Clicky

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30

Portability
69
Imaging
44
Features
33
Overall
39
Pentax ist DL2 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX30 front
Portability
96
Imaging
39
Features
41
Overall
39

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 Key Specs

Pentax ist DL2
(Full Review)
  • 6MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Display
  • ISO 200 - 3200
  • Pentax KAF Mount
  • 565g - 125 x 93 x 66mm
  • Announced January 2006
Sony WX30
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-125mm (F2.6-6.3) lens
  • 117g - 92 x 52 x 19mm
  • Announced July 2011
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 Overview

Below is a extensive analysis of the Pentax ist DL2 versus Sony WX30, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Pentax and Sony. There exists a noticeable gap between the image resolutions of the ist DL2 (6MP) and WX30 (16MP) and the ist DL2 (APS-C) and WX30 (1/2.3") use different sensor size.

Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month

The ist DL2 was brought out 6 years prior to the WX30 and that is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Pentax ist DL2 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony WX30 being a Compact camera.

Before getting in to a complete comparison, below is a quick introduction of how the ist DL2 matches up versus the WX30 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

        

Reasons to pick Pentax ist DL2 over the Sony WX30

 ist DL2 WX30 
Manually focus Very precise focusing

Reasons to pick Sony WX30 over the Pentax ist DL2

 WX30 ist DL2 
AnnouncedJuly 2011January 2006More recent by 66 months
Screen dimension3"2.5"Bigger screen (+0.5")
Screen resolution922k210kSharper screen (+712k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Pentax ist DL2 and Sony WX30

 ist DL2 WX30 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Lack of selfie screen

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 Physical Comparison

If you're intending to lug around your camera regularly, you'll need to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Pentax ist DL2 has physical measurements of 125mm x 93mm x 66mm (4.9" x 3.7" x 2.6") with a weight of 565 grams (1.25 lbs) while the Sony WX30 has dimensions of 92mm x 52mm x 19mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.7") accompanied by a weight of 117 grams (0.26 lbs).

Compare the Pentax ist DL2 versus Sony WX30 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you select at that moment. The following is the front view overall size comparison of the ist DL2 vs the WX30.

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the ist DL2 and WX30 is 69 and 96 respectively.

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 top view buttons comparison

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 Sensor Comparison

Typically, its tough to picture the difference between sensor measurements simply by looking at technical specs. The visual below may offer you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the ist DL2 and WX30.

As you can tell, both the cameras have got different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The ist DL2 featuring a bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field simpler and the Sony WX30 will give greater detail having its extra 10 Megapixels. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop shots much more aggressively. The older ist DL2 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor technology.

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 sensor size comparison

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 Screen and ViewFinder

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
President Biden pushes bill mandating TikTok sale or ban

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Pentax ist DL2 Portrait photography highlights
Sony WX30 Portrait photography highlights
50
you can focus manually
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
doesn't have liveview
resolution not great (6 megapixels)
30
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
focusing manually not possible
no manual exposure
no external flash support
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

Street Comparison

Pentax ist DL2 Street photography information
Sony WX30 Street photography information
60
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
lighter than competition in class (565g)
screen is fixed
no image stabilization
63
built in image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competition in class (117 grams)
screen is fixed
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

Sports Comparison

Pentax ist DL2 as a Sports photography camera
Sony WX30 as a Sports photography camera
38
good sensor size (APS-C)
comes with phase detect auto focus
doesn't have liveview
very slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
resolution not great (6 megapixels)
39
built in image stabilization (Optical)
good megapixels (16MP)
no shutter priority
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no phase detect autofocus
Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

Travel Comparison

Pentax ist DL2 as a Travel photography camera
Sony WX30 as a Travel photography camera
52
lighter than competition in class (565 grams)
flash built-in
no Timelapse recording
resolution not great (6 megapixels)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
69
lighter than competition in class (117 grams)
good megapixels (16MP)
flash built-in
quite wide (25mm)
no Timelapse function
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
slow max aperture (f2.6)
Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

Landscape Comparison

Pentax ist DL2 Landscape photography features
Sony WX30 Landscape photography features
46
you can focus manually
switch lenses (Pentax KAF mount)
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
screen is somewhat small (2.5")
doesn't have liveview
no image stabilization
resolution not great (6MP)
no Timelapse recording
43
quite wide (25mm)
good sized screen (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
good megapixels (16MP)
focusing manually not possible
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f2.6)
no manual exposure
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
no Timelapse function
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Vlogging Comparison

Pentax ist DL2 Vlogging info
Sony WX30 Vlogging info
22
lighter than competition in class (565g)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
no image stabilization
video res low ( pixels)
no external microphone port
35
quite wide (25mm)
has touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Optical)
high video quality (1920 x 1080 resolution)
lighter than competition in class (117 grams)
slow max aperture (f2.6)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
no external microphone socket
Photography Glossary

Pentax ist DL2 vs Sony WX30 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Pentax ist DL2 and Sony WX30
 Pentax ist DL2Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX30
General Information
Brand Pentax Sony
Model Pentax ist DL2 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX30
Type Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Announced 2006-01-27 2011-07-25
Physical type Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by - BIONZ
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size APS-C 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 23.5 x 15.7mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 369.0mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 6 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 4:3 and 16:9
Highest resolution 3008 x 2008 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 3200 3200
Lowest native ISO 200 100
RAW data
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points 5 9
Lens
Lens mount Pentax KAF fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-125mm (5.0x)
Maximal aperture - f/2.6-6.3
Macro focus distance - 5cm
Number of lenses 151 -
Crop factor 1.5 5.8
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display size 2.5 inches 3 inches
Resolution of display 210 thousand dots 922 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Display tech - XtraFine TFT LCD display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical None
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.57x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed 30 secs 30 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shooting rate 3.0 frames/s 10.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range - 3.70 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-eye reduction Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (60fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 1280 x 720 (30fps), 640 x 480 (30fps)
Highest video resolution - 1920x1080
Video file format - MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless No None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 1.0 (1.5 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 565 grams (1.25 lb) 117 grams (0.26 lb)
Dimensions 125 x 93 x 66mm (4.9" x 3.7" x 2.6") 92 x 52 x 19mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.7")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 65 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 22.9 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 11.1 not tested
DXO Low light score 639 not tested
Other
Battery life - 250 shots
Battery type - Battery Pack
Battery model 4 x AA NP-BN1
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/MMC card SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Duo/Memory Stick Pro Duo, Memory Stick Pro-HG Duo
Card slots 1 1
Retail pricing - $259