A memory card is not included with the camera.
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Sony's α (Alpha) NEX-3 takes mirror-less/finder-less, interchangeable-lens camera technology to the next level by integrating the resolving power of an APS-format imaging sensor in a camera body that's 48% smaller and 49% lighter than traditional compact DSLRs.
While the camera is physically smaller than a compact DSLR, it retains the imaging qualities of an APS imaging sensor, which contains 58% more surface area than a Four Thirds imaging sensor, and about 13 times the surface area of point-and-shoot imaging sensors. The end result is true pro-quality resolving power in a far smaller package. For still imaging, the NEX-3 captures JPEGs (Fine or Standard), RAW, or JPEG+RAW in a choice of sRGB or Adobe RGB color spaces. In addition to stills, the NEX-3 also captures extremely vivid 720p video @ 30 fps as well as standard-definition video recording. For more precise audio there is an optional shoe-mounted shotgun mic that features 90°/120° tilt movement.
The NEX-3 is designed to use Sony E-series lenses, a compact line of optics designed to work with the reduced flange distance that resulted from the removal of the reflex viewing system. The new E-series optics are smaller than Sony's traditional DSLR optics while retaining the imaging qualities Sony is recognized for. In addition to Sony E-series optics, you can also use any of Sony's traditional DSLR lenses (as well as all Minolta AF-mount optics) on the NEX-3 by using the optional LA-EA1 lens adapter. (Note - Manual focus and full-open aperture metering only when using LA-EA1 lens adapter).
The Live View viewing system of the Sony NEX-3 consists of a hi-fidelity 3", 921,600-dot TFT TruBlack LCD that can be tilted downward 45° and upwards of 80° for composing still or video images from extreme angles and/or in tighter shooting quarters.
As for performance levels, the NEX-3's Contrast Auto Focus system has quick response times and can capture full-res stills at burst-rates up to 7 frames-per-second. Low-light shooters will appreciate the ability to increase ISO sensitivity up to 12800, not to mention the NEX-3's Anti-Motion Blur and Hand-held Twilight modes, which capture 6 rapid-sequence images of a subject, analyze the exposure and focusing details of each image, and layer the optimum portions of these exposures into a single optimized image.
Another cool feature found on the Sony NEX-3 is Sony's renowned Sweep Panorama mode, which captures up to 60 individual images and stitches them together in-camera to produce panoramic images up to 226° across by simply pressing the shutter and 'sweeping' the camera vertically or horizontally across the area you want to capture.
Other features found on the Sony NEX-3 include manual overrides for focus and exposure controls, Auto HDR capture and a Dynamic Range Optimizer for expanding shadow and highlight details, Advanced Anti-Dust technologies, 8 Scene modes and 6 Creative settings, Background Defocus, for in-camera selective-focus control, a 25-point AF system, HDMI connectivity, and up to 330 exposures per battery charge.
Because Sony NEX-series are designed with hand-held, low-light/high ISO imaging in mind, there is no built-in flash. But for times you want or need to use flash, a low-profile Sony HVL-F7S TTL flash (guide # 7m @ ISO 100) is included with each camera.
Included with this kit is a Sony E-series 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS lens (27-82.5 equivalent), which contains 11 elements in 9 groups, 4 aspheric surfaces, a minimum focus of 0.82' (0.25 m), and Optical SteadyShot technology for up to 4-stops of vibration reduction.
