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Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100

Portability
90
Imaging
40
Features
44
Overall
41
Pentax WG-3 front
 
Sony Alpha a6100 front
Portability
81
Imaging
70
Features
88
Overall
77

Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 Key Specs

Pentax WG-3
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-100mm (F2.0-4.9) lens
  • 230g - 124 x 64 x 33mm
  • Announced July 2013
Sony A6100
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 100 - 32000 (Push to 51200)
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 396g - 120 x 67 x 59mm
  • Released August 2019
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Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 Overview

The following is a extended comparison of the Pentax WG-3 and Sony A6100, one is a Waterproof and the other is a Advanced Mirrorless by brands Pentax and Sony. There is a sizeable difference among the resolutions of the WG-3 (16MP) and A6100 (24MP) and the WG-3 (1/2.3") and A6100 (APS-C) have totally different sensor sizes.

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The WG-3 was brought out 7 years prior to the A6100 which is a fairly large gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Pentax WG-3 being a Compact camera and the Sony A6100 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going right into a step-by-step comparison, here is a quick overview of how the WG-3 scores vs the A6100 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Photography Glossary
	
	

Reasons to pick Pentax WG-3 over the Sony A6100

 WG-3 A6100 

Reasons to pick Sony A6100 over the Pentax WG-3

 A6100 WG-3 
ReleasedAugust 2019July 2013Newer by 74 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display resolution922k460kSharper display (+462k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies
Touch display Easily navigate

Common features in the Pentax WG-3 and Sony A6100

 WG-3 A6100 
Focus manually Dial exact focusing
Display dimensions3"3"Equal display dimensions

Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is going to travel with your camera often, you will need to factor in its weight and volume. The Pentax WG-3 enjoys outside dimensions of 124mm x 64mm x 33mm (4.9" x 2.5" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 230 grams (0.51 lbs) while the Sony A6100 has sizing of 120mm x 67mm x 59mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 2.3") accompanied by a weight of 396 grams (0.87 lbs).

Take a look at the Pentax WG-3 and Sony A6100 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you are using during that time. Below is a front view over all size comparison of the WG-3 versus the A6100.

Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability rating of the WG-3 and A6100 is 90 and 81 respectively.

Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 top view buttons comparison

Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 Sensor Comparison

Usually, it is tough to visualise the difference in sensor dimensions simply by researching specifications. The pic below may give you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the WG-3 and A6100.

To sum up, both the cameras have different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The WG-3 due to its smaller sensor will make shooting shallower DOF trickier and the Sony A6100 will provide you with greater detail having its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop images a bit more aggressively. The more aged WG-3 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.

Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 sensor size comparison

Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 Screen and ViewFinder

Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Pentax WG-3 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony A6100 as a Portrait photography camera
41
you can focus manually
good megapixels (16MP)
features face detection autofocus
manual mode not available
no external flash support
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
lacks RAW files
82
focusing manually
MP count good (24MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
has face detection focus
supports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Pentax WG-3 Street photography features
Sony A6100 Street photography features
61
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
environment proofing
no articulating screen
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
lacks RAW files
79
screen tilts up and down
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
supports touch to focus
great ISO range (32,000)
no image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Pentax WG-3 Sports photography features
Sony A6100 Sports photography features
45
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
features tracking autofocus
environment proofing
no shutter priority mode
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
bad battery power (240 per charge)
lacks phase detect autofocus
75
MP count good (24 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
has tracking autofocus
supports phase detect auto focus
no image stabilization
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Travel Comparison

Pentax WG-3 Travel photography details
Sony A6100 Travel photography details
72
environment proofing
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
relatively wide (25mm)
good max aperture (f2.0)
bad battery power (240 shots)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
86
supports bluetooth
supports touch to focus
MP count good (24MP)
built-in flash
selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Pentax WG-3 Landscape photography info
Sony A6100 Landscape photography info
54
you can focus manually
relatively wide (25mm)
good max aperture (f2.0)
screen size is good (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (16MP)
environment proofing
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
manual mode not available
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
lacks RAW files
bad battery power (240 per charge)
79
focusing manually
switch lenses (Sony E mount)
screen size is good (3 inches)
MP count good (24MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
great ISO range (32,000)
supports RAW files
no image stabilization
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Vlogging Comparison

Pentax WG-3 Vlogging info
Sony A6100 Vlogging info
36
relatively wide (25mm)
good max aperture (f2.0)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
features face detection autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 resolution)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
doesn't have external microphone jack
79
selfie friendly screen
touchscreen
has face detection focus
great video quality (3840 x 2160 pxls)
comes with external mic support
no image stabilization
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Pentax WG-3 vs Sony A6100 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Pentax WG-3 and Sony A6100
 Pentax WG-3Sony Alpha a6100
General Information
Brand Name Pentax Sony
Model Pentax WG-3 Sony Alpha a6100
Class Waterproof Advanced Mirrorless
Announced 2013-07-19 2019-08-28
Physical type Compact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Powered by - Bionz X
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 24 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9 1:1, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4608 x 3456 6000 x 4000
Highest native ISO 6400 32000
Highest enhanced ISO - 51200
Minimum native ISO 125 100
RAW photos
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points 9 425
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens Sony E
Lens focal range 25-100mm (4.0x) -
Highest aperture f/2.0-4.9 -
Macro focus distance 1cm -
Number of lenses - 121
Crop factor 5.8 1.5
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Tilting
Display diagonal 3 inch 3 inch
Display resolution 460 thousand dots 922 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Display technology Widescreen TFT color LCD with anti-reflective coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 1,440 thousand dots
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.71x
Features
Min shutter speed 4 secs 30 secs
Max shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shutter rate 10.0 frames/s 11.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 3.40 m 6.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft Flash off, auto, fill flash, slow sync, rear sync, wireless, hi-speed
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps) 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video file format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, XAVC S, H.264
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) Yes
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 230 gr (0.51 lbs) 396 gr (0.87 lbs)
Physical dimensions 124 x 64 x 33mm (4.9" x 2.5" x 1.3") 120 x 67 x 59mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 2.3")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life 240 pictures 420 pictures
Battery style Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model D-LI92 NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC card, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC + Memory Stick Pro Duo
Card slots One One
Price at release $300 $748