Technicalities: Sharp Shooter; April 2006; Scientific American Magazine; by Steven Ashley; 3 Page(s)

Digital cameras come in two basic flavors. Most people are familiar with the convenient point-and-shoot--the electronic descendant of the cheap, compact and once ubiquitous Kodak Brownie. These cameras let shutterbugs preview shots on a tiny screen and cost a couple of hundred dollars each. Less common are digital singlelens reflex (D-SLR) units--the computerized versions of the classic through-the-lens, 35-millimeter-film cameras, which offer far higher image resolution, along with much loftier prices. (They can exceed several thousand dollars.)

Now comes Sony's Cybershot DSC R1 digital still camera, the first of a new category of reasonably affordable ($999), all-in-one electronic picture-takers that combines some of the best features of existing high- and low-end digital designs. I have been interested in purchasing a DSLR for some time but have been waiting for prices to fall before dropping a bundle on one. Could the R1 be a useful alternative? I tried it to find out.