Many thanks to Sony for this great opportunity to molest one of their latest and greatest cameras... The Sony SLT-A77. This is Sony's long-awaited A700 replacement, and it
certainly has a lot of expectations on it's curved shoulders.
First off, I want to make it very very clear that this is NOT the final production firmware, and there may be slight tweaks/improvements with the final release. So with that
out of the way, let's take a look at this beauty:
Construction:
SOLID! Much like the A700 and A850, A900, this is a serious chunk of tough camera. Magnesium alloy frame, weather sealing, it's all here!! It feels great in the hand, with a
comfy grip and a finger recess that is deeper than that of the A900! Great for people with slightly bigger hands!!! Everything fits great, there's no creaks or unnecessary
slack that I can find. Even the pop-up flash is perfectly flush. It's surprisingly light too - definitely heavier than the A580, but very light compared to the A900.
Layout:
Everything but the kitchen sink is here... You have buttons for all sorts of options, from the display layout to Sony's Fn (function) button for quick setting changes, the 5-
way navi, AEL, AF/MF, Teleconverter button, playback, Movie, Finder/LCD, Drive mode, White balance, exposure comp, ISO, top LCD illuminator, flash sync, Remote, Mic, HDMI, DOF
preview (customizable to be smart preview)... Nice. The only thing that seems odd is that Sony went very n00b friendly and gave a dedicated "?" help button to explain
settings, but did not provide a dedicated SSS on/off switch.
Top LCD is actually useful:
certainly has a lot of expectations on it's curved shoulders.
First off, I want to make it very very clear that this is NOT the final production firmware, and there may be slight tweaks/improvements with the final release. So with that
out of the way, let's take a look at this beauty:
Construction:
SOLID! Much like the A700 and A850, A900, this is a serious chunk of tough camera. Magnesium alloy frame, weather sealing, it's all here!! It feels great in the hand, with a
comfy grip and a finger recess that is deeper than that of the A900! Great for people with slightly bigger hands!!! Everything fits great, there's no creaks or unnecessary
slack that I can find. Even the pop-up flash is perfectly flush. It's surprisingly light too - definitely heavier than the A580, but very light compared to the A900.
Layout:
Everything but the kitchen sink is here... You have buttons for all sorts of options, from the display layout to Sony's Fn (function) button for quick setting changes, the 5-
way navi, AEL, AF/MF, Teleconverter button, playback, Movie, Finder/LCD, Drive mode, White balance, exposure comp, ISO, top LCD illuminator, flash sync, Remote, Mic, HDMI, DOF
preview (customizable to be smart preview)... Nice. The only thing that seems odd is that Sony went very n00b friendly and gave a dedicated "?" help button to explain
settings, but did not provide a dedicated SSS on/off switch.
Top LCD is actually useful: