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Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II

Portability
66
Imaging
54
Features
47
Overall
51
Sony Alpha DSLR-A290 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 II front
Portability
58
Imaging
52
Features
77
Overall
62

Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II Key Specs

Sony A290
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 549g - 128 x 97 x 86mm
  • Launched June 2010
  • Succeeded the Sony A230
Sony RX10 II
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-200mm (F2.8) lens
  • 813g - 129 x 88 x 102mm
  • Launched June 2015
  • Older Model is Sony RX10
  • Replacement is Sony RX10 III
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Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II Overview

Here is a in depth analysis of the Sony A290 and Sony RX10 II, one being a Entry-Level DSLR and the other is a Large Sensor Superzoom and both are created by Sony. There is a big difference between the sensor resolutions of the A290 (14MP) and RX10 II (20MP) and the A290 (APS-C) and RX10 II (1") posses totally different sensor size.

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The A290 was announced 6 years prior to the RX10 II and that is quite a big gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Sony A290 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony RX10 II being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before we go right into a in-depth comparison, here is a concise highlight of how the A290 scores versus the RX10 II in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Sony A290 over the Sony RX10 II

 A290 RX10 II 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 II over the Sony A290

 RX10 II A290 
LaunchedJune 2015June 2010Fresher by 60 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display dimensions3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution1229k230kClearer display (+999k dot)

Common features in the Sony A290 and Sony RX10 II

 A290 RX10 II 
Manual focus Very accurate focus
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither has Touch friendly display

Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II Physical Comparison

For those who are going to carry your camera regularly, you are going to need to factor its weight and proportions. The Sony A290 has outer dimensions of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") along with a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs) while the Sony RX10 II has measurements of 129mm x 88mm x 102mm (5.1" x 3.5" x 4.0") along with a weight of 813 grams (1.79 lbs).

Look at the Sony A290 and Sony RX10 II in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you select during that time. Here is a front view dimensions comparison of the A290 and the RX10 II.

Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability grade of the A290 and RX10 II is 66 and 58 respectively.

Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II top view buttons comparison

Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II Sensor Comparison

Generally, it is hard to visualise the contrast between sensor sizing purely by reviewing a spec sheet. The photograph here may provide you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the A290 and RX10 II.

As you can see, each of these cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The A290 having a larger sensor will make getting shallow DOF simpler and the Sony RX10 II will deliver extra detail with its extra 6MP. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop images a bit more aggressively. The older A290 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.

Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II sensor size comparison

Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II Screen and ViewFinder

Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony A290 Portrait photography features
Sony RX10 II Portrait photography features
65
focusing manually
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
provides face detection focusing
saves RAW formats
no liveview
71
focusing manually
good resolution (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (1")
features face detection focusing
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Sony A290
Street photography with Sony RX10 II
66
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
screen does not articulate
72
screen tilts
image stabilization (Optical)
nice sensor size (1")
saves RAW files
environment sealing
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Sports Comparison

Sony A290 Sports photography details
Sony RX10 II Sports photography details
55
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
supports phase detect AF
no liveview
slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames per second)
low battery (290 per charge)
68
quiet shutter (1/32,000s)
image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (1")
features tracking autofocus
environment sealing
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Sony A290 Travel photography factors
Sony RX10 II Travel photography factors
53
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
built-in flash
missing Timelapse recording
low battery (290 CIPA)
screen is not selfie friendly
56
environment sealing
good resolution (20 megapixels)
flash built-in
decently wide (24mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
display isn't selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f2.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony A290 Landscape photography factors
Sony RX10 II Landscape photography factors
58
focusing manually
change lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inch)
no liveview
low battery (290 CIPA)
missing Timelapse recording
62
focusing manually
decently wide (24mm)
screen is a good size (3")
image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (20MP)
nice sensor size (1")
saves RAW files
environment sealing
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony A290 Vlogging features
Sony RX10 II Vlogging features
9
can't shoot video
31
decently wide (24mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
features face detection focusing
high res video (3840 x 2160 pxls)
comes with external mic port
slow max aperture (f2.8)
display isn't selfie friendly
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Sony A290 vs Sony RX10 II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony A290 and Sony RX10 II
 Sony Alpha DSLR-A290Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 II
General Information
Brand Name Sony Sony
Model Sony Alpha DSLR-A290 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 II
Class Entry-Level DSLR Large Sensor Superzoom
Launched 2010-06-09 2015-06-10
Body design Compact SLR SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Chip Bionz Bionz X
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size APS-C 1"
Sensor dimensions 23.5 x 15.7mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 369.0mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 14 megapixel 20 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4592 x 3056 5472 x 3648
Max native ISO 3200 12800
Max boosted ISO - 25600
Lowest native ISO 100 125
RAW images
Lowest boosted ISO - 64
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 9 25
Lens
Lens mount Sony/Minolta Alpha fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-200mm (8.3x)
Maximum aperture - f/2.8
Macro focus distance - 3cm
Amount of lenses 143 -
Focal length multiplier 1.5 2.7
Screen
Range of display Fixed Type Tilting
Display sizing 2.7" 3"
Display resolution 230k dot 1,229k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359k dot
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.55x 0.7x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 30 seconds 30 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Maximum quiet shutter speed - 1/32000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 3.0fps 14.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 10.00 m (at ISO 100) 10.20 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/160 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions - 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Max video resolution None 3840x2160
Video data format - MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 549 grams (1.21 lb) 813 grams (1.79 lb)
Physical dimensions 128 x 97 x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") 129 x 88 x 102mm (5.1" x 3.5" x 4.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 66 70
DXO Color Depth score 22.6 23.0
DXO Dynamic range score 11.5 12.6
DXO Low light score 615 531
Other
Battery life 290 photos 400 photos
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model NP-FH50 NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo, SD/SDHC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Retail cost $600 $998