Samsung WB700 vs Sony RX100 IV: The Ultimate Compact Camera Comparison for Enthusiasts and Professionals

In the fast-evolving landscape of compact cameras, discerning photographers often face a tough choice between simplicity and advanced features wrapped in a pocketable form factor. Today, we pit two distinctly different cameras from renowned manufacturers - the Samsung WB700, released at the end of 2010, and the Sony Cyber-shot RX100 IV, launched in mid-2015 - against each other across a comprehensive range of photographic disciplines and technical metrics. This analysis will focus on real-world performance rooted in extensive hands-on testing and industry-standard benchmarks, empowering you to make a nuanced purchase decision whether your priorities lie in casual creativity or professional-grade imaging.

Exploring Physicality and Ergonomics: Handle with Purpose

Compact cameras differ wildly not just in specs but also in how they fit into a photographer's hand and workflow. This foundational layer profoundly shapes usability and comfort over extended shoots.

Samsung WB700: With physical dimensions of 100 x 59 x 22 mm, the WB700 embodies a lightweight, pocket-friendly profile reflecting its 2010-era design philosophy prioritizing ultimate portability. The rounded edges and minimalistic layout make it a no-fuss companion for casual shooters. However, its compactness comes at the expense of robust grip real estate and intuitive button placement, which may impact handling especially when shooting at unconventional angles or in dynamic environments.

Sony RX100 IV: Measuring 102 x 58 x 41 mm and weighing 298 grams, the RX100 IV is slightly bulkier but still remarkably pocketable for a 1-inch sensor compact. The increased depth accommodates a better ergonomic grip and a well-thought-out control scheme designed for rapid manual adjustments, crucial for enthusiasts and professionals seeking reliability and speed. This balance between portability and control places the RX100 IV in a sweet spot for serious travel and street photography.

Ergonomically, the WB700’s slender frame means its buttons and dials are fewer, less accessible, and lack tactile feedback compared to the RX100 IV’s refined, responsive controls - a disparity evident under both static and fast-paced shooting conditions.

Top-Level Interface and Control Layout

Day-to-day shooting often hinges on how efficiently controls facilitate creative decisions without interrupting the flow, especially under varying light and speed demands.

The WB700 incorporates basic exposure controls such as shutter and aperture priority modes alongside manual exposure options. However, the lack of dedicated manual focus control and AF selection interfaces reduces flexibility. The absence of illuminated buttons further complicates operation in dim scenarios.

By contrast, the RX100 IV shines thanks to its deployment of the Bionz X processor enabling complex exposure calculations with smooth responsiveness. Manual focus is ingrained with tactile ring control on the lens barrel, and AF modes span single, continuous, tracking, and face detection, empowering users with adaptive precision. The inclusion of a built-in electronic viewfinder (EVF) additionally offers compositional confidence in bright environments where LCD reliance can falter.

Sensor Architecture and Image Quality: Foundation of Photographic Excellence

At the heart of image creation, sensor technology dictates resolution, dynamic range, noise handling, and color accuracy - foundational pillars for professional and enthusiast image-makers alike.

The Samsung WB700 features a modest 1/2.3" CCD sensor measuring 6.08x4.56 mm with an effective resolution of 14 megapixels. While respectable for typical snapshot usage at the time of its release, the sensor’s small physical size results in limited light-gathering ability, higher noise especially in low light, and constrained dynamic range. The presence of an anti-aliasing filter prevents moiré but slightly softens fine detail reproduction.

On the other hand, the Sony RX100 IV is equipped with a significantly larger 1" BSI-CMOS sensor (13.2x8.8mm), packing 20 megapixels of resolution. This sensor is backside-illuminated (BSI), a design which markedly improves light sensitivity, enabling cleaner images at high ISO sensitivities (up to ISO 12800 native, boostable to 25600). The wider sensor footprint coupled with sophisticated image processing in the Bionz X engine yields superior color depth (22.9 bits per DxOmark testing), an impressive dynamic range of 12.6 stops, and excellent noise control.

Ultimately, this translates into the RX100 IV providing richer tones, sharper detail, and better shadow/highlight retention across diverse lighting situations - essential for anyone aiming beyond casual snapshots.

LCD Display and Viewfinder Comparison: Seeing is Believing

Real-time image framing and review is indispensably connected to the quality and serviceability of a camera’s display interfaces.

Both cameras sport 3-inch rear LCDs. The WB700’s fixed screen at 614k-dot resolution is serviceable for general framing but tends to underperform in brightness and color fidelity. Moreover, it lacks touchscreen capabilities, which by today’s standards can slow browsing or menu navigation.

The RX100 IV features a higher-resolution 1229k-dot tilting LCD, advantageous for shooting at unusual angles such as waist-high or overhead. Although it isn’t touch-enabled, its improved clarity assists accurate focus verification, essential for sharp portraits or precise macro work.

Notably, the RX100 IV’s inclusion of a pop-up OLED electronic viewfinder (2359k dots, 100% coverage, 0.59x magnification) furnishes compositional precision under challenging light, a feature completely absent in the WB700. This EVF also dramatically reduces viewfinder lag and improves exposure feedback compared to an LCD-only arrangement.

