“Exmor R” CMOS Sensor
Double the light sensitivity with half the noise
Now obtain sharper pictures with less noise. New 1/2.4-type “Exmor R” CMOS Sensor with 10.2 effective megapixels raises the bar on CMOS sensor performance thanks to back-illuminated technology. This cutting-edge design doubles the light sensitivity of the sensor and combines with Sony’s original Column A/D Conversion to reduce noise by half*. For you, this means superb, lifelike photos even when shooting in dimly lit environments.
* Approximate. Compared to conventional sensors.
See how it works
Exmor CMOS SENSER
Back-illuminated technology places the metal wiring of the photo diode beneath the diode instead of above it.
Conventional sensors   "Exmor R" CMOS Sensor
Twice the sensitivity and half the noise result in beautiful images in dimly lit environments, even when compared to images produced by our conventional models.
“BIONZ” acceleration
The “Exmor R” CMOS Sensor with its rapid, low-noise throughput works in tandem with the super-fast “BIONZ” Imaging Processor for beautiful, high-resolution images. This powerful duo increases the speed at which the camera performs processor-intensive tasks like auto focus, auto exposure, auto white balance and Dynamic Range Optimizer (DRO). It also enables higher maximum ISO settings, and delivers vastly improved noise reduction in low-light environments.

This combination of advanced sensor and imaging processor technology makes possible great Sony features like:

・Burst Shooting
・Hand-held Twilight mode
・Anti Motion Blur mode
・Sweep Panorama
・720p HD Movie
Burst Shooting
Capture action sequences with split-second precision
Lightning-fast continuous shooting of up to 10 frames per second* means you’ll never miss the perfect moment. Better yet, each image is captured at a crystal-clear 10.2-megapixel resolution. Sony even employs a mechanical shutter, instead of an electronic shutter, to reduce distortion when you continuously shoot moving subjects. For playback and editing convenience, the continuous shots are automatically stored in a group, in sequential order, and the camera automatically selects and displays the Best Picture** to represent the group.

* The shooting interval may differ depending on the scene.
** When shooting portraits, the camera analyses eye-blinking and smiles to select the Best Picture. When not shooting portraits, the first image in the sequence is selected.
Three continuous shooting speeds are selectable. After continuously shooting a portrait, the camera selects and displays the Best Picture.
Mechanical shutter for distortion-free images
Unlike electronic shutters, mechanical shutters are constructed of precision moving parts, which allow them to be calibrated to freeze fast moving subjects without distortion.
Photo from a digital camera equipped with a CMOS sensor and electronic shutter.   Photo from the DSC-TX1
Photo of fast-moving subject shot with an electronic shutter exhibits distortion.   Photo of fast-moving subject shot with a mechanical shutter.
Hand-held Twilight mode
This mode lets you shoot blur-free twilight scenes without using a tripod, thanks to the highly sensitive “Exmor R” CMOS Sensor and fast “BIONZ” Imaging Processor. It superimposes six frames and calculates the difference in camera-shake blur between each frame to create a single optimised image with noise reduced by approximately half. The results are cleaner, sharper images when compared to twilight shots using only a high ISO setting. This mode is activated by simply selecting the Hand-held Twilight mode on the Touch Screen.
Anti Motion Blur mode
This mode leverages the rapid throughput of the “Exmor R” CMOS Sensor and super-fast processing of “BIONZ” Imaging Processor, giving you the means to capture crisp images with reduced noise and subject blur in dimly lit environments when used in combination with a high ISO setting. Like Hand-held Twilight mode, it creates one optimised image from six superimposed frames to cut noise in half.
Sweep Panorama
Now you can shoot breathtaking panoramic views with ease! Simply sweep the camera in the desired direction while using Sweep Panorama. It continuously shoots at high speed and then seamlessly stitches the images together to create a single stunning panoramic image. Sweep horizontally to capture landscapes and cityscapes, or sweep vertically to capture tall towers and churches. Settings include two selectable image sizes and sweep direction (up/down/right/left). When viewing the recorded image, you can use Single Image Display to view the entire image within the screen or use Scroll Preview to fill the entire screen with part of the image and scroll in the same direction the camera was moved while shooting. You can also view these panoramic images on Sony’s S-Frame (091H and later models) and PLAYSTATION®3.
Selectable sweep direction and image size
720p HD Movie
Now you can enjoy shooting HD movies at 30 fps and 1280 x 720 resolution from a “still image” camera! The high-quality, high-compression MPEG-4 format (MPEG4 Visual codec) lets you save movie action on Memory Sticks.
Full HD 1080