Sony A560 vs Sony W710

Let's look more closely at the Sony A560 and Sony W710, one being a Entry-Level DSLR and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both offered by Sony. The resolution of the A560 (14MP) and the W710 (16MP) is relatively well matched but the A560 (APS-C) and W710 (1/2.3") provide different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The A560 was announced 3 years before the W710 and that is quite a sizable gap as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Sony A560 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony W710 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a in-depth comparison, here is a quick summation of how the A560 scores vs the W710 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Sony Alpha DSLR-A560 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W710. The whole galleries are viewable at Sony A560 Gallery and Sony W710 Gallery.

When you are going to lug around your camera frequently, you'll have to take into account its weight and size. The Sony A560 has exterior measurements of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") and a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs) while the Sony W710 has specifications of 97mm x 55mm x 20mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.8") accompanied by a weight of 114 grams (0.25 lbs).

Look at the Sony A560 and Sony W710 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you are working with at that time. The following is a front view overall size comparison of the A560 against the W710.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the A560 and W710 is 64 and 96 respectively.

Typically, it's difficult to visualize the difference between sensor measurements simply by reading through specs. The graphic underneath will give you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the A560 and W710.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras have different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The A560 with its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field easier and the Sony W710 will give you more detail with its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also help you crop shots a bit more aggressively. The older A560 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.