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Sony A450 vs Sony W290

Portability
65
Imaging
54
Features
52
Overall
53
Sony Alpha DSLR-A450 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290 front
Portability
94
Imaging
34
Features
28
Overall
31

Sony A450 vs Sony W290 Key Specs

Sony A450
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 560g - 137 x 104 x 81mm
  • Introduced January 2010
Sony W290
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.3-5.2) lens
  • 167g - 98 x 57 x 23mm
  • Released February 2009
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Sony A450 vs Sony W290 Overview

Lets look more closely at the Sony A450 and Sony W290, one is a Entry-Level DSLR and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are built by Sony. The sensor resolution of the A450 (14MP) and the W290 (12MP) is relatively well matched but the A450 (APS-C) and W290 (1/2.3") provide different sensor sizing.

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The A450 was introduced 11 months after the W290 which means that they are of a similar generation. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Sony A450 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony W290 being a Compact camera.

Before delving right into a complete comparison, here is a brief summation of how the A450 matches up against the W290 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Photography Glossary
	
	

Reasons to pick Sony A450 over the Sony W290

 A450 W290 
ReleasedJanuary 2010February 2009Newer by 11 months

Reasons to pick Sony W290 over the Sony A450

 W290 A450 
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")

Common features in the Sony A450 and Sony W290

 A450 W290 
Focus manually Very precise focus
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen resolution230k230kThe same screen resolution
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen
Touch screen Lacking Touch screen

Sony A450 vs Sony W290 Physical Comparison

For those who are going to travel with your camera, you should factor its weight and proportions. The Sony A450 provides outside measurements of 137mm x 104mm x 81mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.2") and a weight of 560 grams (1.23 lbs) and the Sony W290 has measurements of 98mm x 57mm x 23mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

Check out the Sony A450 and Sony W290 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you select during that time. The following is a front view physical size comparison of the A450 and the W290.

Sony A450 vs Sony W290 size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the A450 and W290 is 65 and 94 respectively.

Sony A450 vs Sony W290 top view buttons comparison

Sony A450 vs Sony W290 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, it's tough to picture the gap between sensor dimensions just by checking technical specs. The pic below will provide you a far better sense of the sensor sizing in the A450 and W290.

As you can tell, both the cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The A450 having a bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF simpler and the Sony A450 will give greater detail using its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The more recent A450 provides a benefit in sensor technology.

Sony A450 vs Sony W290 sensor size comparison

Sony A450 vs Sony W290 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony A450 vs Sony W290 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony A450 Portrait photography info
Sony W290 Portrait photography info
72
focusing manually
MP count good (14 megapixels)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
27
you can focus manually
no manual control
no external flash support
low MP (12 megapixels)
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Sony A450
Street photography with Sony W290
66
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
fixed screen
56
has image stabilization (Optical)
no articulating screen
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Sony A450
Sports photography with Sony W290
77
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count good (14MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
great battery pack (1,050 CIPA)
sensor has phase detect AF
25
has image stabilization (Optical)
very slow continuous shooting (2.0 fps)
no shutter priority
low MP (12MP)
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Sony A450 as a Travel photography camera
Sony W290 as a Travel photography camera
60
great battery pack (1,050 shots)
MP count good (14 megapixels)
flash built-in
doesn't have Timelapse function
does not have selfie friendly display
57
has built in flash
quite wide (28mm)
doesn't have Timelapse recording
low MP (12MP)
does not offer selfie friendly display
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony A450 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony W290 as a Landscape photography camera
66
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count good (14 megapixels)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
great battery pack (1,050 CIPA)
tiny screen (2.7")
doesn't have Timelapse function
41
you can focus manually
quite wide (28mm)
screen size is good (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Optical)
can't change lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
no manual control
low MP (12MP)
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
doesn't have Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony A450 Vlogging information
Sony W290 Vlogging information
9
can't record video
28
quite wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
does not offer selfie friendly display
low quality video (1280 x 720 resolution)
doesn't have external microphone support
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Sony A450 vs Sony W290 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony A450 and Sony W290
 Sony Alpha DSLR-A450Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290
General Information
Brand Name Sony Sony
Model type Sony Alpha DSLR-A450 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290
Class Entry-Level DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2010-01-05 2009-02-17
Physical type Compact SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Chip Bionz -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size APS-C 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 23.4 x 15.6mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 365.0mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 14 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4592 x 3056 4000 x 3000
Highest native ISO 12800 3200
Lowest native ISO 200 80
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points 9 9
Lens
Lens mount type Sony/Minolta Alpha fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-140mm (5.0x)
Maximal aperture - f/3.3-5.2
Macro focusing distance - 10cm
Amount of lenses 143 -
Focal length multiplier 1.5 5.8
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display size 2.7" 3"
Display resolution 230k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Display tech TFT Clear Photo Color LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.53x -
Features
Min shutter speed 30s 2s
Max shutter speed 1/4000s 1/1600s
Continuous shutter rate 7.0 frames/s 2.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 3.90 m
Flash settings Auto, Fill, Rear Sync, Slow Sync, Wireless/ High Speed Sync Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Max flash synchronize 1/160s -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1280 x 720 (30 fps) 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution None 1280x720
Video file format - MPEG-4
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 560 gr (1.23 lbs) 167 gr (0.37 lbs)
Physical dimensions 137 x 104 x 81mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.2") 98 x 57 x 23mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 66 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 11.8 not tested
DXO Low light rating 769 not tested
Other
Battery life 1050 photos -
Form of battery Battery Pack -
Battery ID NP-FM500H -
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo, Internal
Card slots Single Single
Cost at release $1,241 $230