Ricoh CX5 vs Sony RX100 IV

On this page, we will be looking at the Ricoh CX5 and Sony RX100 IV, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Large Sensor Compact by competitors Ricoh and Sony. There is a large difference among the sensor resolutions of the CX5 (10MP) and RX100 IV (20MP) and the CX5 (1/2.3") and RX100 IV (1") have different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The CX5 was released 4 years earlier than the RX100 IV and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. The two cameras have different body design with the Ricoh CX5 being a Compact camera and the Sony RX100 IV being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before getting right into a step-by-step comparison, here is a short summation of how the CX5 matches up vs the RX100 IV when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a preview of the gallery photos for Ricoh CX5 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV. The complete galleries are viewable at Ricoh CX5 Gallery & Sony RX100 IV Gallery.

For anybody who is intending to lug around your camera often, you'll need to factor its weight and size. The Ricoh CX5 comes with physical dimensions of 102mm x 59mm x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1") along with a weight of 205 grams (0.45 lbs) and the Sony RX100 IV has specifications of 102mm x 58mm x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6") having a weight of 298 grams (0.66 lbs).

Look at the Ricoh CX5 and Sony RX100 IV in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you have chosen at that moment. The following is a front view overall size comparison of the CX5 compared to the RX100 IV.

Using size and weight, the portability score of the CX5 and RX100 IV is 92 and 89 respectively.

Oftentimes, it is tough to visualize the gap in sensor measurements only by researching technical specs. The visual below will help provide you a clearer sense of the sensor dimensions in the CX5 and RX100 IV.

As you can tell, both of the cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The CX5 featuring a smaller sensor is going to make shooting bokeh tougher and the Sony RX100 IV will provide you with greater detail as a result of its extra 10MP. Higher resolution will let you crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The older CX5 will be disadvantaged in sensor tech.