REVIEW SONY NEX-5N 16.1 MP

SONY NEX-5N 16.1 MP

Sony's first NEX cameras were The NEX-5 and NEX-3, and the NEX-5 actually was slightly smaller than its "kid brother." As its name suggests, the NEX-5N retains the acclaimed look and feci of that original compact model, and builds on it.

A new I6.l-megapixcl Sony Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor replaces the NEX-5's 14.2-mcgapixcl unit, alone with a specially opTum?cd Bton? image-processing engine, providing ISOs up to 25.600. Release time lag has been improved to a miniscule 20 ms, and AF speed has been improved, as well.

Another new NEX-5N feature is its touch-screen LCD monitor. It's a 3.0-inch. 921,600-dot tilting unit like those of the other NEX cameras, but it's the only one with touch-screen capability. Just touch an object in the scene on-screen, and the AF system will focus on it and track it as it moves throughout the scene.


The NEX-5N doesn't have a built-in cyc-lcvcl finder (only the NEX-7 does among NEX models), but it will accept the FDA-EVIS accessory finder, which features the same OLED technology found in the NEX-7's built-in unit.

Like the NEX-7. the NEX-5N uses the new AVCHD Progressive v2.0 format to provide full HD 1920x1080 video at 60p, as well as the usual 60i rate and the "cinematic" 24p rate. Continuous AF with new Object Tracking improves video AF performance. Also like the NEX-7, the NEX-5N can shoot full-res images at 10 fps (with focus and exposure locked at the first shot). Maximum shooting rate with AF for each shot is 3 fps.

Of course, the NEX-5N includes such Sony features as 2D and 3D Sweep Panorama. Anti-Motion Blur mode and Handheld Twilight mode, as well as two-shot, in-camcra HDR, Dynamic Range Optimizer and II Picture Effects. Estimated Street Price: $699 (with l8-55mm zoom).