SO WHILE WE WERE IN THE MOUNTAINS (described at more length here), I did manage to take some pictures with the new camera (a Sony DSC-W7) and even to compare them with some other stuff when I got home. Verdict — the new camera is somewhat better than the old one in terms of imaging quality, but I think it has more to do with its having a better lens (a Zeiss instead of a Sony) than with the extra megapixels (going from 5 to 7.2). Blown up, the images from my Nikon D70 look better than the ones from the Sony even though the Nikon has 6.2 megapixels instead of 7.2. I’m sure the Nikon’s CCD is better, but I suspect that the big difference is in the glass here, too. The Sony was comparatively cheap, and also shoots video though. And it fits in your pocket. Both are awfully good at what they do, of course. If only everything improved as much as electronics.

The one downside of the new Sony — although it fits in my pocket better than the old one, it fits in my hand less comfortably, because it’s smaller, and I have big hands. Oh, well. Since my hands are bigger than most people’s, that’s a problem most users won’t have.