Sony A390 vs Sony W800

Its time to look closer at the Sony A390 vs Sony W800, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both manufactured by Sony. There exists a noticeable gap among the image resolutions of the A390 (14MP) and W800 (20MP) and the A390 (APS-C) and W800 (1/2.3") enjoy different sensor measurements.

Photography Glossary

The A390 was unveiled 4 years earlier than the W800 and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras offer different body type with the Sony A390 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony W800 being a Compact camera.

Before diving in to a in-depth comparison, below is a quick introduction of how the A390 grades vs the W800 for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Sony Alpha DSLR-A390 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W800. The full galleries are available at Sony A390 Gallery & Sony W800 Gallery.

When you are going to carry your camera often, you need to take into account its weight and volume. The Sony A390 comes with external dimensions 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 W800 has sizing of 97mm x 55mm x 21mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.8") with a weight of 125 grams (0.28 lbs).

Contrast the Sony A390 vs Sony W800 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have attached at the time. Below is the front view dimension comparison of the A390 against the W800.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the A390 and W800 is 66 and 96 respectively.

More often than not, it is difficult to imagine the contrast in sensor sizing just by viewing a spec sheet. The graphic underneath will offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the A390 and W800.

As you can see, the 2 cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The A390 having a larger sensor is going to make shooting bokeh less difficult and the Sony W800 will result in extra detail having an extra 6MP. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop photos a little more aggressively. The older A390 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.