| Camera Type | Compact E-mount interchangeable lens digital camera |
| Imaging | |
|---|---|
| Resolution | Effective: 14.2MP, Recorded: 14.6MP |
| Sensor | Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor (23.4 X 15.6mm) |
| Bit Depth | Not Specified by Manufacturer |
| File Formats |
Stills: JPEG (Standard, Fine), RAW, RAW+JPEG Video: MP4 (MPEG-4 AVC (H.264)) |
| File Size |
3:2 L (14M): 4592 x 3056 M (7.4M): 3344 x 2224 S (3.5M): 2288 x 1520 16:9 |
| Color Spaces | sRGB, Adobe RGB |
| Image Stabilization | Anti-Motion Blur Function in camera, Some lenses have Optical SteadyShot |
| Crop Factor | 1.5x |
| Optics | |
|---|---|
| Lens |
E-mount 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS (35mm film equivalent: 27-82.5mm) 9 groups, 11 elements (4 aspheric surfaces) |
| Zoom | Manual |
| Lens Mount | E-mount |
| Focus Type | Contrast 25 point autofocus and Manual Focus |
| Focus Range | 9.8" (0.25m) - infinity |
| Accessory Lens/Filter Mount | 49mm |
| Shooting Controls | |
|---|---|
| Sensitivity | Auto, 200 to 12800 |
| Shutter Speeds | 1/4000 - 30 seconds, bulb |
| Metering | Multi-segment, Center-weighted, Spot |
| Exposure Modes | iAUTO, Program Auto (P), Aperture priority (A), Shutter priority (S), Manual (M), +/-2EV (in 1/3 EV steps) |
| White Balance | Auto, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Flash, Setting the color temperature, Custom |
| Mirror Lock-Up | N/A |
| Burst Capability |
Continuous (2.3fps) Speed Priority (7fps) |
| Self Timer | 2-sec. or 10-sec. delay, (single, continuous 3 or 5 frames) |
| Interval Recording | N/A |
| Remote Control | Not Specified by Manufacturer |
| Flash | |
|---|---|
| Built-in Flash | No, External HVL-F7S flash supplied |
| Effective Flash Range | Guide Number: 7 (in meters at ISO 100) |
| External Flash Connection | Smart accessory terminal |
| Dedicated Flash System | Not Specified by Manufacturer |
| Max Sync Speed | 1/160 |
| Memory | |
|---|---|
| Built-in Memory | No |
| Memory Card Type |
Dual memory card slot: Memory Stick PRO Duo, Pro-HG Duo, PRO-HG HX Duo SD, SDHC and SDXC |
| Still Images per GB | RAW: 68 |
| A/V Recording | |
|---|---|
| Video Recording | Yes, MP4 (MPEG-4 AVC (H.264)) |
| Video Resolution |
MP4 HD: 1280 x 720 @ 30fps (29.97 Progressive) Approx. 9Mbps/6Mbps (Average bit-rate) MP4 VGA: 640 x 480 @ 30fps (29.97 Progressive) Approx. 3Mbps (Average bit-rate) |
| Video Clip Length | Depends on memory card size |
| Audio Recording | MPEG-4 AAC-LC format, Optional Compact Stereo Microphone |
| Viewfinder/Display | |
|---|---|
| Viewfinder Type | Optional optical viewfinder FDA-SV1 |
| Viewfinder Coverage | 100% |
| Display | Tiltable 3" 921,600-dot TFT TruBlack LCD |
| Connectivity/System Requirements | |
|---|---|
| Connectivity | USB 2.0, HDMI (Type C) |
| System & Software Requirements |
Windows 2000, XP (SP2), Vista Mac OS X (10.1.3 or later) |
| Environmental | |
|---|---|
| Operating/Storage Temperature | 32 - 104°F (0 - 40°C) |
| Weatherproofing | None |
| Durability | Not Specified by Manufacturer |
| Power | |
|---|---|
| Battery Type | InfoLITHIUM NP-FW50 battery, 7.2V |
| Power Adapter | AC adapter for NEX cameras |
| Physical | |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 4.61 x 2.46 x 1.31" (117.2 x 62.6 x 33.4mm) |
| Weight | 8.4 oz (239g) |
REVIEW SNAPSHOT®
by PowerReviewsPros
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REVIEWS
Reviewed by 13 customers
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
I bye This Camera For my Son Active's,,And i m professional photographer so i think that if i preserve my son memory with good quality of photo and Amazing video Quality ,, so just go with Sony NEX-3 Camera and i m So happy with this camera...its good to easy operate Function and ya my wife can also take pitcher of my son,b'coz this is simple camera with good quality of photo,,so thenx to b&h to serve this cam...
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
I use my NEX-3 camera to record my children growing up. The quality of the photographs are dramatically better than the camera I had been using. The speed is exceptional. I highly recommend this camera.
