I mentioned in my last post that I wanted to write more blog posts, so let me start by talking about some new changes to the blog. I’ve made some minor tweaks to the layout, with the most noticeable changes on the right side and at the bottom. I’ve also added large images; from now on, all new blog posts will feature 1000px-wide images~~~~ You can click the thumbnails to view them.

As I mentioned in my last post, I planned to go out and take more photos, so I picked up a compact camera… the SONY mirrorless NEX-5R. Mirrorless cameras are a product in the photography world that really caught my eye; it’s no easy feat to maintain such a compact form factor while delivering high image quality. Although mirrorless cameras have been around for a while, I hadn’t considered buying one since I already had a DSLR. However, recently I found carrying a DSLR around too cumbersome, and since mirrorless technology has matured significantly and prices are reasonable, I decided to buy one for myself~~~~

My goal in choosing a mirrorless camera this time wasn’t to replace my DSLR, but to have a camera I could easily carry around, so size and weight were the most important factors. SONY managed to fit an APS-C CMOS sensor into such a tiny body… while keeping the weight down to just 276g… it perfectly meets my requirements. In terms of controls, it features a top dial and a rear control wheel, which is just like my 50D~~~ The functions are also quite similar, so there was absolutely no learning curve. Plus, it has a touchscreen and WiFi.
http://www.chiphell.com/thread-574214-1-1.html
The main differences between the NEX-5R and the NEX-5N are the addition of phase-detection autofocus, faster continuous shooting speed, built-in WiFi, a switch from a capacitive to a resistive touchscreen,
a 180-degree flip-up screen, added apps (not yet available on the Chinese version), an added control dial, a digital level gauge, and various other minor tweaks.

I won’t go into too much detail about the specs; instead, I’ll focus on my personal user experience.
Speaking of NEX cameras, I used one for a few days during a previous trip to Hangzhou, so I’m not entirely unfamiliar with them. You can refer to these blog posts:
Hangzhou Wulin Gate Hanting All Seasons Hotel / Hangzhou Hefang Street / West Lake / Grandma’s Home Restaurant / Hangzhou Longjing Tea Inquiry / Longjing Restaurant
Hangzhou Nine Creeks and Eighteen Gullies / Hangzhou Jiangnan Yi / Hangzhou Friends Theme Club

The packaging is very minimalist, containing the camera, lens, flash, charger, data cable, manual, warranty card, etc.

There are two points worth mentioning here. First, by registering the serial number from the warranty card on the Sony official website, you can extend the standard 1-year warranty to 2 years. Additionally, you receive a Sonystyle discount coupon. Although this coupon is single-use, there’s no limit to the quantity of items you can buy, though it applies to only one unit per product. There are many eligible discounted items, including 10% off lenses, 15% off accessories, and even 10% off TVs… valid for one month.

While I’m at it, let me mention the terrible shopping experience on Sonystyle… Aside from page layout issues… there are inexplicable glitches… For example, after successfully logging in the first time, the personal center page kept refreshing endlessly, and it only recovered after nearly an hour… As for adding items to the cart, if you choose online payment, the backend isn’t directly connected to any payment platform. You have to wait for customer service to call and confirm, then manually fill out a payment form on Alipay… having to enter the order number and amount yourself, and the payment can only be verified the next day before shipping… And waiting for that confirmation call took 5 hours… Later, when I suggested switching to cash on delivery, they told me the courier might not bring a POS machine… Compared to e-commerce platforms like JD or Yixun, which deliver within hours of ordering in Shanghai, Sonystyle feels like an online store from the last century…

Also, for some unknown reason, the camera comes with a direct wall charger rather than a dedicated battery charger. Although it uses the same Micro-USB port as most phones, relying solely on direct charging is incredibly inconvenient… Especially for someone like me who doesn’t own any other Micro-USB devices; when traveling, I not only have to carry a charger but also a separate data cable. Moreover, the charging time is extremely long, taking nearly 5 hours for a full charge. During the entire charging process, the camera cannot be turned on—even if you do turn it on, it’s unusable… it just displays the battery level and an error message. This is unacceptable for those with two batteries, as fully charging both takes 10 hours. If charging overnight, you’d even have to wake up halfway through to swap batteries… Fortunately, Sony seems to have realized this issue and sells a dedicated battery charger + original battery bundle on their official website… priced at 470 RMB, or 399 RMB with the 15% discount, which is acceptable.

This kit lens is a 16-50mm zoom, one of Sony’s newer offerings. Its advantage is that it retracts to a very short length when not in use, but the downside is that it extends when powered on… Another drawback is that the zoom mechanism is motor-driven rather than manual, resulting in a very strange feel, and I think the build quality is far inferior to the older 18-55mm lens. Anyway, I didn’t plan to use it much, so I also purchased the 35mm f/1.8 prime lens to serve as my everyday walk-around lens~~~~

This lens features a metal exterior, and the build quality is noticeably superior. The package includes the lens and a hood. By the way, mirrorless accessories all seem so mini and cute~~~~

Being a prime lens, it’s much easier to manufacture. With its large f/1.8 aperture, this lens offers excellent optical quality. At f/1.8, corner sharpness isn’t great, but still acceptable. This photo of a Kindle was taken at f/1.8—speaking of which, I can’t even finish reading physical books anymore… My Kindle hasn’t been used in ages and is gathering dust… ~~~

At f/2.2, image quality is already excellent. This photo was taken at f/2.2:

Here’s a 100% crop, showing impressive clarity:

Today I tried out the WiFi feature, which turns out to be quite practical. Specifically, you select ‘View on Smartphone’ on the camera, which generates a hotspot. Then, connect your iPad/iPhone to this hotspot and open the PlayMemories Mobile app to view and transfer photos—it’s very fast. The hotspot password remains constant, so once set up, you don’t need to re-enter it for future connections.

No need for too many sample shots here… I’ll post plenty more in the future~~~~
Except for the last photo, all images in this post were taken with a Canon 50D + 50mm f/1.4, processed in Lightroom.

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Camera, NEX-5R