Ricoh GR II vs Sony A9

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Ricoh GR II and Sony A9, one being a Large Sensor Compact and the other is a Pro Mirrorless by rivals Ricoh and Sony. There exists a big gap between the resolutions of the GR II (16MP) and A9 (24MP) and the GR II (APS-C) and A9 (Full frame) come with different sensor sizing.

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The GR II was revealed 22 months earlier than the A9 making the cameras a generation apart from one another. Both cameras come with different body type with the Ricoh GR II being a Large Sensor Compact camera and the Sony A9 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before we go in to a detailed comparison, below is a concise overview of how the GR II grades vs the A9 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Ricoh GR II and Sony Alpha A9. The full galleries are viewable at Ricoh GR II Gallery and Sony A9 Gallery.

For those who are planning to carry your camera, you are going to need to think about its weight and measurements. The Ricoh GR II has outer dimensions of 117mm x 63mm x 35mm (4.6" x 2.5" x 1.4") and a weight of 251 grams (0.55 lbs) whilst the Sony A9 has proportions of 127mm x 96mm x 63mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.5") and a weight of 673 grams (1.48 lbs).

See the Ricoh GR II and Sony A9 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you have chosen at that time. Underneath is the front view dimension comparison of the GR II versus the A9.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the GR II and A9 is 89 and 65 respectively.

Typically, it can be tough to picture the difference between sensor sizing merely by reading through a spec sheet. The graphic below will help offer you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the GR II and A9.

As you can see, each of these cameras have got different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The GR II with its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field trickier and the Sony A9 will resolve extra detail because of its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also let you crop images much more aggressively. The older GR II is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.