Sony Alpha A230

Last updated: Thursday, October 1st, 2009

Last updated (01 October’09):
- Review by PhotoReview.au

Sony Alpha A230 is a DSLR camera features 10.2-megapixel APS-size CCD image sensor, SAL1855 18-55mm standard zoom lens, SteadyShot INSIDE in-camera image stabilization, Eye-Start Autofocus, HDMI terminal with BRAVIA Sync compatibility, ISO 100 to ISO 3200, 9-Point AF Sensor, Up to 2.5 fps continuous shooting and a 2.7-inch (diag.) Clear Photo LCD Plus display. The camera is the smallest, lightest a-series body (July 2009) with dimensions of 5.0 x 3.8 x 2.7 (128 x 97 x 67.5 mm W/H/D, excluding protrusions) and Weight (Approx.) - 15.9 oz. (452 g without battery, memory card, accessories).

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Expert Reviews

Sony Alpha A230 Reviews

PhotoReview.au reviews the Sony Alpha A230 and writes;
“Overall response times were mostly good for an entry-level model and autofocusing in bright light was fast and accurate. However AF speeds slowed noticeably as light levels decreased and both lenses showed a tendency to hunt in near darkness..”
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DSLR.uk reviews the Sony Alpha A230 and writes;
“Overall I found the A230 design visually attractive and solidly built. It is relatively simple to use, handles well, the auto-focus responded accurately and quickly and the image quality was exceptionally good; better than I would have expected from an entry level camera”
Rating: N/A

TrustedReviews reviews the Sony Alpha A230 and writes;
“Sony Alpha A230 is currently the cheapest APS-C digital SLR on the market. It is very basic, and naturally it lacks many of the in bells and whistles such as HD video and live view found on more expensive models, but nonetheless it is a nice easy-to-use camera that is more than capable of taking excellent pictures.”
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PhotoraphyBlog reviews the Sony Alpha A230 and writes;
” Noise is not a real problem up to ISO 800, though it does become rather noticeable at ISO 1600 in the form of blotchy chroma noise that the in-camera noise reduction cannot remove well. Loss of overall saturation is not a problem though, even at the highest setting of ISO 3200. “
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PCmag reviews the Sony Alpha A230 and writes;
” At an indoor family get-together, I was able to shoot at ISO 1600 and produce solid shots with no noticeable noise. Outdoors I mostly shot at ISO 100-400, and images were clean and clear—not as sharp as those shot with the Canon Rebel EOS XSi, but the A230 did produce good-looking images. “
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CNET reviews the Sony Alpha A230 and writes;
“The good: fast autofocus; high magnification viewfinder for its class; dual card slots; relatively simple, straightforward operation; built-in wireless flash and image stabilization; helpful SteadyShot indicator. The bad: Smallish grip; default settings produce suboptimal photos. The bottom line: The Sony Alpha DSLR-A230 is a solid entry-level dSLR that will surely have its fans, and it’s a better deal than its slightly higher-end sibling, the A330.”

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ePhotozine reviews the Sony Alpha A230 and writes;
“Build quality is as good as you can expect from an entry level camera but it doesn’t ‘look’ anything less than the A380. It’s easy to fall into a trap of making it look like it’s made of cost saving materials but hurrah for Sony, they haven’t done with this..”
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User Opinions

Roughly as good as can be expected | Rating:
“…In many ways, this camera is an ideal camera for a serious hobbyist (I’m not going to go hyperbolic and say “professional,” because the limitations of this camera are the sort that wouldn’t be tolerated by a professional being pushed to the limits of digital photography. It isn’t that a professional shot can’t be taken on this camera, but that there are digital bodies that would make a professional’s life much easier than the a230 would)….” - Davis

Sony Alpha A230 User Reviews

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Samples

Sony Alpha A230 Sample Photos

- Sony Alpha A230 @ TrustedReviews
- Sony Alpha A230 @ PhotographyBlog
- Sony Alpha A230 Sample Photos: 1 - 2 @ ePhotozine

Manual

Sony Alpha A230 User Manual (PDF)

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- Download Sony Alpha A230 User Manual (PDF - 6MB)

