Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV
93 Imaging
37 Features
31 Overall
34


62 Imaging
80 Features
93 Overall
85
Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 2.7" Fixed Display
- ISO 80 - 6400
- Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
- 1280 x 720 video
- 28-140mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
- 157g - 114 x 58 x 28mm
- Launched March 2011
(Full Review)
- 61MP - Full frame Sensor
- 3" Tilting Screen
- ISO 100 - 32000 (Bump to 102800)
- Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
- No Anti-Alias Filter
- 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
- 3840 x 2160 video
- Sony E Mount
- 665g - 129 x 96 x 78mm
- Revealed July 2019
- Superseded the Sony A7R III
- Updated by Sony A7R V

Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV Overview
The following is a detailed review of the Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV, former is a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Pro Mirrorless by competitors Pentax and Sony. There exists a large gap among the resolutions of the S1 (14MP) and A7R IV (61MP) and the S1 (1/2.3") and A7R IV (Full frame) possess different sensor sizing.

The S1 was released 9 years earlier than the A7R IV which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera technology is concerned. The two cameras come with different body type with the Pentax S1 being a Compact camera and the Sony A7R IV being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.
Before going through a complete comparison, below is a brief overview of how the S1 scores against the A7R IV for portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV Gallery
The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Pentax Optio S1 & Sony Alpha A7R IV. The complete galleries are provided at Pentax S1 Gallery & Sony A7R IV Gallery.
Reasons to pick Pentax S1 over the Sony A7R IV
S1 | A7R IV |
---|
Reasons to pick Sony A7R IV over the Pentax S1
A7R IV | S1 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Revealed | July 2019 | ![]() | March 2011 | Newer by 101 months |
Screen type | Tilting | ![]() | Fixed | Tilting screen |
Screen dimension | 3" | ![]() | 2.7" | Bigger screen (+0.3") |
Screen resolution | 1440k | ![]() | 230k | Crisper screen (+1210k dot) |
Touch friendly screen | ![]() | Quickly navigate |
Common features in the Pentax S1 and Sony A7R IV
S1 | A7R IV | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Manual focus | ![]() | Very accurate focusing | ||
Selfie screen | ![]() | Neither has selfie screen |
Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV Physical Comparison
For those who are intending to travel with your camera, you'll need to factor its weight and dimensions. The Pentax S1 has physical measurements of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") accompanied by a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs) whilst the Sony A7R IV has dimensions of 129mm x 96mm x 78mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 3.1") having a weight of 665 grams (1.47 lbs).
Contrast the Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you have attached at the time. Following is the front view physical size comparison of the S1 and the A7R IV.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the S1 and A7R IV is 93 and 62 respectively.

Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV Sensor Comparison
More often than not, its hard to picture the gap in sensor dimensions purely by seeing specs. The pic underneath may offer you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the S1 and A7R IV.
As you can plainly see, each of these cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The S1 due to its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field trickier and the Sony A7R IV will show more detail as a result of its extra 47 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The more aged S1 will be behind in sensor technology.

Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Pentax S1 vs Sony A7R IV Specifications
Pentax Optio S1 | Sony Alpha A7R IV | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Company | Pentax | Sony |
Model type | Pentax Optio S1 | Sony Alpha A7R IV |
Category | Small Sensor Compact | Pro Mirrorless |
Launched | 2011-03-02 | 2019-07-16 |
Physical type | Compact | SLR-style mirrorless |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor Chip | - | Bionz X |
Sensor type | CCD | BSI-CMOS |
Sensor size | 1/2.3" | Full frame |
Sensor dimensions | 6.17 x 4.55mm | 35.8 x 23.8mm |
Sensor area | 28.1mm² | 852.0mm² |
Sensor resolution | 14 megapixel | 61 megapixel |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9 | 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 |
Full resolution | 4288 x 3216 | 9504 x 6336 |
Max native ISO | 6400 | 32000 |
Max boosted ISO | - | 102800 |
Min native ISO | 80 | 100 |
RAW images | ||
Min boosted ISO | - | 50 |
Autofocusing | ||
Manual focusing | ||
Touch focus | ||
Continuous autofocus | ||
Autofocus single | ||
Autofocus tracking | ||
Selective autofocus | ||
Center weighted autofocus | ||
Autofocus multi area | ||
Autofocus live view | ||
Face detect autofocus | ||
Contract detect autofocus | ||
Phase detect autofocus | ||
Total focus points | 9 | 567 |
Lens | ||
Lens support | fixed lens | Sony E |
Lens zoom range | 28-140mm (5.0x) | - |
Highest aperture | f/3.5-5.5 | - |
Macro focusing range | 1cm | - |
Total lenses | - | 121 |
Crop factor | 5.8 | 1 |
Screen | ||
Type of display | Fixed Type | Tilting |
Display size | 2.7" | 3" |
Resolution of display | 230 thousand dots | 1,440 thousand dots |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch friendly | ||
Display technology | TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating | - |
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder | None | Electronic |
Viewfinder resolution | - | 5,760 thousand dots |
Viewfinder coverage | - | 100% |
Viewfinder magnification | - | 0.78x |
Features | ||
Lowest shutter speed | 4 seconds | 30 seconds |
Highest shutter speed | 1/1500 seconds | 1/8000 seconds |
Continuous shooting rate | 1.0 frames per sec | 10.0 frames per sec |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manually set exposure | ||
Exposure compensation | - | Yes |
Set white balance | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash distance | 3.90 m | no built-in flash |
Flash modes | Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft | Flash off, Autoflash, Fill-flash, Slow Sync., Rear Sync., Red-eye reduction, Wireless, Hi-speed sync. |
Hot shoe | ||
AE bracketing | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Highest flash synchronize | - | 1/250 seconds |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment metering | ||
Average metering | ||
Spot metering | ||
Partial metering | ||
AF area metering | ||
Center weighted metering | ||
Video features | ||
Supported video resolutions | 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps) | 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM |
Max video resolution | 1280x720 | 3840x2160 |
Video file format | Motion JPEG | MPEG-4, XAVC S, H.264 |
Mic support | ||
Headphone support | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | Built-In |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 3.1 Gen 1(5 GBit/sec) |
GPS | None | None |
Physical | ||
Environment sealing | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 157g (0.35 pounds) | 665g (1.47 pounds) |
Dimensions | 114 x 58 x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") | 129 x 96 x 78mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 3.1") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO All around rating | not tested | 99 |
DXO Color Depth rating | not tested | 26.0 |
DXO Dynamic range rating | not tested | 14.8 |
DXO Low light rating | not tested | 3344 |
Other | ||
Battery life | 260 photographs | 670 photographs |
Form of battery | Battery Pack | Battery Pack |
Battery ID | D-LI92 | NP-FZ100 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 10 sec) | Yes |
Time lapse recording | ||
Storage type | SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal | Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-II compatible) |
Card slots | One | Two |
Cost at launch | $174 | $3,498 |