Sony DSC-M1: Good Video, Disappointing Pictures

The Timing Tests

* NOTE: For all of our time tests, the camera is reset to its factory default settings and set to record using the highest resolution and quality setting. It is set to record in Auto mode. We also disabled all sounds. A 512 MB Memory Stick Pro Duo card was used.

Before reading our results, please refer to our Testing Procedures page.

Startup Time

The startup time is recorded from the moment that the power button is pushed to the moment that the shutter sounds. The camera is set to record in Auto mode.

Startup time (seconds)
Sony DSC-M1	1.76
Pentax Optio X	3.37
Canon PowerShot S60	3.98

Startup time is not a problem at all for this camera. Compared to other compact 5 megapixel cameras that we have tested, its 1.76 sec. startup time is incredible. This has a lot to do with the internal lens system (also seen on the popular T1 camera). Since the camera uses folded optics, there is no need for a telescoping lens to protrude from the camera body. In fact, the 5 megapixel DSC-F88 has the same type of lens system and takes nearly the same amount of time to startup (1.73 sec.).

Auto-Focus and Shutter Lag

To record shutter lag, we perform two tests with the lens at its widest angle setting. For the first test, we pre-focus the lens and measure the amount of time that it takes the camera to take a picture after the shutter button is pressed. The second test measures the time that it takes for the camera to take a picture after we press the shutter button without pre-focusing. Each test is performed 3 times and the results are averaged. For more information regarding our testing procedures, please refer to our Testing Procedures page.

	With Pre-focus (seconds)	Without Pre-focus (seconds)
Sony DSC-M1	0.01	0.24
Pentax Optio X	0.09	0.92
Canon PowerShot S60	0.08	0.69

As we've come to expect from Sony's digicams, shutter lag and auto-focus are very fast. When the camera is pre-focused, the shutter lag is so fast that it is less than a hundredth of a second. When we included focusing in the test, the M1 took only 0.24 sec. to focus and take a picture after pressing the shutter button. This is even faster than the DSC-L1, which we thought was incredible at 0.31 sec. The M1 is now the fastest compact digicam that we have ever tested in terms of focus and shutter lag.

Write Times

We recorded 5 different write times with a SanDisk 512 MB Memory Stick Pro Duo:

Single Shot - The time that it takes for a single picture to be written completely to the flash card (the time that the "activity light" is on).
Shot To Shot (STS) - The time until the second shot can be taken after the first (shutter to shutter).
Shot To Shot w/Flash - The time that it takes the camera to take two pictures with the flash, starting from the moment that the first flash is fired to the moment that the second is fired.
Shot To Shot w/Buffer Full - The time between the last shot of a burst that fills the buffer to the moment that the shutter sounds again.
Clear Buffer - The time that it takes the camera to clear the buffer after a full burst of pictures is taken.

We performed each test three times and averaged the results. Below are the resolution, quality setting, and average file size used for the tests.

	Resolution (pixels)	Quality setting	Avg. file size (MB)
Sony DSC-M1	2592x1944	Fine	2.22
Pentax Optio X	2560x1920	Best	2.51
Canon PowerShot S60	2592x1944	SuperFine	2.05

	Single Shot	Shot to Shot	Shot to Shot w/Flash	Shot to Shot w/Buffer Full	Clear Buffer
Sony DSC-M1	1.06	1.11	6.93	N/A	5.26
Pentax Optio X	N/A	4.39	5.96	N/A	N/A
Canon PowerShot S60	2.73	1.87	5.54	3.67	N/A

The M1 has a very respectable shot-to-shot time at 1.11 sec. without the flash. However, when the flash is used, the M1 slows to nearly 7 seconds between shots. The M1 is so fast at flushing images out of its buffer that the buffer will never fill up when shooting in the normal recording mode. In other words, the camera can take a picture every 1.11 sec. until the memory card fills up. With the M1 in "Speed Burst" mode, it can take up to 4 frames at 4.17 fps. The camera then takes 5.26 sec. to clear those 4 images out to the buffer before more images can be taken. Unfortunately, the M1 is unable to take pictures while files are being written to the flash card - you must wait until all 4 are written. Overall, the M1 has very impressive write/cycle times compared to similar cameras that we have reviewed. However, this camera is definitely not the fastest if you plan on using the flash very often.