Home > Consumer Reviews > Sony DSC-P41 Cybershot Digital Camera [4MP]

I was lucky enough to receive this camera as a present recently - it is the first digital camera I have owned. As a newcomer to digital photography I have to say this camera is incredibly easy to use - it really is just point and click. For beginners it has an 'auto' setting where you don't have to worry about settings but can start taking photos straight away - the camera will worry about exposure, flash, etc for you. The clarity of the LCD screen is fantastic; zoom is simple to operate and effective; when switching the camera on, start-up is almost immediate; reviewing the photos you have taken is a simple process. I managed to get 138 photos at highest resolution (4 megapixels in Fine mode) on a 256 memory stick - not bad going when you consider you can delete the rubbish ones as you go! A 256 meg memory stick will alternatively hold about 11 minutes of quality MPEG. The PC software supplied is really good and will automatically download the images from the camera - simply plug the supplied USB cable into the camera and everything is done for you!

For those who need more options, the camera can shoot in various exposures, also sepia and black & white, it has 'multi burst' mode for action shots, a 'Standard' quality mode where you can get 220 photos on a 256 meg memory stick, MPEG recording with sound, index reviewing and a whole host of other tricks that I haven't ventured to try yet!

In summary this is a fantastic camera - light, compact, stylish, full of features and with the usual outstanding Sony quality and design. Perfect for beginners. The only down side is you need to buy a memory stick (it comes with a 16 Meg memory stick which holds about 8 photos!) but just think of the money you will save on buying films and processing!!!!! Highly recommended.

I have been looking all over the internet with the intention of buying a 4mp or above camera, My 2.1mp sony had broke and it was only a few quid more to get this, so I thought why not?
For the price that you pay this is a bargain, picture quality as you would expect from a 4mp camera and also a sony camera is excellent, its light, very small, but easily usable and the screen is more than good enough for what you need.
If you are looking for a cheap high end mpixel camera you really wont find better than this on the net, if you are looking for more features, i.e. optical zoom rather than just digital, or indeed if you want more to come with the camera, (I was only disapointed that I didnt get power cable and rechargeable batteries) then you will have to pay more (The p43 is the next model up and has these extras, but in essence is nearly the same camera) but for a starter camera, for an upgrade, or just for pictures for holidays and anything else with no gimmicks, then this is the camera for you.