Performance in Portraiture: Rendering Skin and Bokeh Gracefully

Portrait photography demands accurate skin tonal reproduction, selective focus control, and nuanced subject isolation - criteria heavily influenced by sensor size, lens characteristics, and autofocus sophistication.

Samsung’s WB700, with its small sensor and fixed lens of unknown aperture specs, faces clear limitations regarding depth of field control and bokeh rendering. The maximum aperture and sensor size combination dictates a relatively deep depth of field under typical shooting distances, reducing the natural background separation prized in portraiture. Additionally, the camera lacks face or eye detection autofocus, relying instead on center-weighted metering and basic AF capabilities, which can result in unpredictable focusing accuracy on human subjects.

Conversely, the Sony RX100 IV’s wide-aperture 24-70mm equivalent f/1.8-2.8 zoom lens partnered with its larger 1" sensor allows for much more effective background defocus and pleasing bokeh quality. Its 25-point contrast-detection AF system incorporates face detection, enabling reliable and fast locking on faces with supplementary eye detection for improved sharpness on eyes - crucial for portrait aesthetics. Custom white balance capability ensures skin tones are rendered naturally across various lighting spectrums.

Landscape Photography: Embracing Resolution and Dynamic Range

Landscapes test a camera’s resolution, dynamic range, color accuracy, and ruggedness, especially for outdoor enthusiasts requiring durable equipment.

The WB700’s resolution of 14MP and limited dynamic range (due to CCD sensor constraints) restrict the amount of recoverable detail from shadows and highlights. Its absence of environmental sealing further discourages use in inclement weather, reducing utility for outdoor landscape shooters.

The RX100 IV comes well-prepared for landscapes with its higher 20MP resolution capturing finer spatial details, depth of color, and dynamic range (12.6 stops per DxOmark) enabling nuanced sky and shadow gradients. Its lens covers a useful 24-70mm equivalent focal length, versatile enough for wide vistas to mid-range framing without changing lenses. While lacking formal weather sealing, its sturdy metal body improves resilience against environmental exposure relative to lightweight plastics of the WB700.

Wildlife Photography: Tracking Fast Action with Precision

Wildlife photography hinges on rapid autofocus, burst shooting capabilities, and telephoto reach.

The WB700 cannot compete here: it lacks continuous autofocus, AF tracking, or high-speed burst shooting mechanisms, and its small sensor cannot produce quality images with significant cropping.

In stark contrast, the RX100 IV supports continuous AF and advanced AF tracking across its 25 focus points, critical for locking onto moving animals. Its burst shooting rate of 16 frames per second ensures capturing decisive moments in flight or swift motion. Although its zoom tops at 70mm equivalent focal length, the high sensor resolution facilitates moderate cropping during post-processing, partially offsetting telephoto limitations.

Sports Photography: Fast Action Requires Fast Cameras

Sports demand high frame rates, accurate tracking AF, and low-light performance.

Samsung’s WB700 again lacks continuous AF and burst modes, limiting its capability for action photography. Its small sensor and older processor mean low-light sports scenarios will challenge image quality.

Sony’s RX100 IV excels in this category with its 16 fps burst shooting paired with reliable continuous AF, allowing near instantaneous capture of fast sequences. The sensor’s superior low-light sensitivity (ISO 12800 native, boosted to 25600) delivers better noise control under stadium lighting or dusk conditions. Its electronic shutter supplies super-fast max shutter speeds (up to 1/32000 s), reducing motion blur effectively.

Street Photography: Discretion Meets Performance

Street photography benefits from compactness, quiet shooting modes, easy handling, and swift autofocus.

While both cameras are pocket-sized, the WB700’s ultra-compact form factor offers an advantage in discretion. Yet, the absence of an EVF and slower autofocus potentially impairs spontaneous candid shooting.

Conversely, the RX100 IV balances compactness with substantial imaging power. Its silent electronic shutter enables near noiseless shooting, essential for inconspicuous street work. The tilting touchless LCD supports compositional creativity, and face-detection AF assists in unpredictable urban encounters.

Macro Photography: Details Up Close

Macro requires precise focusing capabilities, good stabilization, and close minimum focus distances.

WB700 lacks dedicated macro focus specifications and built-in stabilization, making close-up work challenging and dependent on steady hands or tripods.

RX100 IV shines with its macro focus capabilities down to an impressive 5cm, paired with optical image stabilization (OIS) that mitigates camera shake, enabling sharper handheld macro shots.

Night and Astro Photography: Mastering Low Light and Long Exposure

Night and astro photography test ISO performance, long shutter speeds, noise handling, and bulb modes.

The WB700’s CCD sensor is inherently limited in high ISO noise suppression and dynamic range, constraining its astrophotography utility. It does offer shutter speeds up to 30 seconds but no raw image support or ISO control that would benefit post-processing.

