Decent color accuracy
In-camera high dynamic range shooting
Can’t turn off high ISO noise reduction
No video output of any kind
Introduction
Auto white balance performs solidly, though manual white balance lags behind the competition.
White Balance (8.38)
The A550 did reasonably well in our automatic white balance testing, but taking a custom WB reading didn’t produce the level of precise color reproduction we expect from custom white balance systems, leading to a mediocre overall score. We test white balance accuracy by shooting the ColorChecker chart inside the X-Rite Judge II lightbox, which produces consistent color temperatures for incandescent, compact fluorescent and daylight illumination. More on how we test color.
Automatic White Balance (11.09)
The automatic WB system was particularly adept at handling often-tricky fluorescent lighting, and did almost as well in daylight. Only incandescent illumination, the tungsten-bulb light source that so often produces overly warm, orange-hued photos, tripped up the A550.
Custom White Balance (5.67)
The color errors we measured after taking a custom white balance reading aren’t extreme, but they are larger than we like to see in an SLR, where accuracy standards in this mode are demanding.
The level of color error during daylight shooting is unlikely to be noticeable to the naked eye in your photos. With the noteworthy exception of the Panasonic GF1, none of the comparison cameras handled incandescent lighting particularly well. The A550 has the honor of being less bad than the others here. Fluorescent lighting can be tough on an automatic white balance system, but the A550 handled the challenge well, particularly compared to the Nikon D5000 and Olympus E-30.
The overall white balance score for the Sony A550 is a bit below the competition, owing largely to the mediocre custom white balance results.
Shop for the Sony A550
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