Sony Alpha A330 Comments

Was the previous Sony kit lens not 18-70mm rather than 18-55? :)

Thinking of picking up an A200 at the moment before they dry up, at ~£280 they certainly seem a better buy than the 230/330 @ ~£400!

This seems like a step back in the ergonomics department. it just feels awkward to hold. One of the main reasons i got my a200 was because it was a big comfortable camera compared to the likes of nikon and canon.
Ed- remember you still have the back catalogue of konica minolta glass and unlike canon and nikon all the lenses will be stabilised.

Looks like the sacrificed range for quality on the new kit lenses. If you want to rummage through old Dynax/Maxxum/Alpha lenses for your your A200 Ed check out dyxum.com's lens section. You can find reviews of just about everything that have ever been attached to the front of an AF Minolta, Konika-Minolta or Sony.

FYI as for shrugging of its Minolta Heritage, the new Sonys look like retro remakes of the Minolta Dynax/Maxxum 5. Just google it and you will see the same grip and two tone paint job.

Chrispynutt is correct - the grip is taken straight from the (film) Dynax 5.

Erm Cliff we aren't talking about the Konika-Minolta Dynax 5D, but the Minolta Dynax 5 which is a film camera. Here is the Minolta Maxxum 5 product page http://ca.konicaminolta.com/products/consumer/camera-pus/slr/maxxum5/index.html

I still think the A300 is the best of the cheap sonys. Its got all the same inners as the A350 except its only 10mp instead of 14mp and because of that it has a quicker frame rate and less noise than the a350 and its cheaper!

I also brought an A300 kit when it was cheap and a sigma 70 - 300 cheap (half the over priced RRP which made it about 33% off street price).

When I got from this review is. Get the lens but not the camera.

if u wanna cheap and good stuff then u need to by any canon or nikon body and tamron 18-200 (or 250) lens (£600). if u have no £600 then buy new Ricoh CX1 or CX2 (upcoming) but don't waste money on that Sony thing.

Vacationer, that is just trash talk. It is Canon/Nikon brand bias (especially when you use "any"). The A330 may not be the best value at it's released price but if it drops to the price of the A300 (£350) for the kit it is in value territory for a dSLR starter. I brought my A350 kit + tamron 70-300 for £460 which is great value.

@Vacationer, yet another Canon/Nikon fanboy who does not know anything he/she is talking about. If you have not used it don't knock it. Chances are your Nikon has a sensor developed and manufactured by Sony as well.

To compare a dSLR to the Ricoh is just stupid.

Funny that the A300, the best of the previous bunch of Alpha's fails to get a mention during this review, especially when the A330 is it's direct replacement. Personally I can't stand the new range of Alpha's; nothing new, paltry grip & no REAL improvement other than noise control (especially on A330), if you still can, get either an A300 or A350, they'll be cheaper, have a decent grip and won't be any worse, oh and battery life will be better too. The A500 & A550 are however worth a good look.

Ref vacationers comment; does the tammy 18-200 in Canon/Nikon mount come with I.S ?. I have an A300 and Sony 18-250 (a far superior lens) for under £600... Funnily enough Alpha's STILL have the best live view system on the market.