In contrast, the RX100 IV’s CMOS sensor and advanced processor facilitate ISO 125–12800 with reasonable noise control plus RAW capture for extensive editing latitude. The max shutter speed of 30 seconds aids long exposures, and electronic shutter options reduce vibrations noiselessly. Absence of bulb mode may limit the longest exposures, but overall performance for night scenes is far superior.

Video Capabilities: Beyond Photos

Contemporary content creation demands robust video functions.

The Samsung WB700 records HD video at 1280x720 resolution using H.264 codec, sufficient for casual home movies but limited in frame rate flexibility and lacking microphone or HDMI ports. No image stabilization further restricts handheld video quality.

The Sony RX100 IV, evaluated through extensive video tests, supports ultra-high-definition 4K video at 30p (3840 x 2160) and Full HD at up to 60 fps, all encoded in efficient MPEG-4, AVCHD, and XAVC S formats. Optical image stabilization in video mode and advanced processing reduce rolling shutter and motion artifacts. Despite missing external microphone input, its onboard stereo microphones and HDMI connectivity offer flexible video workflows for vloggers and prosumers alike.

Travel Photography: Versatility and Endurance

Travel photography demands a camera that adapts across genres while maintaining light weight and endurance.

Samsung WB700 front Samsung WB700 screen back Sony RX100 IV front Sony RX100 IV screen back

The WB700, prioritized for entry-level users, is light and straightforward but compromised by limitations in image quality, zoom flexibility, and battery data (not specified).

RX100 IV, weighing just 298g, combines versatility with quality: from landscapes to portraits, macro to night shots. Its robust battery life rated at approximately 280 shots per charge ensures a full day’s shooting, complemented by support for versatile SD card formats.

Professional Photography: The Workhorse Criterion

Professional users seek reliability, file quality, and seamless integration into existing workflows.

WB700’s lack of raw image format support eliminates post-processing flexibility imperative for professional pipelines. The absence of wireless connectivity and basic build materials reduces integration efficiency and durability.

RX100 IV answers these considerations with RAW support, superior build quality, nominal Wi-Fi/NFC for image transfer, and compatibility with regular SD cards. Its manual controls and robust autofocus enable dependable output, albeit with limitations compared to interchangeable lens cameras.

Build Quality, Weather Resistance, and Durability

Neither camera features weather sealing or shockproof ratings, so protection from the elements is limited. However, RX100 IV’s metal chassis and compact design typically offer higher tolerance to wear compared to the WB700’s simpler construction.

Battery Life and Data Storage

Battery specifics for WB700 are unavailable, suggesting conservative endurance given its early-generation design. Sony’s RX100 IV delivers an estimated 280 shots per battery charge with the NP-BX1 battery, suitable for casual daily use but possibly necessitating spares on extended outings.

Storage-wise, the WB700 uses a single slot (presumably SD), while the RX100 IV supports multiple cards (SD/SDHC/SDXC and Memory Stick formats), broadening workflow convenience.

Connectivity: Sharing in a Connected World

Connectivity options are fundamental for workflow speed and convenience.

Samsung WB700 stands at a disadvantage with no wireless or physical connection ports, making image transfer cumbersome and limiting remote control options.

Sony RX100 IV incorporates Wi-Fi and NFC for wireless image sharing and remote app control, though it lacks Bluetooth and audio input/output jacks, a compromise reflecting its compact genre positioning.

Price-to-Performance Analysis: Matching Value to User Needs

At an original MSRP of approximately $300, the Samsung WB700 appeals primarily to casual users prioritizing affordability and simplicity over advanced features. Its imaging prowess and ergonomics reflect a decade-old technology baseline, making it most suitable for snapshots and hobbyists who do not plan extensive post-processing or advanced shooting.

The Sony RX100 IV, priced at around $900 upon release, represents a premium compact camera merging high image quality, fast autofocus, professional video features, and robust manual controls. For photographers whose work and creativity demand flexibility, superior low light performance, and high-resolution output in a portable package, the RX100 IV provides compelling value.

Summary Table of Key Specifications

Final Recommendations: Which Camera Fits Your Needs?

• Choose Samsung WB700 if:

  • You require an ultra-affordable, easy-to-use compact with basic features.
  • Your photography is casual, mostly well-lit snapshots without post-processing ambitions.
  • Portability trumps image quality and you prioritize a simple point-and-shoot experience.

• Choose Sony RX100 IV if:

  • You seek a compact camera capable of professional-grade stills and 4K video.
  • You value superior image quality, fast continuous autofocus, and flexible controls for portrait, landscape, sports, or street photography.
  • You desire RAW shooting, strong low light performance, and versatile video formats in a pocketable unit.

For photography enthusiasts or professionals requiring uncompromised image fidelity and responsiveness in a travel-friendly form factor, the Sony RX100 IV stands out as a versatile powerhouse. The Samsung WB700 remains a modest entry point but is arguably outclassed in today’s technology landscape.

In conclusion, this detailed comparison underscores how sensor size, autofocus sophistication, and feature breadth differentiate compact camera capabilities profoundly. Trusting a thorough evaluation grounded in hands-on testing and technical insight ensures you invest in gear tailored to your artistic vision and practical demands.

Thank you for reading.

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