Sony Puts Your Digital Snaps on TV

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Sony has an array of models, from the compact 8-megapixel T20 to the single-lens-reflex lookalike H7, with the same function.

They all rely on an improved chipset—image sensor and processor—that lets you store and erase quickly, a good idea since ever-bulkier photo data files can slow down a camera's basic operation. Sony also has updated the functions menu.

I remember being confused by Sony's camera menus when I shopped for a compact digital camera a few months ago, but the icons are now easier to identify and more intuitive to use. The cameras also have an adjustable ISO up to 3200 for setting the light sensitivity of the image sensors. And you can do simple editing tricks such as trimming and fish-eye distortions, without a PC.

Throw Us a Bone

Of course there is a downside. To be wowed by the difference in the quality of the shots, you need big high-def TV.

A 46-in. Bravia LCD TV will set you back as much as $2,000. You also have to fork out $35 to $80 for the cords and recharger/docking station to link to a TV. Sony execs say they didn't include TV-connector cords in the Cyber-shot's starter pack because there still aren't enough 1080p TVs out there to justify doing so.

Fine, but I would argue that a cord might encourage picture-tube-TV owners to swap their old sets for a flatscreen. Wait, I have a better idea: Why not future-proof the cameras with wireless technology so Cyber-shots are high-definition ready for a time when 1080p TVs are standard equipment?

There are more improvements in store for these gadgets. None of Sony's new cameras connects with an HDMI cord, which would allow for two-way, high-def digital signals.

Sony engineers said they decided against HDMI cords because they're not compatible with many flat TVs. But they will add them soon. Remember that the PlayStation 3 videogame console relies on an HDMI hookup.

That should give you some indication of what you can expect from the next generation of cameras, which could become even more like mini-PCs, allowing for expanded browsers and complex editing. (When I asked Shigeki Ishizuka, a senior executive in Sony's digital imaging division, what HDMI cords would do for cameras, he simply smiled and threw up his hands.)

If you're like me and just got a new camera, you might hold out for next generation of hardware. If you're shopping around now and own a high-def flat-screen TV, it's a no-brainer to choose one of Sony's new Cyber-shots.

Hall is BusinessWeek's technology correspondent in Tokyo .