The only negative about the interface
of the DSC-P73 is the information that is overlaid on the monitor
when the camera is use. The settings, which are shown in small
white characters and symbols with faint black outline, are overlaid
on the image coming from the lens. And, the small character size
combined with the small 1.5 inch screen, can be difficult to
decipher. This is unlike the various menus of the DSC-P73 which
are quite legible, and colourful.
The Setup menu of the DSC-P73 is a good example. Each page is accessed
by a tab in the left margin of the screen, and the text is very legible.
The Setup menu of the P73 — the same options are found on other Sony
cameras — is composed of 4 parts:
Camera:
AF Mode: is used to select whether the autofocus will
take place when the shutter release is half-pressed (Single);
or continuously (Monitor).
Digital Zoom: selects which type of digital zoom is
used Smart, or Precision, or turns it Off.
Date/Time: controls the permanent superimposition
of the time and date on the image. Options are Off, Date
and Time, Date.
Red-eye Reduction: On or Off. Decides
whether or not the flash will fire pre-flashes prior to the
main flash to minimize the red-eye effect.
AF Illuminator: Off or Auto. Allows
turning off the AF-Assist when it is not needed such as when
taking photos at night.
Auto Review: On or Off. Selects whether
or not the camera displays a just captured image on the LCD
monitor while it is being stored.
Memory Stick Tool:
Format: Serves to format the Memory Stick. The format
process deletes all images, including those that have been
protected.
Create REC. Folder: Creates a folder into which captured
images will be saved. The camera automatically names the folder.
Change REC. Folder: allows switching from one folder
to another as the location where images should be saved.
Setup 1:
LCD Backlight: controls the brightness of the LCD
monitor's backlight (Bright, Normal, Dark).
Beep: controls camera sounds (Shutter only, On,
or Off).
File Number: Series or Reset. Controls
how images are numbered after a Memory Stick has been formatted,
or a new Memory Stick is used. Reset restarts numbering
at 1; Series continues incrementing.
USB Connect: provides for 3 protocols, PictBridge to
print directly to a PictBridge compliant printer, PTP (Picture
Transfer Protocol), or Normal (Mass Storage).
Video Out:NTSC or PAL.
Clock Set: serves to set the date and time on the
P73.
As usual with Sony cameras, a
printed manual is provided for the DSC-P73. Information is presented
clearly and allows using the camera very quickly. Moreover, should
any particular question arise about a function or the use of
an option, the manual provides clear answers. However, just like
other Sony instruction manuals, detailed technical specifications
are absent.
Software
In Canada Sony bundles a program
called Picture Package (Version 1.0) with all its current
cameras, including the DSC-P73.
Picture Package is composed of
a suite of utilities: Handycam tools, Auto Slide, CD Backup,
Menu, VCD Maker and Viewer. These utilities provide tools to
view and organize images, create complex slide shows, and burn
them onto CD.
With the Viewer, photos are first presented as thumbnails, but when one
is double clicked, the image is displayed in a separate window at a larger
size. Regrettably, the current version of Picture Package does not provide
any serious editing capabilities.
At best, images can be rotated left
or right in 90° increments, and re-saved.
This first version of the software is still buggy, and can crash unexpectedly,
as with for instance, a damaged JPEG file.
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Interface & Software
