silliest reason's to be a Sony DSLR hater. I can give you a list of things to not like about the camera but this isn't on it.

[almostinfamous @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:06PM]

apologies for being clear as mud, i did mean minolta's hotshoe(which i first noticed on a friend's old dynax), but sony have taken up the ball now and would have to drop it.

btw, i use el cheapo flashes(with single-pin mounts and a sync cord), cause i dont see that much benefit in buying the nikons.

[producerism @ Oct 2nd 2007 11:12AM]

im another one hooked to canon, but if it werent for my investment, I would be with Nikon.

[Shaocaholica @ Oct 2nd 2007 11:53AM]

I don't get what your comment has to do with this article?

[producerism @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:04PM]

that's fine, don't lose any sleep over it

[Thierry @ Oct 2nd 2007 11:23AM]

Heavy? It is the lightest of the 3!!
Alpha 700: 690g
Canon 40D: 740g
Nikon D300: 825g

[Shaocaholica @ Oct 2nd 2007 11:58AM]

I think the misconception comes from handling entry level DSLRs which are lighter. Anyone who's been used to an entry level DSLR will think any mid-level DSLR is super heavy despite being relatively light compared to its peers. The lens also makes a huge difference too since it can account for almost as much wight as the camera itself.

[hp540 @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:31PM]

I'm just glad Engadget doesn't do DSLR reviews...or we'd have to read things along the lines of "well, the EOS 1D doesn't feel as heavy as the a700, and we all know if the camera weighs more, it must take better photos."

[pscs @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:53PM]

yeah you're quite right. these engadget guys have only played around with apples and iphones, not cameras :)

i was nearly put off by the weight while reading the paragraph... until i saw you mentioned the comparisons. any DSLR @ this type of specs will be about this heavy. i hope they will improve on the lightweight materials on the newer model (even though this is really new).

so:

2.5 kg macbook pro
1.0 kg a700 + another lens
1.0 kg books + papers + pen
0.5 kg water bottle (500ml)
= 5 kg.

how heavy can my bag get???

[Ty @ Oct 2nd 2007 5:35PM]

Wouldn't this camera compare more to a Nikon D80 than a D300?

[Shaocaholica @ Oct 3rd 2007 12:59AM]

What makes you think its on the same level as the D80?

[Alwin @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:50PM]

Heavy relative to what? Compared to D40 (475g w/ no battery, card, or lens) A700 is almost 50% heavier. Compared to 1Ds Mk 3 (1,205g)or D3 (1,240g), A700 is absolutely svelte.

[Hunter @ Oct 3rd 2007 3:35AM]

Interesting start of a review. Troubled by the person who was going off on how a camera could (or could not) take better pictures. Hmmm, and I always thought PHOTOGRAPHERS took pictures ;-) Anyway, brand loyalty is fierce in the DSLR marketplace and no matter what is said it is a no-win scenario. So many are anti-Sony because of the perception that they are the last to enter the DSLR market (in fact they were the first, long before Nikon or Canon had an idea what it was about). When one examines this new offering by Sony in depth, and when they are actually available to make valid comparisons, my belief is that it will rank among the best ever made in its category. After all, it is based on time-proven engineering and experience from Minolta coupled with Sony's penchant for innovation. Sometimes I think the old school diehards take it very personally when something better than a Nikon or Canon comes along, lol.

[PhotoJoe @ Oct 4th 2007 1:36PM]

The clincher is the LCD? What about resolution? Color accuracy? Noise suppression? Built in anti-shake vs paying for it in each lens you buy? Availability of lenses in the focal lengths you're likely to buy? I NEVER even considered the LCD as an important make or break component.

[Stuart @ Oct 6th 2007 7:57PM]

The Minolta hot shoe is actually pretty decent...
http://keppler.popphoto.com/blog/2007/01/shoe_fetish.html
...and personally I hope that they keep it.

Why? Without it I could never add or remove my flash-gun whilst in the pitch black, or zip it on or off in a flash, or put it on without worrying whether I have gotten the connection right, etc.

[Stuart @ Oct 6th 2007 8:05PM]

Go ahead and compare to the D80!

The Nikon D80 lacks weather-sealing, has a slower fps, smaller memory buffer, lower resolution, worse high ISO noise, worse build quality, worse on-body controls, no anti-shake, worse AF system, worse AF-assist illuminator, no infrared remote control included in the box, worse LCD display, worse shutter max speed, worse flash sync speed, no InfoLithium precise battery display, and generally worse features.

The only thing that the D80 has going for it, really, is that it can touch up some of your photos for you.