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Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730

Portability
92
Imaging
34
Features
35
Overall
34
Ricoh GR Digital III front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W730 front
Portability
96
Imaging
40
Features
33
Overall
37

Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 Key Specs

Ricoh GR Digital III
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/1.7" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 64 - 1600
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 28mm (F1.9) lens
  • 208g - 109 x 59 x 26mm
  • Introduced July 2009
  • Newer Model is Ricoh GR Digital IV
Sony W730
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-224mm (F3.3-6.3) lens
  • 122g - 93 x 52 x 22mm
  • Announced January 2013
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Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 Overview

Below is a extensive review of the Ricoh GR Digital III versus Sony W730, both Small Sensor Compact digital cameras by brands Ricoh and Sony. There exists a substantial gap between the image resolutions of the GR Digital III (10MP) and W730 (16MP) and the GR Digital III (1/1.7") and W730 (1/2.3") feature different sensor dimensions.

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The GR Digital III was released 4 years prior to the W730 and that is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before we go through a step-by-step comparison, below is a short synopsis of how the GR Digital III scores vs the W730 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Ricoh GR Digital III over the Sony W730

 GR Digital III W730 
Manually focus Dial accurate focusing
Screen dimension3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution920k230kClearer screen (+690k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony W730 over the Ricoh GR Digital III

 W730 GR Digital III 
AnnouncedJanuary 2013July 2009More recent by 42 months
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Ricoh GR Digital III and Sony W730

 GR Digital III W730 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither offers selfie screen

Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 Physical Comparison

For those who are going to lug around your camera often, you will need to factor in its weight and proportions. The Ricoh GR Digital III offers physical dimensions of 109mm x 59mm x 26mm (4.3" x 2.3" x 1.0") accompanied by a weight of 208 grams (0.46 lbs) while the Sony W730 has measurements of 93mm x 52mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.0" x 0.9") and a weight of 122 grams (0.27 lbs).

Examine the Ricoh GR Digital III versus Sony W730 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have attached at the time. Following is the front view measurements comparison of the GR Digital III against the W730.

Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the GR Digital III and W730 is 92 and 96 respectively.

Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 top view buttons comparison

Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, its difficult to imagine the gap between sensor measurements purely by checking technical specs. The visual below might provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the GR Digital III and W730.

As you have seen, both of the cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The GR Digital III featuring a bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF easier and the Sony W730 will resolve greater detail as a result of its extra 6MP. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop photographs somewhat more aggressively. The older GR Digital III is going to be behind in sensor innovation.

Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 sensor size comparison

Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 Screen and ViewFinder

Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Ricoh GR Digital III Portrait photography features
Sony W730 Portrait photography features
40
you can focus manually
exports RAW files
MP count low (10 megapixels)
sensor size is small (1/1.7")
35
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
supports face detection autofocus
manual focus not available
lack of manual exposure
can't use external flash
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Street Comparison

Ricoh GR Digital III Street photography highlights
Sony W730 Street photography highlights
55
exports RAW files
screen does not articulate
does not have image stabilization
sensor size is small (1/1.7")
67
has image stabilization (Optical)
boasts focus via touch
lighter than others in class (122 grams)
screen is fixed
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Ricoh GR Digital III Sports photography factors
Sony W730 Sports photography factors
17
fixed focal length (28mm)
does not have image stabilization
MP count low (10MP)
sensor size is small (1/1.7")
does not have phase detect AF
41
has image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
supports tracking autofocus
max frames per second very slow (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Ricoh GR Digital III Travel photography advice
Sony W730 Travel photography advice
63
built-in flash
good maximum aperture (f1.9)
MP count low (10 megapixels)
doesn't have selfie friendly display
71
lighter than others in class (122g)
boasts focus via touch
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
decently wide (25mm)
doesn't have Timelapse mode
display is not selfie friendly
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Ricoh GR Digital III Landscape photography highlights
Sony W730 Landscape photography highlights
45
you can focus manually
good maximum aperture (f1.9)
screen size is good (3 inch)
exports RAW files
cannot change lens (fixed lens mount)
fixed focal length (28mm)
does not have image stabilization
MP count low (10 megapixels)
sensor size is small (1/1.7")
39
decently wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count good (16MP)
manual focus not available
can't change lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inches)
lack of manual exposure
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
doesn't have Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Ricoh GR Digital III
Vlogging with Sony W730
25
good maximum aperture (f1.9)
doesn't have selfie friendly display
does not have image stabilization
video resolution low (640 x 480 resolution)
no external microphone jack
34
decently wide (25mm)
screen is touchscreen
has image stabilization (Optical)
supports face detection autofocus
lighter than others in class (122 grams)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
display is not selfie friendly
video resolution low (1280 x 720 resolution)
doesn't have external microphone port
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Ricoh GR Digital III vs Sony W730 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Ricoh GR Digital III and Sony W730
 Ricoh GR Digital IIISony Cyber-shot DSC-W730
General Information
Brand Name Ricoh Sony
Model type Ricoh GR Digital III Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W730
Class Small Sensor Compact Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2009-07-27 2013-01-08
Body design Compact Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by GR engine III -
Sensor type CCD CCD
Sensor size 1/1.7" 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 7.44 x 5.58mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 41.5mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 10MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3 and 3:2 4:3 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 3648 x 2736 4608 x 3456
Maximum native ISO 1600 3200
Minimum native ISO 64 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Cross type focus points - -
Lens
Lens support fixed lens fixed lens
Lens zoom range 28mm (1x) 25-224mm (9.0x)
Highest aperture f/1.9 f/3.3-6.3
Macro focusing distance 1cm 5cm
Crop factor 4.8 5.8
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display sizing 3 inch 2.7 inch
Resolution of display 920 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Display tech - TFT LCD display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (optional) None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 1s 2s
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000s 1/1600s
Continuous shooting speed - 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 3.00 m 2.80 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Manual Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync, Advanced Flash
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 640x480 1280x720
Video data format - MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 208 grams (0.46 lb) 122 grams (0.27 lb)
Dimensions 109 x 59 x 26mm (4.3" x 2.3" x 1.0") 93 x 52 x 22mm (3.7" x 2.0" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth rating not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested not tested
DXO Low light rating not tested not tested
Other
Battery life - 240 shots
Style of battery - Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-BN
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2)
Time lapse feature
Storage media SD/SDHC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Duo/Memory Stick Pro Duo, Memory Stick Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Retail price $399 $138