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Connectivity
Software (5.25)
Sony's PMB application (Picture Motion Browser) , is strong on the image management side, but not so much on editing. The customary editing tools such as tweaking light levels, contrast and colors are available, but PMB shines most on the organizational side. The application automatically sorts your pictures by date of photo, but they can be sorted by tags or subject matter. There's a geo-tagging feature where you attach location information to your photos so you know where you took them. There are also downloadable plugins that let you easily upload images to Flickr and the like. While PMB does feel a little bloated on occasion, it seems to do an excellent job of organizing everything.
As with so many Sony programs, the majority of the software associated with the T700 doesn't work on Macs. The Music Transfer program does, though, so you can still throw on your favorite tracks to listen to during slideshows.
The PMB software is also used for the Portable Album Feature, which is discussed in more depth below. Unfortunately, this feature does not work for the Mac.
Jacks, ports, plugs (6.50)
As is their wont, Sony has opted to use a proprietary format for the only data port on the T700. Located on the bottom of the camera, it is completely unprotected, which means that it's likely dirt or sand could get trapped in there. The advantage to using a single proprietary port is that it saves on space on the tiny camera, as you don't need different plugs for data and video cables. On the downside, if you ever need a new cable, you have to buy an expensive one from Sony rather than an easily available and inexpensive standard cord.
The camera comes with an included cable for composite video and USB, but can be hooked up to and HDTV via additional component cables or a Cyber-shot station. The station is a cradle, that allows you to charge your Cyber-shot and hook it up to a TV, and use a remote control. It retails for approximately $80.
The T700 can use both of the standard direct print options that are currently on the market: PictBridge and DPOF. PictBridge lets you plug your camera directly into certain printers, and run off copies of your images, without needing to interface with a computer. DPOF (direct print order form) lets you earmark your images for printing (and resizing) so you can give a print professional your memory card and they'll know what to output. Unfortunately, the T700 has one of the worst DPOF interfaces we've ever seen. Usually, it is fairly straightforward to set up the number of prints you want from each image, so you could get 10 shots of your puppy if you want. However, with the T700, even after reading the manual and guide included on the CD, we could not figure out how to increase the number of prints for an image. Turning DPOF on and off was simple enough, but actually changing the print count eluded us.
Battery (2.00)
Due to the large size of the LCD, and the need to constantly use it for every function, the battery life of the DSC-T700 is underwhelming. It was completely drained after about a day of medium to heavy use. Sony rates this battery at approximately 200 images, which isn't many at all.
Once again, Sony shows their passion for doing things their own way, and mandates the use of the proprietary Memory Stick Pro Duo format card. Rather than going down the near-universal path of SD and SDHC, Sony insists that we use their technology, and theirs alone. On the plus side, the T700 includes an impressive 4GB of internal memory (the better to support its Portable Photo Album feature), so you can actually get by really well without even using a memory card.
Sony insists on using their proprietary memory card format
Portable Photo Album
Sony promotes the way this camera can be used as a photo album, thanks to its large built in memory, and the way you can automatically have the Picture Motion Browser software transfer screen-resolution versions of your images on to the T700, putting about 24,000 VGA-size images at your fingertips for sharing and showing off. Unfortunately, it's not quite as straightforward as that. First, this feature isn't covered in the manual, or automated in any way. It actually requires manually setting a number of options in the PMB software in order to get it to make use of the album feature. First you have to transfer all your images to PMB. Then you have to click a small icon of two swirling arrows, which will transfer images back to the device they just came from. You then have to go into the options, and tell it to resize them down to VGA, so they don't eat up too much space. Once they're on your camera's internal memory, you can't even see them unless you remove your Memory Stick. Considering how Sony has promoted the Portable Photo Album feature, the actual implementation is surprisingly poor.
Page 11 of 15
Overall Impressions