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Sony A550 vs Sony W690

Portability
63
Imaging
54
Features
65
Overall
58
Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W690 front
Portability
95
Imaging
39
Features
32
Overall
36

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 Key Specs

Sony A550
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 632g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Revealed December 2009
  • Superseded the Sony A100
Sony W690
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-250mm (F3.3-5.9) lens
  • 142g - 94 x 56 x 22mm
  • Released February 2012
Photography Glossary

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 Overview

Here is a detailed overview of the Sony A550 versus Sony W690, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both manufactured by Sony. The image resolution of the A550 (14MP) and the W690 (16MP) is very close but the A550 (APS-C) and W690 (1/2.3") enjoy different sensor measurements.

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The A550 was launched 3 years prior to the W690 and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both cameras come with different body type with the Sony A550 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony W690 being a Compact camera.

Before going through a full comparison, below is a simple synopsis of how the A550 scores vs the W690 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Sony A550 over the Sony W690

 A550 W690 
Focus manually Very exact focusing
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display resolution922k230kSharper display (+692k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony W690 over the Sony A550

 W690 A550 
ReleasedFebruary 2012December 2009Fresher by 27 months

Common features in the Sony A550 and Sony W690

 A550 W690 
Display dimension3"3"Identical display measurements
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither has Touch friendly display

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is looking to carry your camera often, you should factor its weight and measurements. The Sony A550 has external dimensions of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") accompanied by a weight of 632 grams (1.39 lbs) whilst the Sony W690 has proportions of 94mm x 56mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") having a weight of 142 grams (0.31 lbs).

Look at the Sony A550 versus Sony W690 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have chosen at that time. Following is the front view dimension comparison of the A550 vs the W690.

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the A550 and W690 is 63 and 95 respectively.

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 top view buttons comparison

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, it's hard to visualize the contrast in sensor sizing simply by looking through a spec sheet. The photograph here will help give you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the A550 and W690.

Clearly, both of these cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The A550 featuring a larger sensor is going to make achieving bokeh simpler and the Sony W690 will render greater detail utilizing its extra 2MP. Greater resolution will enable you to crop images much more aggressively. The older A550 will be behind with regard to sensor technology.

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 sensor size comparison

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony A550 vs Sony W690 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony A550 Portrait photography advice
Sony W690 Portrait photography advice
72
has manual focus
decent megapixels (14MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
provides face detection focus
supports RAW formats
34
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
comes with face detect focusing
manual focus not available
manual mode not available
can't use external flash
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Street Comparison

Sony A550 Street photography features
Sony W690 Street photography features
74
screen tilts up and down
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
supports RAW formats
57
built in image stabilization (Optical)
no moving screen
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Sony A550
Sports photography with Sony W690
67
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent megapixels (14MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
sensor has phase detect auto focus
terrible battery pack (480 shots)
40
built in image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
comes with tracking focus
slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority mode
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
has no phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Sony A550
Travel photography with Sony W690
52
decent megapixels (14MP)
has built in flash
doesn't have Time Lapse function
terrible battery pack (480 shots)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
68
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
flash built-in
really wide (25mm)
very long reach (250mm)
lack of Time Lapse recording
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony A550 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony W690 as a Landscape photography camera
66
has manual focus
change lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
decent sized screen (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent megapixels (14MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
supports RAW formats
terrible battery pack (480 per charge)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
43
really wide (25mm)
nice screen size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
manual focus not available
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
manual mode not available
tiny sensor size (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
lack of Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Sony A550
Vlogging with Sony W690
9
no video recording
31
really wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detect focusing
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
video res low (1280 x 720 resolution)
lack of mic jack
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Sony A550 vs Sony W690 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony A550 and Sony W690
 Sony Alpha DSLR-A550Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W690
General Information
Brand Sony Sony
Model type Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W690
Category Entry-Level DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2009-12-09 2012-02-28
Body design Compact SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Bionz BIONZ
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size APS-C 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 23.4 x 15.6mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 365.0mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 14 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 4:3 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4592 x 3056 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 12800 3200
Min native ISO 200 80
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 9 -
Cross type focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount type Sony/Minolta Alpha fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 25-250mm (10.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.3-5.9
Macro focusing range - 5cm
Total lenses 143 -
Focal length multiplier 1.5 5.8
Screen
Range of screen Tilting Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 3" 3"
Screen resolution 922 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Screen technology - ClearPhoto TFT LCD display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.53x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 30 seconds 30 seconds
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/1600 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 7.0fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 12.00 m 3.30 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/160 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
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
Mic input
Headphone input
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 seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 632 gr (1.39 lbs) 142 gr (0.31 lbs)
Dimensions 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") 94 x 56 x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 66 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.9 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 11.8 not tested
DXO Low light rating 807 not tested
Other
Battery life 480 shots 220 shots
Battery format Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID NP-FM500H NP-BN
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2)
Time lapse feature
Storage media SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Duo/Memory Stick Pro Duo, Memory Stick Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Launch cost $749 $297