Sony DSCWX350 Digital Compact Camera with Wi-Fi and NFC (18.2 MP, 20x Optical Zoom) - Black

Being a bit of a gadget fetishist I have owned way too many compact cameras in my time. Of all of them this is the best small compact camera that I have tried. The real selling point of this camera is it's size and weight. It is a truly compact camera and even for it's diminutive size it is very light. Packed into this small camera is a long zoom lens and a host of features. However, this would all count for nothing if it didn't deliver in terms of picture quality. Overall, considering the type of camera and it's price the image quality is very good indeed. This is primarily a great camera for outdoor use. Its size and weight make it incredibly portable and the image quality in bright light is very good. To top it off it is easy to use (the auto modes generally do very well) and fast in operation. The quality is good from wide angle to full telephoto and that zoom lens really does reach a long way. Battery life seems pretty good and I really liked that I could charge the bettery in the camera using a standard phone charger. This meant that I could charge it from a cigarette lighter in the car on days out. You do need to bear in mind the weak points of a camera such as this. Personally, I do not mark the camera down because of these issues as they are inherent in the type of camera. For a very small, long zoom camera I have not found anything better. Firstly, this camera has a small sensor (although typical or compacts) combined with a rather "slow" lens (again this is typical of compacts). Slow in this context refers to how much light it lets through not how fast it focusses. Essentially what this means is that the results you get will deteriorate rapidly as the available light levels fall. Indoor photos without the flash for example, will not look anywhere near as good as daytime outdoor shots. However, to put this into context, to get a camera with a larger sensor and faster lens that will do well for indoor lower light shots (like the Canon S120, Canon G7x or Sony RX100) you will have to spend considerably more for a heavier, larger camera and give up that long zoom range. Secondly, this camera is designed for the beginner and for automatic use. Because of it's small size it does not have much in terms of external controls such as exposure compensation. The result is that if you do know what you are doing and want to change something you will have to dive into the menus to change that setting. Again this is inherent in this type of camera. Note that although this camera does not provide any flash compensation (an annoying oversight) the flash seems to be much better than that for the previous generation, the WX300, which had a tendency to washout anything too close to the camera.. The only specific issue with the camera for me is that it's screen is not very visible in bright light. (Not ideal for a camera that I really only use outdoors.) I solved this by buying a non-reflective phone screen protector and cutting it down to size for the camera. This only cost a couple of pounds.

Despite the fact I've returned this (read on for why), I actually love this camera. The zoom range is incredible, it's pocketable, the selfie screen is totally usable and useful and it produces sharp results. It's a great carry anywhere /travel camera. I have the big heavy DSLR's, but for just walking around this is great. Unfortunately I have a defective copy. On about 1 in 5 photos there is a horizontal streaking. It actually looks like old fashioned film scratching. It spoils the photos because it's right across the middle of the image. It didn't happen every time, so the shots that don't have the problem are great. Disappointed that I got a bad copy, but I have to say the camera itself produces some fantastic results. I've attached a few so you can see the kind of sharpness you can get. I'll be ordering this again since it's practical, high quality and just great fun to use. Small enough for a pocket, it really is the take anywhere camera. The samples I've shown demonstrate just how good this camera is (at least in good light - haven't used it in low light so don't know). Really a shame about the marks on them. I'm sure that's just from a defective copy of the camera. I don't believe it's a general problem. Zooming in on the two birds I was able to keep a comfortable working distance, so I didn't scare them away. You can see the sharpness is pretty good despite zooming to max. and standing in a pretty windy spot! I've looked at various alternatives to this camera and none seems to have all the features I would like. For that reason alone I'll have to get another one of these. The overall combination of size, features, sharpness, zoom range and flip-out screen make this a great buy at the price.

The camera is compact and light weight. It is a bit slippery cause of the material and I would suggest a protective case. A big plus is the screen that flip 180° which can be used when vlogging. Another cool feature is that you can send the photos to your mobile with a tap. The NFC on the device works well. It will ask you to install an app first that will allow you to connect and detect the camera. You can also use your phone as a remote and on yourbphone screen you can see what the camera is seeing. Outdoor photos are amazing for the price and quality. The zoom gives you clear sharp images. In low light/indoor the photos are ok but not great if you zoom on them. Overall, Comparing with a mobile camera the photos are lower quality but do not forget that the mobile camera works hand in hand with a powerful editing software. The videos are good also but better in natural light. Conclusion: if you travel, vlogging, or want to immortalised beautiful memories this camera is good for the price and size. Do not expect to go to weddings events and get crazy and take amazing photos. This is for people who want to take picture on their holiday, family events and hate to keep their mobile in their hands all the time.

I wanted a pocketable compact camera with a long zoom lens, and after much deliberation, and searching of the internet, ordered a Sony Cybershot WX500. My new camera arrived about four days ago, and having tried it out in a variety of conditions, I am very pleased with its performance. I am well aware of the limitations of small cameras with tiny sensors, so did not have unrealistic expectations. Sure enough, it struggles to give good results with the zoom lens extended, if conditions are less than bright. However, when there is plenty of light it responds very well indeed. With the lens un-zoomed the camera copes as well as any other comparable compact in all conditions, and better than most. It is easy and convenient to use. The auto focus performance is impressively quick and accurate. The image stabilisation works well. I had to do a bit of head scratching to figure out how to use fully manual settings, but it was worth the effort. Last night I took some amazing photos of the moon, showing lots of clear detail of craters and other features on the surface. The camera seems to be well made, and the battery life is very good. Overall I am very well pleased with my purchase of the Sony Cybershot WX500. I am sure it will prove to be a very useful piece of equipment when I am out and about, and do not want to carry a larger camera.

