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Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV

Portability
63
Imaging
52
Features
52
Overall
52
Sony Alpha DSLR-A500 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV front
Portability
52
Imaging
53
Features
82
Overall
64

Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV Key Specs

Sony A500
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 630g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Introduced August 2009
  • Replacement is Sony A560
Sony RX10 IV
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Raise to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1095g - 133 x 94 x 145mm
  • Released September 2017
  • Old Model is Sony RX10 III
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Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV Overview

On this page, we will be comparing the Sony A500 and Sony RX10 IV, one is a Entry-Level DSLR and the latter is a Large Sensor Superzoom and both are designed by Sony. There is a big difference among the image resolutions of the A500 (12MP) and RX10 IV (20MP) and the A500 (APS-C) and RX10 IV (1") posses different sensor size.

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The A500 was manufactured 9 years before the RX10 IV which is a fairly big gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Sony A500 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony RX10 IV being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before we go into a full comparison, here is a concise introduction of how the A500 grades vs the RX10 IV in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Sony A500 over the Sony RX10 IV

 A500 RX10 IV 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 IV over the Sony A500

 RX10 IV A500 
ReleasedSeptember 2017August 2009More modern by 97 months
Screen resolution1440k230kSharper screen (+1210k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Sony A500 and Sony RX10 IV

 A500 RX10 IV 
Manually focus Very exact focusing
Screen typeTiltingTiltingTilting screen
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen size
Selfie screen Neither features selfie screen

Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV Physical Comparison

If you're aiming to carry around your camera regularly, you will want to consider its weight and dimensions. The Sony A500 enjoys physical dimensions of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") with a weight of 630 grams (1.39 lbs) while the Sony RX10 IV has dimensions of 133mm x 94mm x 145mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.7") accompanied by a weight of 1095 grams (2.41 lbs).

Examine the Sony A500 and Sony RX10 IV in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you have chosen at that time. Following is a front view measurement comparison of the A500 compared to the RX10 IV.

Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the A500 and RX10 IV is 63 and 52 respectively.

Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV top view buttons comparison

Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV Sensor Comparison

In many cases, it is very difficult to imagine the gap in sensor sizes purely by going through technical specs. The image below might provide you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the A500 and RX10 IV.

As you have seen, both cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The A500 due to its bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF simpler and the Sony RX10 IV will show greater detail due to its extra 8 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop pictures more aggressively. The more aged A500 will be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.

Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV sensor size comparison

Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV Screen and ViewFinder

Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony A500 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony RX10 IV as a Portrait photography camera
63
focusing manually
nice sensor size (APS-C)
comes with face detection focus
delivers RAW formats
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
71
has manual focus
above average flash sync speed (1/2,000s)
decent sensor resolution (20 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (1")
provides face detection autofocus
supports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Sony A500
Street photography with Sony RX10 IV
74
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
64
screen tilts up and down
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is nice (1")
supports RAW files
comes with touch to focus
environment proofing
more heavy than competition (1,095 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Sony A500 Sports photography advice
Sony RX10 IV Sports photography advice
51
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
has phase detect auto focus
very slow continuous shooting (5.0 frames per second)
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
low battery life (520 CIPA)
76
excellent zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
silent mode (1/32,000 seconds)
max fps high (24.0 frames/s)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor resolution (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
provides tracking autofocus
environment proofing
comes with phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Sony A500
Travel photography with Sony RX10 IV
43
flash built-in
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
low battery life (520 CIPA)
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
56
environment proofing
connects via bluetooth
comes with touch to focus
decent sensor resolution (20MP)
has built in flash
rather wide (24mm)
very long zoom (600mm)
doesn't have Timelapse function
more heavy than competition (1,095 grams)
screen isn't selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f2.4)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony A500 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony RX10 IV as a Landscape photography camera
60
focusing manually
swap lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
screen size is good (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
low battery life (520 CIPA)
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
62
has manual focus
rather wide (24mm)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor resolution (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
supports RAW files
environment proofing
cannot swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f2.4)
doesn't have Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony A500 Vlogging info
Sony RX10 IV Vlogging info
9
lack of video recording
29
rather wide (24mm)
touchscreen capability
built in image stabilization (Optical)
provides face detection autofocus
high video quality (3840 x 2160 pixels)
does have external microphone port
slow maximum aperture (f2.4)
screen isn't selfie friendly
more heavy than competition (1,095 grams)
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Sony A500 vs Sony RX10 IV Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony A500 and Sony RX10 IV
 Sony Alpha DSLR-A500Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV
General Information
Company Sony Sony
Model Sony Alpha DSLR-A500 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV
Type Entry-Level DSLR Large Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2009-08-27 2017-09-12
Body design Compact SLR SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Chip Bionz Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size APS-C 1"
Sensor measurements 23.5 x 15.6mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor area 366.6mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 20MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4272 x 2848 5472 x 3648
Max native ISO 12800 12800
Max enhanced ISO - 25600
Min native ISO 200 125
RAW support
Min enhanced ISO - 64
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
AF continuous
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 9 315
Lens
Lens mount Sony/Minolta Alpha fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-600mm (25.0x)
Max aperture - f/2.4-4.0
Macro focus distance - 3cm
Amount of lenses 143 -
Focal length multiplier 1.5 2.7
Screen
Screen type Tilting Tilting
Screen size 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 230 thousand dot 1,440 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage 95% 100%
Viewfinder magnification 0.53x 0.7x
Features
Min shutter speed 30 seconds 30 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Max silent shutter speed - 1/32000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 5.0 frames/s 24.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 12.00 m 10.80 m (at Auto ISO)
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Max flash sync 1/160 seconds 1/2000 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 file format - MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone 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 630g (1.39 lb) 1095g (2.41 lb)
Physical dimensions 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") 133 x 94 x 145mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.7")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 64 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 21.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 11.6 not tested
DXO Low light score 772 not tested
Other
Battery life 520 images 400 images
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model NP-FM500H NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Launch cost $638 $1,698