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Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6

Portability
93
Imaging
37
Features
31
Overall
34
Pentax Optio S1 front
 
Sony Alpha NEX-6 front
Portability
85
Imaging
57
Features
76
Overall
64

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 Key Specs

Pentax S1
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 157g - 114 x 58 x 28mm
  • Released March 2011
Sony NEX-6
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 345g - 120 x 67 x 43mm
  • Launched March 2013
  • Replacement is Sony A6000
Photography Glossary

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 Overview

Its time to look more closely at the Pentax S1 versus Sony NEX-6, one being a Small Sensor Compact and the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless by manufacturers Pentax and Sony. The sensor resolution of the S1 (14MP) and the NEX-6 (16MP) is relatively similar but the S1 (1/2.3") and NEX-6 (APS-C) boast totally different sensor sizes.

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The S1 was unveiled 3 years earlier than the NEX-6 and that is quite a serious gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Pentax S1 being a Compact camera and the Sony NEX-6 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving into a full comparison, here is a brief summary of how the S1 scores versus the NEX-6 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Pentax S1 over the Sony NEX-6

 S1 NEX-6 

Reasons to pick Sony NEX-6 over the Pentax S1

 NEX-6 S1 
LaunchedMarch 2013March 2011Fresher by 25 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution921k230kCrisper screen (+691k dot)

Common features in the Pentax S1 and Sony NEX-6

 S1 NEX-6 
Focus manually More accurate focus
Selfie screen Lack of selfie screen
Touch screen Neither features Touch screen

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is planning to carry your camera, you should take into account its weight and size. The Pentax S1 enjoys external measurements of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") along with a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs) while the Sony NEX-6 has specifications of 120mm x 67mm x 43mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 1.7") along with a weight of 345 grams (0.76 lbs).

Look at the Pentax S1 versus Sony NEX-6 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you are utilizing at the time. Underneath is a front view size comparison of the S1 vs the NEX-6.

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the S1 and NEX-6 is 93 and 85 respectively.

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 top view buttons comparison

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 Sensor Comparison

In many cases, it's hard to see the difference between sensor sizing simply by going over technical specs. The visual here should offer you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the S1 and NEX-6.

As you have seen, both of these cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The S1 with its tinier sensor will make shooting bokeh trickier and the Sony NEX-6 will offer you extra detail having an extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop shots more aggressively. The older S1 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 sensor size comparison

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 Screen and ViewFinder

Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Pentax S1 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony NEX-6 as a Portrait photography camera
35
focusing manually
decent MP (14 megapixels)
lack of manual exposure
no external flash support
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
74
manual focus
decent MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
includes face detection focusing
supports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Pentax S1 Street photography features
Sony NEX-6 Street photography features
56
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
fixed screen
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
78
screen tilts up and down
sensor size is good (APS-C)
supports RAW formats
lighter than others in class (345 grams)
above average ISO range (25,600)
does not have image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Pentax S1 Sports photography information
Sony NEX-6 Sports photography information
39
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent MP (14MP)
includes tracking autofocus
max frames per second low (1.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority mode
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect auto focus
66
decent MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
supports phase detect AF
does not have image stabilization
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Travel Comparison

Pentax S1 as a Travel photography camera
Sony NEX-6 as a Travel photography camera
64
decent MP (14 megapixels)
built-in flash
really wide (28mm)
no Timelapse recording
screen is not selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.5)
75
lighter than others in class (345g)
decent MP (16MP)
flash built-in
screen is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Pentax S1 Landscape photography factors
Sony NEX-6 Landscape photography factors
42
focusing manually
really wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent MP (14MP)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.5)
small screen (2.7 inch)
lack of manual exposure
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
no Timelapse recording
75
manual focus
swap lenses (Sony E mount)
pretty good screen size (3")
decent MP (16MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
above average ISO range (25,600)
supports RAW formats
does not have image stabilization
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Pentax S1
Vlogging with Sony NEX-6
28
really wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
slow max aperture (f3.5)
screen is not selfie friendly
low quality video (1280 x 720 resolution)
no external microphone port
32
includes face detection focusing
high quality video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
lighter than others in class (345g)
screen is not selfie friendly
does not have image stabilization
missing external mic socket
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Pentax S1 vs Sony NEX-6 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Pentax S1 and Sony NEX-6
 Pentax Optio S1Sony Alpha NEX-6
General Information
Brand Pentax Sony
Model type Pentax Optio S1 Sony Alpha NEX-6
Class Small Sensor Compact Advanced Mirrorless
Released 2011-03-02 2013-03-25
Physical type Compact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Chip - Bionz
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 14MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4288 x 3216 4912 x 3264
Max native ISO 6400 25600
Minimum native ISO 80 100
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
AF continuous
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 9 99
Lens
Lens support fixed lens Sony E
Lens zoom range 28-140mm (5.0x) -
Maximum aperture f/3.5-5.5 -
Macro focusing distance 1cm -
Amount of lenses - 121
Crop factor 5.8 1.5
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Tilting
Screen diagonal 2.7" 3"
Resolution of screen 230k dots 921k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Screen technology TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating Xtra Fine LCD with Tilt Up 90� and Down 45�
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359k dots
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.73x
Features
Min shutter speed 4s 30s
Max shutter speed 1/1500s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter rate 1.0 frames/s 10.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 3.90 m 6.00 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Max flash synchronize - 1/160s
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 (60, 24 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 157g (0.35 lbs) 345g (0.76 lbs)
Physical dimensions 114 x 58 x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") 120 x 67 x 43mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 1.7")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested 78
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 23.7
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 13.1
DXO Low light rating not tested 1018
Other
Battery life 260 images 360 images
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID D-LI92 NPFW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10sec (3 images))
Time lapse feature With downloadable app
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots One One
Launch pricing $174 $365