Introduction

Tour

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Ease of Use

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The lower end of Cyber-shot cameras is consistently centered upon ease-of-use; the WX9 seems to be no exception. The camera offers a large graphical interface that is easily navigated with the scroll wheel. There's a discrete Easy mode, for users that are intimidated by having too many shooting options. And, we must admit, there are a lot of buttons on the camera, which could potentially confuse very beginning photographers.

Size & Handling

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The WX9 is a small camera, though it's pretty average compared to most compact point-and-shoot cameras. The measurements are 3.75" x 2.25" x 0.78" (94.6mm x 56.3mm x 19.8mm) and the weight is 4.9 oz. (139g). Basically, that's no smaller than a lot of cameras, but certainly small enough to put in your pocket.

Since the WX9 does not have a touchscreen, all menus and features are navigated using a combination scroll wheel and directional pad. The action on the wheel is quite good, making it easy to move quickly through available options.

The camera feels nice and solid in your hand, though there isn't much to aid in gripping on either the front or the back of the camera. You can certainly shoot with just one hand, but we don't recommend you do that for long stretches of time—or when leaning over the edge of a waterfall.

LCD

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The WX9 has a beautiful 3.0-inch XtraFine TFT LCD with a resolution of 921,600 pixels. We're very glad to see this kind of display on a mid-range model and we can tell you that it definitely makes a huge difference while shooting. You can adjust the LCD to one of five brightness increments, which may come in handy since there's no viewfinder for lining up shots.

Flash

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The WX9 has a modest flash, which you can set to auto, on, slow syncro, and off. Sony lists the range as 0.05m - 5.3m, though that's variable depending on the ISO and shooting conditions.

Lens & Sensor

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The WX9 has a hot new sensor crammed inside its tiny little body. It's a 1/2.3-inch "Exmor R" CMOS Sensor. That means it has Sony's backside-illuminated sensor technology and it should be a nice upgrade over last year's model. The gross pixel count is 16.8 megapixels, with an effective pixel count of 16.2MP. We'll have to wait until we get this bad boy into our labs before we can truly judge, but I'm sure plenty of Sony fans are hoping that the camera's performance matches its impressive specs.

The lens is a Carl Zeiss, as we've come to expect from the Cyber-shot lineup. This one is an F2.6 28-140mm lens, with 5x optical zoom. That zoom definitely impacts the form factor of the camera, with a significantly telescoping lens whenever you turn the camera on. Sony lists the focal range as approximately 5cm to infinity.

Jacks, Ports & Plugs

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The WX9 has a fairly typical collection of ports, including the now customary HDMI output. As is so often the case with Sony products, there is also a proprietary multi-use port, which allows users to connect the camera via standard AV cables or USB. This multi-use port is curiously hidden within the battery/card slot compartment.

Battery

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This Cyber-shot is powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery (NP-BN1). The camera ships with an AC adapter, which we can assume is used to charge the battery outside the camera body. We're not sure whether you can charge the battery directly via USB.

Memory

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The WX9 records entirely to removable memory cards and features a wide variety. Sony is still hanging onto its proprietary MemoryStick PRO Duo cards, but has expanded its lineup to adopt SD, SDHC, and now SDXC memory cards.

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Conclusion

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX9 is a slick little camera with a few new features that will definitely appeal to entry-level users. The 3.0-inch 921k LCD looks beautiful and the ability to shoot 1080/60i video is sure to raise some interest. Of course, performance is everything and we're most intrigued to see if the new 16MP Exmor R CMOS sensor will improve the camera's performance. Until then, the WX9 is just another point-and-shoot camera with loads of potential. Stay tuned for its March release: the WX9 will be available in silver, black, and red for an MSRP of $219.99.

Sample Photos

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Specs

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