Sony A290 vs Sony WX30

Below is a thorough overview of the Sony A290 and Sony WX30, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both designed by Sony. The image resolution of the A290 (14MP) and the WX30 (16MP) is very comparable but the A290 (APS-C) and WX30 (1/2.3") posses totally different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The A290 was brought out 13 months prior to the WX30 making them a generation apart from each other. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Sony A290 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony WX30 being a Compact camera.

Before diving into a comprehensive comparison, here is a quick introduction of how the A290 scores vs the WX30 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Sony Alpha DSLR-A290 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX30. The entire galleries are available at Sony A290 Gallery & Sony WX30 Gallery.

For anybody who is intending to lug around your camera often, you are going to need to consider its weight and proportions. The Sony A290 offers physical measurements of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") accompanied by a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs) while the Sony WX30 has measurements of 92mm x 52mm x 19mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.7") accompanied by a weight of 117 grams (0.26 lbs).

Contrast the Sony A290 and Sony WX30 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have chosen during that time. Following is a front view physical size comparison of the A290 vs the WX30.

Using size and weight, the portability score of the A290 and WX30 is 66 and 96 respectively.

Often, it is very tough to visualise the difference in sensor measurements simply by going through specifications. The visual below may provide you a greater sense of the sensor sizing in the A290 and WX30.

To sum up, both the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The A290 because of its larger sensor will make shooting shallow DOF easier and the Sony WX30 will produce more detail having its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop images a bit more aggressively. The older A290 will be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.