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The Sony Mavica MVC-FD88 Digital Camera
Last updated: 11/4//99

The Sony MVC-FD88 Digital Camera is a notch up from the MVC-FD83 reviewed a couple of months ago.  The salient differences in the cameras are:

  • The  FD88's 1/3" CCD contains 1.3 million pixels  while the FD83's 1/3" CCD has 850K pixels.

  • The FD88 zooms optically/digitally 8X/16X as compared to the FD83's 3X/6X.

  • Oh, yes, the FX83 costs about $800.00 and the FD88 will set you back one grand.

IN THE BOX.  The attractive retail box includes the following items:

  • Camera.

  • Battery charger and cord.

  • Operating Instructions in English and Spanish.

  • warranty, safety instructions, misc. instructions, etc.

  • CD with..

    • ArcSoft PhotoStudio v. 2.0 SE, a photo editing/paint program.

    • ArcSoft VideoImpression.  Used to create, edit, playback, and E-Mail animated video. 

    • Mavica Floppy Utility.

  • Audio-video cable (mini-plug to two RCA plugs for video and mono-audio).

  • Shoulder strap.

OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS.  The Operating Instructions are well-written, amply illustrated, to the point, logically organized, and easy to follow.  The index rather sparse.

KEY FEATURES.  One of the foremost features of this camera is that it stores images on 3 1/2" floppy disks.  Floppies are cheap and provide an immediate interface to almost all PC's.  You can even make copies of whole floppies with the camera and immediately share photos with your friends and family the next time you go to one those family reunions, etc.  In my opinion, after working with cameras which require tapes or CompactFlash cards,  this is the only way to go.  Gone are peripherals, printer interface problems, and the requirement to upload to specially-equipped computers.  The 4X floppy drive in this camera is much faster than the one in the MVC-FD7.  Other key features include:

  • 1/3" 1300K pixel Progressive Scan CCD.

  • Max. image size 1280 x 960 

  •  The Progressive Scan CCD reads all of the pixels in a single pass for sharper pictures--not interlaced.

  • 8X Optical/16X digital zoom lens.  f=5.2-15.6, 35mm conversion (f=37-111mm).

  • Auto/manual exposure with six auto-exposure modes.

  • Auto white balance.

  • Back-lit 2.5" color LCD view panel.

  • Shutter speeds (Auto): 1/30-1/4000 Sec.

  • Voice and MPEG movie modes.

  • Battery good for 1,500 shots per charge (so they say).

  • Delayed shutter.

  • Built-in flash.

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Copyright, Disclaimer, and Trademark Information Copyright © 1996-2006 Larry F. Byard.  All rights reserved. This material or parts thereof may not be copied, published, put on the Internet, rewritten, or redistributed without explicit, written permission from the author.