CES 2014: Sony A5000 revealed along with Black 55-210mm lens

Sony has traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada to introduce the A5000 mirrorless camera and the Cyber-shot W830 compact at the Consumer Electronics Show 2014.

CES 2014 is far from over as more and more companies are launching digital imaging products for photographers worldwide.

The show is now graced by two more cameras, one in the mirrorless category and another in the compact area; both of them are the work of a single company: Sony.

The A5000 and the W830 are the PlayStation maker’s only photography-related cameras unveiled at CES, although a slew of camcorders have also been revealed on American soil today.

Sony still planning to kill off “NEX” brand, introduces A5000 mirrorless interchangeable lens camera

Sony A5000 is the company’s newest E-mount APS-C mirrorless camera. It features WiFi, NFC, and a tilting LCD screen among others. It is coming in March for a little under $600.

The Sony A5000 has been leaked on the web several times. However, it has been rumored that it will be just a version of the NEX-5T, a MILC announced in August 2013. Now that it is official with a different set of specifications, it proves that the rumor mill can be wrong sometimes.

The Japan-based company is slowly killing the “NEX” brand as there are only a few products that still bear it. “Alpha” is the way forward and “ILCE” will be used for the codename. All in all, “Alpha” suggests leadership, but only time will tell whether the strategy will pay off or not.

Meanwhile, the Sony A5000 features a 20.1-megapixel APS-C sensor that draws its power from a BIONZ X processor. This is the same engine that fuel the A7 and A7R full frame E-mount cameras, which have received so many praises from reviewers around the world.

This combination reduces noise and provides excellent image quality, even in low-light conditions when using the maximum ISO sensitivity of 16,000.

Sony A5000 sports WiFi and NFC, as connectivity features are becoming a “must-have” in photography

The new mirrorless camera features a 3-inch tilting LCD screen that also acts as a Live View mode when recording full HD videos.

Photos can be captured with a shutter speed range between 1/4000 and 30 seconds. The Sony A5000 supports RAW images, but this is a thing that mostly concerns professional photographers who want to edit their shots.

Beginners can make use of the effects and filters, such as Background Defocus, Selective Color, Miniature Mode, and Toy Camera.

After taking some photos, the users can immediately transfer them to a smartphone or tablet via WiFi or NFC.

Black 55-210mm f/4.5-6.3 zoom lens announced for Sony E-mount cameras

Sony 55-210mm f/4.5-6.3 Black joins the Silver lens, which has been available on the market for quite some time. There are no other differences between the two and their prices are identical, too.

In order to complement the A5000 launch, Sony has also introduced a new lens for E-mount APS-C cameras. The 55-210mm model has been given a paint job and now it is available in a black flavor, too.

Its maximum aperture ranges from f/4.5 and f/6.3, depending on focal length, as usual. According to Sony, A5000 owners will be able to choose from 20 different lenses for their new camera, covering an extended focal range from wide-angle to super-telephoto.

Availability information

Sony will release the A5000 in Black, Silver, and White colors for a price of $599.99. It will be sold as a kit alongside the 16-50mm lens as of March 2014. Amazon is already listing it for pre-order at a price of $598.

On the other hand, the black version of the E-mount 55-210mm f/4.5-6.3 lens will be released in the same month for $349.99. As of right now, Amazon has put it up for pre-order and says that it will ship it in mid-January for only $398.

Sony W830 is a compact camera aimed at low-budget beginner photographers

Sony W830 is the PlayStation maker’s only attempt to take over the compact camera market. It features a 20.1-megapixel sensor and an 8X Zeiss lens.

The aforementioned Sony W830 is a brand new compact camera that features a 20.1-megapixel CCD sensor with an 8x Zeiss lens as well as Bionz image processor to ensure that photos turn out crisp clear.

The built-in Optical SteadyShot technology helps stabilizing photos, while the OSS Active Mode makes sure that 720p videos do not turn out shaky.

Picture Effects are an important part of the Cyber-shot W830 with the list of creative modes  including Partial Color and 360 Sweep Panorama.

Its release date has been set for February and a price of $139.99, which is valid for all color choices: Black, Pink, and Silver. If you want to pre-order it now, then you will be able to do so for $139 through Amazon.