Ricoh PX vs Sony A290

Following is a in depth review of the Ricoh PX and Sony A290, one is a Small Sensor Compact and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Ricoh and Sony. The resolution of the PX (16MP) and the A290 (14MP) is very well matched but the PX (1/2.3") and A290 (APS-C) come with totally different sensor dimensions.

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The PX was manufactured 15 months after the A290 making the cameras a generation away from one another. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Ricoh PX being a Compact camera and the Sony A290 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before going through a complete comparison, below is a short summary of how the PX grades vs the A290 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

The following is a sample of the gallery pics for Ricoh PX and Sony Alpha DSLR-A290. The entire galleries are available at Ricoh PX Gallery and Sony A290 Gallery.

For anyone who is aiming to carry around your camera often, you're going to have to factor its weight and size. The Ricoh PX offers physical dimensions of 100mm x 55mm x 21mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.8") and a weight of 156 grams (0.34 lbs) whilst the Sony A290 has specifications of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") accompanied by a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

Compare the Ricoh PX and Sony A290 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you have at the time. Following is the front view overall size comparison of the PX compared to the A290.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the PX and A290 is 95 and 66 respectively.

Typically, it's tough to see the gap between sensor sizes purely by looking at specs. The picture below may give you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the PX and A290.

All in all, the two cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The PX featuring a tinier sensor will make achieving shallow DOF more difficult and the Ricoh PX will resolve greater detail due to its extra 2MP. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop images a little more aggressively. The fresher PX will have an edge in sensor innovation.