Crave

(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET)

LAS VEGAS--With the exception of the camera section, the hall where Sony held its annual product showcase here was practically deserted Monday evening.

In past years, the Sony line show, held two months after CES in the same town, has usually brimmed with tech journalists and gadget reviewers who've gathered to see Sony's real coming-out for the year. (Sony typically holds back at CES in order to show the majority of its new stuff for the year at its own event.)

This year was different. There are likely two factors involved here. Sony had the grandest stage of all at CES this year. Chief Executive Sir Howard Stringer was given the high-profile keynote slot during the show, and the Japanese electronics giant took full advantage. Sony rolled out its P-series Netbook, a Walkman with OLED display, a mini Flash-based camcorder, motion-sensing TVs, and more. What was shown Monday night was heavily weighted toward products like those already on the market.

The economy is probably taking a toll as well, judging by the minuscule number of journalists sent to cover the event (despite really reasonable room rates!). Sony actually combined two events this year, so logic would dictate that the PMA (Photo Marketing Association) crowd plus consumer electronics reporters would be out in force. Not so. In addition to combining them, the line show is usually an all-day event. This year's program lasted two and a half hours. Fewer than usual Sony execs were in attendance as well.

But Sony still trotted out a hefty load of cameras, it being PMA and all. There was one new line of TVs (the W-series), cheaper Blu-ray players, new home theater systems, and miscellaneous headphones, and some peculiar-looking boomboxes.

Click on the photo above for a full gallery of pictures of Monday's event and here for Crave's complete coverage.

Photos: Sony hauls cameras, electronics to Vegas

The DVP-FX730 and DVP-FX930 are Sony's latest DVD players.

(Credit: Sony)

Two portable DVD players also made their debut at the 2009 Sony line show. New for this year are the DVP-FX730 and DVP-FX930. The DVP-FX730 boasts a 7-inch LCD screen and 5 hours of battery life. Its screen is also covered in an antifingerprint texture, something we've yet to see on a portable player. Look for it on sale this month for around $130.

The DVP-FX930 looks like the successor to our favorite portable DVD player from last year, the DVP-FX820. We were blown away by its impressive high-resolution LCD screen and it appears the DVP-FX930 ups the ante. The player jumps from an 8-inch screen to a 9-incher with full 180-degree rotation and 6-hour battery. Available in five colors, the DVP-FX930 will be available later this month for $190.

Most companies use the January Consumer Electronics Show to show the world their product lineup for the new year. But Sony deliberately holds back on its CES announcements; that's because the company waits about eight weeks before returning to Las Vegas to have its own Sony-centric launch event, where it touts its new products for dealers, retailers, and journalists.

Photos: Sony hauls cameras, electronics to Vegas

Analysis from CNET News: Sony switches gears at this year's line show

Here are the highlights of the company's new March announcements. We've also included the CES product highlights, to give you an overview of Sony's complete 2009 lineup:

Sony showed concept models of six new SLR lenses at the PMA show.

(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET News)

LAS VEGAS--Sony showed off models of a forthcoming supertelephoto and five other lenses Monday at the Photo Marketing Association trade show, a new sign the electronics giant is holding tight to its ambition to be a major player in the digital SLR market

"Sony is passionate in proving better lens development," said Shigeki Ishizuka, president of Sony's digital imaging business group, at a news conference held here in conjunction with PMA. He said Sony now ranks third in the SLR market.

The DPP-FP67

(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET)

LAS VEGAS--Sony's pre-PMA 2009 press event wasn't just about cameras. It was also about things you can buy to go with your camera.

The two new photo printers from Sony aimed at the average point-and-shoot camera owner are the (horrifically monikered) DPP-FP67 and DPP-FP97, updates on last year's DPP-FP75 and DPP-FP95.

The FP67 is the smaller of the two, with a 2.4-inch LCD screen. It can print out 4X6-inch photos, as well as index prints, photo IDs, and calendars. The printer will also do you the favor of fixing red-eyes and evening out the photo's exposure for $120.

The FP97, at $200, has a slightly larger 3.5-inch LCD screen. It prints all the same size photos as its cousin the FP67, as well as a variety of printing templates like calendar, scrapbooks, and frames. This printer can also do something Sony calls "auto dodging," a darkroom technique used for fixing the contrast on specific areas of a photo. White balance, skin smoothing, and red-eye correcting are also within the FP97's power.

