Above average speed for a consumer camera.

The Sony T2's performance is generally above average. Startup time is above average, but shutdown is average. Full autofocus shutter response is above average, which we measured at 0.39s at wide angle, and 0.59s at telephoto. Prefocused shutter lag is incredibly fast, at only 0.018s. Shot-to-shot cycle times are above average, at about 1.7 seconds per shot, and the 1.83 frames per second continuous-mode rate for large images is also slightly above average. The flash takes under 4 seconds to recharge after a full-power shot -- better than average for any digicam, but it doesn't pack much of a punch. Connected to a computer or printer with USB 2.0, download speeds are unusually fast, pretty much eliminating the need for an external reader. Bottom line, the Sony DSC-T2 is responsive enough to handle most family photo opportunities.

Battery
Slightly above average battery life for a lithium-ion design.

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T2 uses a custom rechargeable lithium-ion battery for power, and a charger is included. Although battery life is pretty good, we recommend picking up a spare battery and keeping it freshly charged and on-hand for long outings.

The table above shows the number of shots the camera is capable of (on either a fresh set of disposable batteries or a fully-charged rechargeable battery as appropriate), based on CIPA battery-life and/or manufacturer standard test conditions.

(Interested readers can find an English translation of the CIPA DC-002 standards document here. (180K PDF document))

Storage
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T2 stores its photos and movies on Memory Stick Duo or Pro Duo cards (card not included), or in approximately 4GB (!) of internal memory.

We normally recommend buying a large capacity Memory Stick Pro Duo memory card, but the Sony DSC-T2 has so much built-in memory (4GB), most users will likely never need a card.