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
I got the NEX-3 for a trip so I wouldn't have to lug my DSLR around and I am VERY impressed with the photos that it produces. The price, the size, the image quality and the lack of shutter lag all were very good. The menus are very intuitive. Overall I'd highly recommend it!
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
I bought this camera as an upgrade to my old Canon Powershot. I wanted something portable and light but with great picture quality (sadly lacking in the Canon). The NEX-3 gave me that--really great pictures. I was worried that it might feel unbalanced being so light with that big lens, but I have not found that to be the case. I opted for the NEX-3 instead of the NEX-5 because I already have an HD video camera, and that seemed to be the main difference. I am really impressed with the smoothness of the images, even when shot as JPEG. Ability to shoot RAW images is a plus. Other people have complained about the battery life--I bought an extra battery just in case, but I didn't need it until I'd had the camera for a couple of weeks. Attaching the flash is pretty persnickety--but I don't use it much. Includes useless (to me) features such as smile detection (with several levels of smile detection!) and 3D panorama.
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
I've had the camera for about a month, and tried it indoors, at the park, outdoors at night, at a soccer game, and on a rock-climbing trip... a good mix
Things that are great:
Panoramic pictures
Fast shutter speeds
Light weight
Wonderful portraits and close-ups with aperture priority mode
Night photos are great, unless you're unsteady like me
Things that aren't great:
Battery life is just depressing
Really bad glare on the screen in sunlight. I over-exposed the soccer pictures becuase on the screen they looked dark for some reason.
The auto-focus isn't great, a bunch of my rock-climbing shots were blurry, even though its like slow motion. Who has time to manually focus every single shot?
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
I was tired of having point and shoot cameras that couldn't handle moving objects or low light, so I started doing research. I found that you really need an SLR to take quality action shots. This camera is a perfect choice for someone who wants a point a shoot but wants the quality images of an SLR. The automatic settings are great, especially the macro setting for flowers and other close up objects. The camera turns on incredibly quickly and its auto-focus is super fast as well.
Negatives: The design is odd and kind of feels like they took a point and shoot camera and taped a giant lens on it. I don't like the plastic body on the NEX-3, I really wish a camera this expensive would have a metal body like the NEX-5 does. The video was a bit grainy in low-light, and I have yet to test it in better light conditions. I bought a screen protector for the LCD because the smudges really make it hard to see after a while.
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
This camera was purchased as a second camera to take along on vacation. We got some great panoramic shots off the coast of Thailand. The color and clarity of all the photos was really outstanding. I was able to take some close up photos of some of the flowers in bloom.
Just wishing the telephoto lens that goes with the camera wasn't so expensive. Sony makes some great cameras, and this tops the list.
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
I take family pictures of school concerts, Hockey league games, gymnastic meets, travel photos.
The camera is great for indoor shooting without flash, and the ability to get high quality video clips as well as still images.
The camera has a large sensor that produces great photos at high ISO without flash.
My Nikon lenses can be used with an inexpensive adapter and the results are spectacular.
Battery life is poor.
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
Personal
All is great with this product
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
This is my first Sony Alpha, and I was very surprised how easy is to use this camera. Useful hints are shown every time you may need. The intuitive menu makes the migration from my earlier canon SI5 realy fast.
I'm enjoing the panorama mode a lot, plus I'm not missing special moments anymore due to lag - this camera is so fast! I only regret not having this camera in my recent traveling.
I'd only like it better if I had a viewfinder and better batery life.
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
a super easy camera to use. stunning results.
amazing how smart this camera is. great to travel with.
should it be this easy? I am glad that it is.
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Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
I really recommend this item
Great item as mirrorless Camera.
Comments about Sony Alpha NEX-3 Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera w/18-55mm Lens (Silver):
The Sony NEX 3 with 18-55mm lens does everything they say it can do and more. If you are an experienced SLR man as I am you'll appreciate the same controls, but the real strength of the camera is in the auto settings. You get as good if not better results in the i-auto mode as you do fiddling with all the settings. Images are crisp and clear. Movies are fantastic.
The one downside is screen is a bit difficult to see in sunlight and the software, which is almost worthless, and the camera do not like Windows 7 64bit at all. Folks these cameras are the future. I get so tired of carrying around a big SLR and lens. This camera is so light you hardly notice it.
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