I don't know where to start this camera is so good. I bought it to replace my old Kodak point and shoot. I am neither a professional nor an enthusiastic amateur. I just want to be able to take good pictures quickly with as little thought as possible. This does that. Key features are TWO magic button modes - one is the straight forward point and shoot and the other does even more to prevent wobble or over-exposure. It does have a panoramic option and I have read the instructions and it seems easy to use but I haven't - yet. It also has other options - but again I haven't used those. In magic mode it recognised the type of shoot (night, portrait, scenic etc) very quickly and set appropriately. It was also very easy to switch from still to video - so much so I have taken a lot more video than usually. The battery life is excellent - it did 3 Florida theme parks plus lots of play back before needing a charge. However I had bought and charged a spare battery just in case. You can get bargains - I bought a Maxsimafoto one which was much cheaper than Sony (off Amazon) and just as good. I did use a very good quality SD card as this camera takes HD video. I bought a Memzi Ultima Pro SDHC card (off Amazon) which are recommended for these cameras. It did work very well but of course I can't tell you how another would have done. I have reviewed and downloaded my pictures and videos and they are excellent quality - even the sound. At a recent car show my son (aged 10) also used this and found it really easy and took some great photos. I have also used the wifi connection which is really useful but as I take a lot of photos I tend to take the card out and insert into my printer for transfer. This camera is light but feels well made. The controls are not too fiddly to work with long nails. It sits in the hand comfortably ready to use but is not so small you feel you have a toy. My only issue is the review and playback and I'm certain that's user error! It does have a lot of options on review which makes it harder to just look at the picture and then those before.

I looked at loads of different cameras and reviews before making this purchase. The camera has loads of settings so you can get good quality pictures by playing around with them, it's the only one in its price range that has an whopping ISO of up to 12800 which is useful for low-light situations. You need to download and install the PlayMemories program from Sony onto your laptop or smartphone to use the wireless network connectivity feature which saves so much time when transferring pictures and videos. The video camera is of excellent quality and perfect for Vlogging but can only record for a maximum of 30 minutes due to EU regulations (otherwise it is technically a camcorder). The zoom is super powerful and goes up to 80x, I managed to get pictures of distant stars using the right aperture settings. Many people complained that the camera is too bright, but that can be adjusted easily using the settings! The battery lasted a very long time. It comes with no sdcard or instructions. The best point and shoot cameras on the market are Sony or Canon hands down. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPNYcRbo9Ik

I have lost patience with Sony and updated my initial review. Received direct from Amazon in factory sealed box. It was not possible to charge the battery with the cable enclosed, as it did not fit into the camera port. Neither did the cable for my much loved existing Sony, which has packed up. Why on earth would they want to change the access port, are they morphing into Apple! Amazon Customer Services were very helpful and tried to supply a suitable cable free of charge. That arrived today and also did not fit the camera port. I have been a long standing Sony customer, as I have previously found their products to be robust and reliable. However, this camera, itself, seems a poor build quality and plasticy compared to my previous purchases. Cannot comment yet on how it may perform, as I was unable to try it out. I returned this for replacement, as I was been unable to find another that I liked. However, Sony had better pull its socks up if it hopes to keep loyal customers. Amazon have now provided a replacement which has arrived with another dodgy cable, I give up!!

Positives: -Can charge the battery in the camera with a USB power brick when travelling; no need to lug around special chargers & cables -Wireless functionality makes it easy to shift the photos from the camera to an iPad or other device -Superior image quality -Well designed and intuitive user interface -Batteries interchangeable with Sony's AS 30 Action Cam -Cross-Platform support for Sony "Play Memories" software for Windows, OSX, IOS & Android Negatives: -"Motion Shot" advertised as a feature of this camera is not available; don't waste your time trying to install or configure it -No GPS tagging (although the lack of this feature will preserve battery life substantially) Overall, pretty pleased with the camera in both respect to both the quality of the photographs and it's wireless connectivity. When travelling, I like to backup the photos using the camera's wireless functionality to my iPad2 every night just in case the camera is lost/stolen or damaged. An excellent feature is the ability to charge the camera's battery using a USB power brick when out and about; no special charger required. The batteries for this camera are also interchangeable with Sony's AS30 Action Cam which is sweet. Only real niggle- and this precluded it receiving 5 stars was that one of the banner features was "Motion Shot Video". Think of a trail of basketballs going into a basket demonstrating it's trajectory. I couldn't find any setting for this on the camera, and after ages of Googling, discovered that it is *NOT* a native feature and requires "Play Memories Camera Apps" which not only requires separate purchase (£3.99)- it is not even compatible with this camera ([...]). MAC Compatibility: there is a Mac package for this app, but it doesn't install the app onto the camera. Might work with Windows, but I have not tested this. For both false advertising of what Sony felt was a key selling feature and wasting my time trying to use it, I deducted a star. Other small niggles: No GPS tagging in the photos, and the build quality is not sturdy. I believe if you dropped this camera onto the pavement, you'd have a seriously busted camera. Since the lanyard attachment point broke, there is no way to ensure I don't drop the camera by accident sadly. Otherwise, in respect to it's feature set and quality of pics, this is a really good camera, a bargain in respect to competing alternatives.