Pentax K-S1 vs Sony WX50

Below is a in-depth assessment of the Pentax K-S1 versus Sony WX50, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by companies Pentax and Sony. There exists a noticeable gap among the resolutions of the K-S1 (20MP) and WX50 (16MP) and the K-S1 (APS-C) and WX50 (1/2.3") use totally different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The K-S1 was announced 2 years later than the WX50 and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Pentax K-S1 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony WX50 being a Compact camera.

Before we go straight into a thorough comparison, below is a short summary of how the K-S1 scores against the WX50 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Pentax K-S1 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX50. The whole galleries are viewable at Pentax K-S1 Gallery & Sony WX50 Gallery.

When you are planning to lug around your camera often, you'll need to factor in its weight and measurements. The Pentax K-S1 enjoys outside measurements of 121mm x 93mm x 70mm (4.8" x 3.7" x 2.8") and a weight of 558 grams (1.23 lbs) while the Sony WX50 has proportions of 92mm x 52mm x 19mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.7") having a weight of 117 grams (0.26 lbs).

Contrast the Pentax K-S1 versus Sony WX50 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you choose at the time. Below is the front view measurements comparison of the K-S1 against the WX50.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the K-S1 and WX50 is 69 and 96 respectively.

Normally, it can be difficult to visualise the gap in sensor measurements only by going through a spec sheet. The visual underneath may give you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the K-S1 and WX50.

As you can see, both of these cameras enjoy different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The K-S1 with its bigger sensor will make achieving shallow DOF easier and the Pentax K-S1 will produce greater detail with its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop photographs far more aggressively. The younger K-S1 is going to have a benefit in sensor technology.