Pentax K-500 vs Pentax MX-1

The following is a comprehensive assessment of the Pentax K-500 vs Pentax MX-1, one is a Entry-Level DSLR and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are offered by Pentax. There exists a huge gap between the sensor resolutions of the K-500 (16MP) and MX-1 (12MP) and the K-500 (APS-C) and MX-1 (1/1.7") boast different sensor size.

Photography Glossary

The K-500 was launched 5 months after the MX-1 and they are of a similar generation. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Pentax K-500 being a Compact SLR camera and the Pentax MX-1 being a Compact camera.

Before diving right into a detailed comparison, here is a quick summary of how the K-500 scores versus the MX-1 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Pentax K-500 and Pentax MX-1. The complete galleries are available at Pentax K-500 Gallery and Pentax MX-1 Gallery.

If you're intending to travel with your camera frequently, you are going to need to think about its weight and volume. The Pentax K-500 has got external dimensions of 130mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") along with a weight of 646 grams (1.42 lbs) and the Pentax MX-1 has sizing of 122mm x 61mm x 51mm (4.8" x 2.4" x 2.0") with a weight of 391 grams (0.86 lbs).

Check the Pentax K-500 vs Pentax MX-1 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you have chosen at that moment. Following is a front view size comparison of the K-500 against the MX-1.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the K-500 and MX-1 is 64 and 84 respectively.

Quite often, it's tough to visualize the contrast between sensor dimensions just by reviewing a spec sheet. The pic here may offer you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the K-500 and MX-1.

As you can see, both of those cameras feature different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The K-500 featuring a bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field easier and the Pentax K-500 will offer extra detail utilizing its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop photographs way more aggressively.