Sony A380 vs Sony RX100

Let's examine more closely at the Sony A380 and Sony RX100, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the latter is a Large Sensor Compact and both are built by Sony. There exists a noticeable gap between the sensor resolutions of the A380 (14MP) and RX100 (20MP) and the A380 (APS-C) and RX100 (1") enjoy totally different sensor sizing.

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The A380 was unveiled 4 years prior to the RX100 and that is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. The two cameras offer different body type with the Sony A380 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony RX100 being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before getting through a in-depth comparison, below is a concise synopsis of how the A380 grades against the RX100 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Sony Alpha DSLR-A380 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100. The full galleries are provided at Sony A380 Gallery & Sony RX100 Gallery.

When you are aiming to carry your camera, you will want to factor in its weight and volume. The Sony A380 comes with outside measurements of 128mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.8") and a weight of 519 grams (1.14 lbs) and the Sony RX100 has sizing of 102mm x 58mm x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") having a weight of 240 grams (0.53 lbs).

Contrast the Sony A380 and Sony RX100 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have chosen during that time. Below is the front view overall size comparison of the A380 and the RX100.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the A380 and RX100 is 68 and 91 respectively.

Typically, it can be difficult to visualise the difference between sensor sizing only by going over technical specs. The photograph below might offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the A380 and RX100.

As you can tell, both of these cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The A380 with its bigger sensor will make achieving shallower depth of field simpler and the Sony RX100 will offer you more detail having an extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop photographs a little more aggressively. The older A380 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor tech.