Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 is a new digital SLR from top shelf featuring 14.2 megapixel Sony Exmor CMOS sensor. The camera has the latest BIONZ image processing sensor and ISO sensitivity range of 200 to 12800 which may give you a hint as to what this camera is capable of.

Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 pros:

+ 14.2 megapixel CMOS sensor
+ ISO range of 200 – 12800
+ 3-inch screen showing 921,600 pixels
+ Two live modes
+ Continuous shooting at up to 7 fps
+ 9-point autofocus
+ Powerful battery

Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 cons:

- Tends to oversaturate
- Larger than competition
- No AF assist lamp
- Limited scene modes
- 4-way controller may seem small
- No video recording

The design:
Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 measures 137 x 104 x 84mm and weighs 599 grams. The front of this Sony camera features the lens release, control dial, remote sensor, self-timer lamp and the focus mode switch. The back of the Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 is crammed with buttons, sensors and such like. It houses the 3-inch screen 4-way controller, viewfinder, teleconverter, as well as buttons controlling playback, image rotation, zoom in and out, display and menu. The left side of the camera houses the focus mode switch, flash control, HDMI / USB connectors whereas the right side features merely the memory card slot. The bottom of the Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 is home to the battery compartment and the tripod mount, whereas the top hosts the proprietary hot shoe, the pop up flash, mode dial shutter release button and a few other controls.

Performance:
The Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 has a powerful battery, large screen and great flash. It produces sharp images and it supports 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios. The camera features a built-in image stabilization system, although it isn’t that good. The auto white balance works surprisingly well, even in fluorescent lighting and rarely only the incandescent light may pose a slight problem.
Playback has somewhat limited functionality, but it should be quite sufficient. The camera has also no in-camera editing features. If you are a keen continuous mode shooter the Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 is a camera for you. It can shoot up to 9 photos per second.

Image quality:
The Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 is quite a good performer in most respects. The greens, purples and skin tones are reproduces very well, yet the blues and reds are slightly worse. Unfortunately all color modes tend to oversaturate the images. Compared to the competition such as the Panasonic DMC-GH1, or the Olympus E-P1 the Sony camera produces slightly more noise. On the other hand, the Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 has the widest ISO range.

Selected Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 features and specifications:

• Megapixel

14.20

• Resolution

4592 x 3056 pixels

• Sensor

CMOS
23.4×15.6mm

• Zoom

N/A

• Video

N/A

• Display

• LCD 3″

921600 pixels

• Storage

SD
SDHC
MS Pro Duo / Pro HG Duo

• Battery

Li-Ion
1000 shots

• Price: $999 body only

Other recently reviewed digital cameras:
Panasonic DMC-GH1, Canon PowerShot S90, Olympus E-P1, Nikon Coolpix L100, Kodak EasyShare Z950, Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3.