Sony Intros Alpha A900 Full-Frame DSLR

Sony has announced the Alpha A900, a 35mm full-frame DSLR camera with a 24.6 megapixel resolution and dual image processing engines.

Although Sony has been showing the camera sine early this year, today the company officially announced its new Alpha A900 DSLR digital camera. The A900 features a full-frame 35mm CMOS sensor, 3-inch LCD display, and a resolution of 24.6 megapixels, along with dual BIONZ image processors and the capability to shoot five frames per second. Like many DSLR cameras, the A900 is aimed at serious and professional photographers, and it has the feature set to match, including sensitivity down to ISO 6,400 and Sony’s SteadyShot optical image stabilization.

“The Alpha DSLR-A900 introduction solidifies Sony’s position as a leading camera manufacturer that can meet the demands of serious enthusiasts,” said Sony’s director of digital camera marketing Phil Lubell, in a statement. “It represents the best in sensor and image processing technologies and offers enhanced functions, performance, and reliability so photographers can push their creativity to the limit.”

The 35mm full-frame CMOS sensor was developed using proprietary Sony planarization technologies to make sure the sensor is uniformly flat across its entire surface, and features more than 6,000 on-chip A-to-D converters to reduce noise and improve transfer rates. The camera also carries two BIONZ image processing engines, providing a fast shooting response even at high resolutions.

The A900’s LCD viewfinder provides a complete field of view and 0.74 magnification to let shooters frame their pictures accurately. The camera sports a nine-point autofocus with ten assist points for tracking moving objects, and the camera can handle shooting five 24.6 megapixel images per second. The camera also offers a preview function that enables users to adjust white balance, exposure, and histograms using a RAW preview before taking a picture.

Expect to see the Alpha A900 this November for about $3,000 (body only), with online pre-orders going online September 10. Sony has also announced two new lenses that will work with the A900—the Vario-Sonnar T* 16-35mm ƒ/2.8 ZA Carl Zeiss Series and 70-400mm ƒ/4-5.6 G lens—due in January 2009 for $1,800 and $1,500, respectively.