Specs

Sony Alpha A230 Specifications

General

* Camera Type : Sony α Digital SLR camera with built-in flash and inter-changeable lenses
* Color Filter System : RGB primary color filters
* Effective Picture Resolution : Approx. 10.2 megapixels
* Imaging Sensor : APS-C size CCD sensor (23.6×15.8mm)
* Lens Mount Type : Sony α lens, Minolta and Konica Minolta AF lens
* Pixel Gross : Approx. 10.8 megapixels
* Processor : BIONZ™ image processor
* Recording Media Type : Memory Stick PRO Duo™ media / , SD and SDHC memory card,
* Recording Mode : RAW, RAW+JPEG, Fine, Standard
* Still Actual 16:9 : L size: 3872×2176 (8.4M) M size: 2896×1632 (4.7M) S size: 1920×1088 (2.1M)
* Still Actual 3:2 : L size: 3872×2592 (10M) M size: 2896×1936 (5.6M) S size: 1920×1280 (2.5M)

LCD Display

* Brightness Control : Selectable in 5 steps
* Coverage : 100% (Playback)
* Type : 2.7” TFT Clear Photo LCD (230,400 pixels)

Flash

* Flash Compensation : ±2EV (in 0.3-stop increments)
* Flash Coverage : 18mm in focal-length of lens attached
* Flash Metering System : ADI flash (automatic change for Pre-flash TTL)
* Guide Number : 10 (in meters at ISO100)
* Modes : Auto, Fill-flash, Red-eye reduction, Rear sync, Slow sync, Hi-speed sync*., Wireless
* Recycling Time : Approx. 4 sec.
* Type : Auto Pop-up

Inputs and Outputs

* HD Output : HDMI
* Memory Card Slot : Dual memory card slot: Memory Stick PRO Duo™ media SD and SDHC memory card
* Tripod Mount : Yes, 1/4″-20
* USB Port(s) : USB2.0 Hi-speed (mass-storage, PTP)

Control

* AF modes : Single-shot AF, Automatic AF, Continuous AF, (AF/MF selectable)
* Drive Mode : Single-shot, Continuous, Self-timer, Self-timer Continuous, Bracketing, Remote Commander
* Exposure Compensation : ±2EV (in 0.3 EV steps)
* Exposure settings : Auto, Auto Flash Off, Program Auto (P), Aperture priority (A), Shutter priority (S), Manual (M)
* Focus Area : Wide (Up to 3 active focus points glow), Spot, Local (9 local areas selectable)
* Focus Features : Predictive control, Focus lock, Eye-start AF, AF illuminator (Built-in flash, Range: approx. 1-5m)
* Focus Points : 9 points
* Focus Sensitivity : EV0 - 18 (ISO100)
* Focus System : TTL phase detection system
* ISO : Auto, 100 to 3200 (in 1 EV steps,Recommended Exposure Index)
* Metering : TTL metering w/ 40-segment honeycomb-pattern SPC
* Metering Modes : Multi-segment, Center-weighted, Spot
* Metering Sensitivity : EV1 - 20 at ISO100 with F1.4 lens, (EV3 - 20 in spot metering mode)
* White Balance : Auto, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Flash, Custom

Weights and Measurements

* Dimensions (Approx.) : Approx. 128 x 97 x 67.5 mm (W/H/D, excluding protrusions)
* Weight (Approx.) : Approx.452 g (without battery, memory card, accessories)

Convenience

* Anti-dust function : Charge protection coating on low pass filter and image-sensor shift mechanism
* BRAVIA® Sync™ : Yes, via HDMI with compatible BRAVIA HDTV
* Color Mode(s) : Display color (Black, White, Brown, Pink)
* Creative Style : Standard, Vivid, Portrait, Landscape, Night view, Sunset, B/W Contrast, Saturation, Sharpness
* Scene Mode(s) : Scene selection (Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Sports, Sunset, Night portrait/Night view)
* User Interface : “Easy-to-understand Graphic Display and on-screen Help Guide User-friendly function menu”

Viewfinder

* Diopter Adjustment : -2.5 - +1.0m-1
* Eye relief : Approx. 16.5 mm from the eyepiece / 10.9 mm from the eyepiece frame at -1 diopter
* Field of View : 95%
* Focusing Screen : Spherical Acute Matte Screen
* Magnification : 0.83x (with 50mm lens at infinity)
* Type : Fixed eye-level, penta-Dach-mirror

Power

* Battery Type : NP-FH50
* Number of Shots : Approx. 510 images with viewfinder, approx. 230 images in live view mode (CIPA standard)

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