Sony Cybershot DSC-R1 Digital Camera Review:

Best Cybershot Cameras: What you see in real time is what you get, in terms of colors, focus, exposure, and framing, just like with an SLR camera. This also makes for a more compact design, allowing the lens to be placed closer in to the camera body. With no mirrors or prism, you also get a much quieter camera without the clicking and whirring common on digital SLRs. On top of that they add a fixed 24mm-120mm 5X Carl Zeiss zoom lens (with special optical coatings on all lens components), with a very wide angle good for group shots or wide architecture or landscape shots (with maximum apertures of f2.8 for wide angle, F4.8 for telephoto). There is also a mechanically linked zoom and manual focus ring (center of image is enlarged to full size on preview screen during manual zoom so you can ensure precise, crisp focus, important on these 10MP cameras). ISO sensitivity ranges from 160-300, with an auto-ISO setting as well. There are a limited number of pre-programmed modes (covering mostly night shots). Browse all Cybershot DSLR cameras here.

The camera is speedy too, with almost instant, 1 second shot-to-shot time, 7ms shutter release speed (think almost instant), and three frames per second burst mode. The low-power consumption CMOS design also allows for longer battery life, with up to 500 shots per charge (depending on how much you use flash, LCD screen, etc. of course). The Cybershot R1 prosumer digital camera will be released at the end of 2005 with a MSRP of $999, in line with the Canon Digital Rebel D-SLR camera. Makes you think twice..The links on this page contain further reference materials and information.