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Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57

Portability
93
Imaging
34
Features
24
Overall
30
Pentax Optio I-10 front
 
Sony SLT-A57 front
Portability
64
Imaging
56
Features
85
Overall
67

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 Key Specs

Pentax I-10
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.5-5.9) lens
  • 153g - 101 x 65 x 28mm
  • Announced January 2010
Sony A57
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 100 - 16000 (Raise to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 618g - 132 x 98 x 81mm
  • Released September 2012
  • Superseded the Sony A55
  • Newer Model is Sony A58
Photography Glossary

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 Overview

In this article, we will be looking at the Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57, former is a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Pentax and Sony. There is a substantial difference among the image resolutions of the I-10 (12MP) and A57 (16MP) and the I-10 (1/2.3") and A57 (APS-C) enjoy different sensor measurements.

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The I-10 was manufactured 3 years earlier than the A57 which is a fairly big difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras offer different body type with the Pentax I-10 being a Compact camera and the Sony A57 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before getting in to a step-by-step comparison, below is a short synopsis of how the I-10 grades vs the A57 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Pentax I-10 over the Sony A57

 I-10 A57 

Reasons to pick Sony A57 over the Pentax I-10

 A57 I-10 
ReleasedSeptember 2012January 2010Newer by 32 months
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Screen sizing3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution921k230kCrisper screen (+691k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Common features in the Pentax I-10 and Sony A57

 I-10 A57 
Manually focus More accurate focusing
Touch friendly screen Neither features Touch friendly screen

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 Physical Comparison

If you are aiming to travel with your camera often, you'll need to take into account its weight and volume. The Pentax I-10 enjoys outer dimensions of 101mm x 65mm x 28mm (4.0" x 2.6" x 1.1") having a weight of 153 grams (0.34 lbs) whilst the Sony A57 has sizing of 132mm x 98mm x 81mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.2") having a weight of 618 grams (1.36 lbs).

Look at the Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have attached at that time. Following is the front view measurements comparison of the I-10 compared to the A57.

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the I-10 and A57 is 93 and 64 respectively.

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 top view buttons comparison

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 Sensor Comparison

Oftentimes, it is hard to imagine the gap in sensor dimensions purely by researching a spec sheet. The picture below will help provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the I-10 and A57.

As you can see, both of the cameras enjoy different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The I-10 because of its smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF more challenging and the Sony A57 will render more detail due to its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop photographs far more aggressively. The more aged I-10 will be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 sensor size comparison

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 Screen and ViewFinder

Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Pentax I-10 Portrait photography highlights
Sony A57 Portrait photography highlights
27
has manual focus
manual exposure not possible
external flash not possible
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
small sensor (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
73
you can focus manually
MP count good (16 megapixels)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
comes with face detect focus
exports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Pentax I-10 Street photography details
Sony A57 Street photography details
56
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
screen does not articulate
small sensor (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
75
screen articulates
image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Pentax I-10
Sports photography with Sony A57
31
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers tracking focus
continuous shooting slow (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
small sensor (1/2.3")
lacks phase detect auto focus
78
image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count good (16 megapixels)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
comes with tracking focus
sensor has phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Pentax I-10 Travel photography details
Sony A57 Travel photography details
57
has built in flash
really wide (28mm)
no Timelapse mode
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
66
MP count good (16MP)
built-in flash
selfie friendly screen
lack of Timelapse function
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Pentax I-10
Landscape photography with Sony A57
36
has manual focus
really wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
cannot switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inch)
manual exposure not possible
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
small sensor (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
no Timelapse mode
72
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
nice screen size (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count good (16MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW files
lack of Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Pentax I-10 Vlogging advice
Sony A57 Vlogging advice
28
really wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen isn't selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pxls)
no microphone support
76
selfie friendly screen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detect focus
video res high (1920 x 1080 resolution)
includes microphone port
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Pentax I-10 vs Sony A57 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Pentax I-10 and Sony A57
 Pentax Optio I-10Sony SLT-A57
General Information
Manufacturer Pentax Sony
Model Pentax Optio I-10 Sony SLT-A57
Class Small Sensor Compact Entry-Level DSLR
Announced 2010-01-25 2012-09-13
Body design Compact Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Prime -
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4000 x 3000 4912 x 3264
Highest native ISO 6400 16000
Highest boosted ISO - 25600
Minimum native ISO 80 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detect autofocus
Contract detect autofocus
Phase detect autofocus
Number of focus points 9 15
Cross focus points - 3
Lens
Lens mount fixed lens Sony/Minolta Alpha
Lens focal range 28-140mm (5.0x) -
Max aperture f/3.5-5.9 -
Macro focus distance 10cm -
Total lenses - 143
Crop factor 5.8 1.5
Screen
Range of display Fixed Type Fully Articulated
Display diagonal 2.7" 3"
Resolution of display 230k dot 921k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Display tech - Xtra Fine TFT drive with TruBlack technology
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 1,440k dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 4 seconds 30 seconds
Highest shutter speed 1/2000 seconds 1/4000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 1.0 frames/s 12.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation - Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 4.00 m 10.00 m (@ ISO 100)
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Highest flash sync - 1/160 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60p, 24p), 1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 153g (0.34 lbs) 618g (1.36 lbs)
Dimensions 101 x 65 x 28mm (4.0" x 2.6" x 1.1") 132 x 98 x 81mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.2")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 75
DXO Color Depth score not tested 23.4
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 13.0
DXO Low light score not tested 785
Other
Battery life - 550 pictures
Battery form - Battery Pack
Battery model D-LI92 NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage media SD/SDHC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Cost at launch $310 $1,000