Both will be available in May.

Sony DPP-FP97 photo printer

(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET)

Sony's new STR-DN1000 features a slick new design.

(Credit: Sony)

Last month, Sony's STR-DG920 scored well in our review for its excellent value, offering up a graphical user interface, 1080p upconversion and four HDMI inputs at a midrange price--clearly besting the competition in the features department.

Sony announced its new 2009 line of AV receivers at its line show Monday, and it looks like much of that advantage has eroded away, with Yamaha's new receivers offering many of the same key features at similar prices. Unfortunately, the initial press releases are light on details, but here's what we know so far.

Sony STR-DH100

Key features of the Sony STR-DH100:

• Stereo AV receiver, 100 watts per channel
• Five analog audio inputs (no digital audio inputs)
• No video inputs
• $150 price, available in March

The DAV-HDX587WC

(Credit: Sony)

Sony today announced a threesome of five-disc DVD/CD carousel changers, the DAV-HDX587WC, DAV-HDX589W and DAV-HDX285. Each 5.1 home theater in a box promises an improved initial setup experience as each system ships with a speaker calibration CD. All the newly announced systems feature an iPod cradle that can play audio or video off the device via the company's proprietary Digital Media Port interface. Additionally, all three home theater systems can upscale DVD video to 1080p when using an HDMI connection.

While all three models have the ability to use the Sony-branded S-Air wireless technology, both the higher-end DAV-HDX587WC and DAV-HDX589W come with front left and right tallboy speakers and are bundled with devices that take advantage of S-Air. The DAV-HDX587WC features a multiroom listening station, while the DAV-HDX589W includes an S-Air module that provides for wireless rear speakers. Of course you can add on to these systems by purchasing S-Air products separately.Both systems should be available by the end of March, retailing for around $430 each.

The entry-level DAV-HDX285 has the ability to take advantage of S-Air technology but doesn't include any compatible accessories. Also, this 5.1 system doesn't offer the left and right tallboy speakers from the two higher-end models. The DAV-HDX285 will be available later in March for about $300.

The Sony ICF-C414 alarm clock.

(Credit: Sony)

With so many of us dreaming on a budget these days, it makes sense that Sony's latest Dream Machine clock radio (the ICF-C414) retails for a measly $20.

Granted, there aren't a lot of bells and whistles to inflate the price--no iPod dock, no CD player, no integrated sounds of pastoral splendor to rouse you from restful slumber. Nope, instead Sony's keeping this one lean and mean with an AM/FM radio, buzzer, automatic time set, daylight-saving time adjustment, snooze button, battery backup, and 1.4-inch LED clock.

The Sony Dream Machine ICF-C414 may be short on frills, but it's a Sony and it's $20, so you could do worse. Anyway, I have to admit there's something I like about the way this thing combines a kind of cold, menacing design with the words "Dream Machine." It's like a Nihilist with a unicorn tattoo.

The Sony ICF-C414 Dream Machine alarm clock will be available starting in April 2009.

(Credit: Sony)

Camera manufacturers seem to have chosen megazooms as their latest battlefield--and thankfully, the fight isn't just about who's got the biggest lens. In this case, the latest player comes from Sony, whose new Cyber-shot DSC-HX1 incorporates several technologies from its Alpha DSLR products, including a 1/2.4-inch 10-megapixel Exmor CMOS sensor (for 9-megapixel images) and 20X f2.8-5.2 28-560mm-equivalent optically stabilized lens based on the company's higher-quality G series lenses.

In theory, the combination should deliver better photo quality than we're used to seeing in this class. (We haven't yet had a chance to review its primary--and also CMOS-based--competitor the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS, but it's been shipping overseas for a little while, so you can read CNET Australia's take on it).

In addition, Sony introduces several interesting continuous shooting modes: an intriguing Dynamic Ultrawide panorama mode that captures sequential images as you slowly pan across a scene and automatically stitches them into a 7,152x1,080 photo; a 10 frame-per-second 10-shot continuous shooting mode that uses a mechanical rather than electronic shutter for, the company claims, less distortion; and Handheld Twilight mode, which combines multiple exposures for a theoretically lower noise, higher detail low-light photo.