Sigma DP1 vs Sony A390

Its time to examine more in depth at the Sigma DP1 and Sony A390, one being a Large Sensor Compact and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by companies Sigma and Sony. There is a sizeable difference among the resolutions of the DP1 (5MP) and A390 (14MP) but they feature the exact same sensor size (APS-C).

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The DP1 was announced 3 years prior to the A390 and that is a fairly large gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Sigma DP1 being a Large Sensor Compact camera and the Sony A390 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before going in to a in depth comparison, below is a simple summary of how the DP1 scores vs the A390 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Sigma DP1 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A390. The whole galleries are provided at Sigma DP1 Gallery and Sony A390 Gallery.

For those who are intending to carry your camera often, you'll need to consider its weight and volume. The Sigma DP1 has got external measurements of 113mm x 60mm x 50mm (4.4" x 2.4" x 2.0") and a weight of 270 grams (0.60 lbs) and the Sony A390 has sizing of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") having a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

Look at the Sigma DP1 and Sony A390 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you have at that moment. Here is the front view scale comparison of the DP1 against the A390.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability score of the DP1 and A390 is 87 and 66 respectively.

In many cases, it's tough to visualise the difference in sensor sizing purely by looking through specs. The visual below should offer you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the DP1 and A390.

As you can plainly see, both of the cameras posses the exact same sensor measurements but not the same resolution. You should expect to see the Sony A390 to render greater detail with its extra 9 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The older DP1 will be behind with regard to sensor tech.