Instead of being focused via the body motor and drive coupling – which the 380 retains – the lens is operated electronically for all functions apart from aperture closure. SAM stands for Smooth Autofocus Motor, and what it appears to mean is electric motor not sonic wave-type drive. I had to hand over just under £600 for my 380 with 18-55mm SAM kit lens. The pictures from the 350 have a unique appeal, and in some ways the CCD sensor is better than the CMOS of the Alpha 700 for landscape and pictorial work with fine detail, assuming you are able to shoot at ISO 100. I already own a 350 and find it useful because the excellent resolution is combined with an impressive dynamic range and unusual colour palette. The Alpha 380 is a replacement for the 350, a 14.2 megapixel compact DSLR with Live View. I’m running out of cash to keep up with this! There is a threat that three more Alpha models will appear this year (the Alpha 500, 550 and 850). Sony is causing me problems because I prefer to buy products to test – it removes the ridiculous one or two week windows allowed for loan review kit, which often coincide with some very busy period making it impossible to give the gear adequate attention, and in Sony’s case would be many weeks after first availability as the consumer magazines take priority.
Update August 9th: under a month later, the warehouseexpress kit price has fallen by 10% (£50) to £548 inc VAT. had got the A380 plus 18-55mm kits by that time, for £10 less, and delivered in 24 hours.
Well, it didn’t arrive by July 21st, and after some email exchanges I have apparently obtained a refund for the charge they made for an item they did not have (though this was still showing as ‘processing’ in August).
My Sony Alpha 380 was supposed to arrive before July 13th according to – via Amazon – claiming UK despatch of 2-10 days delivery after debiting my card on July 6th from a July 3rd order.