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Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV

Portability
64
Imaging
57
Features
82
Overall
67
Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV front
Portability
52
Imaging
54
Features
82
Overall
65

Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV Key Specs

Sony A580
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 599g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Introduced May 2011
  • Older Model is Sony A100
Sony RX10 IV
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1095g - 133 x 94 x 145mm
  • Launched September 2017
  • Superseded the Sony RX10 III
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Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV Overview

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the latter is a Large Sensor Superzoom and they are both manufactured by Sony. The sensor resolution of the A580 (16MP) and the RX10 IV (20MP) is pretty well matched but the A580 (APS-C) and RX10 IV (1") provide different sensor measurements.

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The A580 was unveiled 7 years prior to the RX10 IV and that is quite a sizable difference as far as tech is concerned. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Sony A580 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony RX10 IV being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before diving straight to a detailed comparison, here is a short highlight of how the A580 scores versus the RX10 IV when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Sony A580 over the Sony RX10 IV

 A580 RX10 IV 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 IV over the Sony A580

 RX10 IV A580 
LaunchedSeptember 2017May 2011Fresher by 76 months
Screen resolution1440k922kSharper screen (+518k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Sony A580 and Sony RX10 IV

 A580 RX10 IV 
Focus manually Dial accurate focus
Screen typeTiltingTiltingTilting screen
Screen size3"3"Same screen measurements
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV Physical Comparison

For anyone who is intending to carry your camera often, you're going to have to think about its weight and measurements. The Sony A580 comes with exterior dimensions of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") with a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs) and the Sony RX10 IV has proportions of 133mm x 94mm x 145mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.7") having a weight of 1095 grams (2.41 lbs).

Take a look at the Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you have attached at that moment. Following is a front view size comparison of the A580 against the RX10 IV.

Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability rating of the A580 and RX10 IV is 64 and 52 respectively.

Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV top view buttons comparison

Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV Sensor Comparison

Generally, its hard to picture the difference between sensor sizing purely by checking a spec sheet. The graphic here will help offer you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the A580 and RX10 IV.

As you can see, both cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The A580 using its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF less difficult and the Sony RX10 IV will resolve extra detail having an extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also help you crop pictures way more aggressively. The older A580 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.

Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV sensor size comparison

Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV Screen and ViewFinder

Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony A580 Portrait photography info
Sony RX10 IV Portrait photography info
74
you can focus manually
good resolution (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
offers face detect autofocus
saves RAW formats
72
has manual focus
high flash sync speed (1/2,000 seconds)
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
sensor size is good (1")
supports face detection focus
delivers RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Sony A580
Street photography with Sony RX10 IV
75
has a tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
64
screen tilts up and down
image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is good (1")
delivers RAW formats
supports touch to focus
weather sealing
more heavy than average in class (1,095g)
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Sports Comparison

Sony A580 as a Sports photography camera
Sony RX10 IV as a Sports photography camera
78
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
offers tracking focus
better than average battery (1,050 CIPA)
comes with phase detect autofocus
77
long zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
silent mode (1/32,000 seconds)
max frames per second high (24.0 frames per second)
image stabilization (Optical)
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
sensor size is good (1")
supports tracking autofocus
weather sealing
supports phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Sony A580 Travel photography info
Sony RX10 IV Travel photography info
61
better than average battery (1,050 CIPA)
good resolution (16MP)
built-in flash
does not have Timelapse mode
display is not selfie friendly
57
weather sealing
has bluetooth
supports touch to focus
decent megapixels (20MP)
flash built-in
really wide (24mm)
very long reach (600mm)
missing Timelapse recording
more heavy than average in class (1,095g)
does not have a selfie friendly screen
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.4)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony A580 Landscape photography advice
Sony RX10 IV Landscape photography advice
74
you can focus manually
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
pretty good screen size (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good resolution (16MP)
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
better than average battery (1,050 CIPA)
two card slots
does not have Timelapse mode
63
has manual focus
really wide (24mm)
pretty good screen size (3")
image stabilization (Optical)
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
sensor size is good (1")
delivers RAW formats
weather sealing
can't switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.4)
missing Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony A580 Vlogging info
Sony RX10 IV Vlogging info
34
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detect autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
does have microphone socket
display is not selfie friendly
29
really wide (24mm)
screen is touchscreen
image stabilization (Optical)
supports face detection focus
high res video (3840 x 2160 resolution)
comes with external microphone socket
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.4)
does not have a selfie friendly screen
more heavy than average in class (1,095 grams)
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Sony A580 vs Sony RX10 IV Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony A580 and Sony RX10 IV
 Sony Alpha DSLR-A580Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV
General Information
Manufacturer Sony Sony
Model type Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV
Class Entry-Level DSLR Large Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2011-05-26 2017-09-12
Physical type Compact SLR SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Powered by 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 16 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4912 x 3264 5472 x 3648
Highest native ISO 12800 12800
Highest enhanced ISO 25600 25600
Minimum native ISO 100 125
RAW images
Minimum enhanced ISO - 64
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
Autofocus continuous
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Total focus points 15 315
Cross type focus points 3 -
Lens
Lens support Sony/Minolta Alpha fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 24-600mm (25.0x)
Maximal aperture - f/2.4-4.0
Macro focusing range - 3cm
Number of lenses 143 -
Crop factor 1.5 2.7
Screen
Screen type Tilting Tilting
Screen sizing 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 922 thousand dots 1,440 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dots
Viewfinder coverage 95% 100%
Viewfinder magnification 0.53x 0.7x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 30s 30s
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/2000s
Fastest silent shutter speed - 1/32000s
Continuous shutter rate 7.0fps 24.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 12.00 m 10.80 m (at Auto ISO)
Flash options 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
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize 1/160s 1/2000s
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60, 29.97 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 640 x 424 (29.97 fps) 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video file format MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 599 grams (1.32 lbs) 1095 grams (2.41 lbs)
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 rating 80 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 23.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 13.3 not tested
DXO Low light rating 1121 not tested
Other
Battery life 1050 shots 400 shots
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID NP-FM500H NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Card slots Dual One
Launch price $848 $1,698