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Sony A550 vs Sony WX300

Portability
63
Imaging
54
Features
65
Overall
58
Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX300 front
Portability
94
Imaging
42
Features
38
Overall
40

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 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
  • Earlier Model is Sony A100
Sony WX300
(Full Review)
  • 18MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-500mm (F3.5-6.5) lens
  • 166g - 96 x 55 x 25mm
  • Announced February 2013
  • Renewed by Sony WX350
Photography Glossary

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 Overview

Let's take a closer look at the Sony A550 and Sony WX300, one being a Entry-Level DSLR and the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom and both of them are produced by Sony. There is a significant difference between the sensor resolutions of the A550 (14MP) and WX300 (18MP) and the A550 (APS-C) and WX300 (1/2.3") feature different sensor size.

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The A550 was introduced 4 years earlier than the WX300 and that is quite a sizable gap as far as tech is concerned. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Sony A550 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony WX300 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight into a in-depth comparison, below is a quick overview of how the A550 grades against the WX300 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Sony A550 over the Sony WX300

 A550 WX300 
Manually focus Dial exact focus
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution922k460kClearer screen (+462k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony WX300 over the Sony A550

 WX300 A550 
AnnouncedFebruary 2013December 2009More recent by 38 months

Common features in the Sony A550 and Sony WX300

 A550 WX300 
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen size
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Absent Touch friendly screen

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is planning to lug around your camera regularly, you will have to consider its weight and measurements. The Sony A550 has got outside dimensions of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") having a weight of 632 grams (1.39 lbs) while the Sony WX300 has proportions of 96mm x 55mm x 25mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 1.0") with a weight of 166 grams (0.37 lbs).

Check out the Sony A550 and Sony WX300 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are working with during that time. The following is the front view overall size comparison of the A550 vs the WX300.

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability grade of the A550 and WX300 is 63 and 94 respectively.

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 top view buttons comparison

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 Sensor Comparison

Often, it's hard to picture the difference between sensor measurements simply by reading a spec sheet. The photograph here will give you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the A550 and WX300.

Clearly, both of those cameras have got different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The A550 having a bigger sensor is going to make getting shallow depth of field easier and the Sony WX300 will deliver more detail using its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will let you crop pictures much more aggressively. The older A550 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 sensor size comparison

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony A550 Portrait photography details
Sony WX300 Portrait photography details
72
manual focus
megapixel count good (14 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
features face detection focus
delivers RAW files
36
decent megapixels (18MP)
offers face detect focus
focusing manually not possible
no manual exposure
external flash not possible
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Sony A550
Street photography with Sony WX300
74
tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
63
image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competition (166 grams)
screen does not articulate
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Sony A550 Sports photography info
Sony WX300 Sports photography info
67
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (14 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
has phase detect auto focus
terrible battery life (480 CIPA)
49
long zoom range (25-500mm 20.0 x zoom)
image stabilization (Optical)
decent megapixels (18 megapixels)
offers tracking focus
no shutter priority
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Sony A550
Travel photography with Sony WX300
52
megapixel count good (14 megapixels)
has built in flash
missing Timelapse function
terrible battery life (480 CIPA)
does not feature selfie friendly display
71
lighter than competition (166 grams)
decent megapixels (18MP)
built-in flash
rather wide (25mm)
very long reach (500mm)
lack of Timelapse recording
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony A550 Landscape photography info
Sony WX300 Landscape photography info
66
manual focus
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (14MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
terrible battery life (480 per charge)
missing Timelapse function
44
rather wide (25mm)
nice screen size (3 inch)
image stabilization (Optical)
decent megapixels (18MP)
focusing manually not possible
can't swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.5)
no manual exposure
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
lack of Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony A550 Vlogging information
Sony WX300 Vlogging information
9
can't record video
35
rather wide (25mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
offers face detect focus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
lighter than competition (166 grams)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.5)
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
lack of microphone port
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Sony A550 vs Sony WX300 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony A550 and Sony WX300
 Sony Alpha DSLR-A550Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX300
General Information
Company Sony Sony
Model type Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX300
Category Entry-Level DSLR Small Sensor Superzoom
Revealed 2009-12-09 2013-02-20
Body design Compact SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Bionz -
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
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 14MP 18MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 4:3 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4592 x 3056 4896 x 3672
Highest native ISO 12800 3200
Lowest native ISO 200 80
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 9 -
Cross type focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount type Sony/Minolta Alpha fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 25-500mm (20.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/3.5-6.5
Available lenses 143 -
Crop factor 1.5 5.8
Screen
Screen type Tilting Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3" 3"
Resolution of screen 922k dot 460k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.53x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed 30s 4s
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000s 1/1600s
Continuous shooting speed 7.0 frames per sec 10.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 12.00 m 4.30 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless -
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/160s -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (60, 50 fps)
Highest video resolution None 1920x1080
Video file format - AVCHD
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
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 632 gr (1.39 pounds) 166 gr (0.37 pounds)
Dimensions 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") 96 x 55 x 25mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 1.0")
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 photographs -
Battery form Battery Pack -
Battery ID NP-FM500H NP-BX1
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) -
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Price at launch $749 $330