Sony A850 vs Sony RX10

Below is a detailed assessment of the Sony A850 and Sony RX10, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Large Sensor Superzoom and they are both sold by Sony. There exists a sizable gap among the sensor resolutions of the A850 (25MP) and RX10 (20MP) and the A850 (Full frame) and RX10 (1") have different sensor sizes.

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The A850 was manufactured 4 years earlier than the RX10 and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera technology is concerned. The two cameras feature different body design with the Sony A850 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony RX10 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before we go right into a in-depth comparison, here is a short overview of how the A850 matches up vs the RX10 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Sony Alpha DSLR-A850 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10. The entire galleries are viewable at Sony A850 Gallery & Sony RX10 Gallery.

For anybody who is intending to lug around your camera regularly, you'll need to think about its weight and proportions. The Sony A850 comes with outside measurements of 156mm x 117mm x 82mm (6.1" x 4.6" x 3.2") along with a weight of 895 grams (1.97 lbs) while the Sony RX10 has measurements of 129mm x 88mm x 102mm (5.1" x 3.5" x 4.0") accompanied by a weight of 813 grams (1.79 lbs).

Check out the Sony A850 and Sony RX10 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have attached at that time. Underneath is a front view over all size comparison of the A850 versus the RX10.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the A850 and RX10 is 54 and 58 respectively.

More often than not, its tough to visualize the gap in sensor measurements only by checking out specifications. The photograph below will help give you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the A850 and RX10.

Plainly, both the cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The A850 because of its larger sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF simpler and the Sony A850 will provide greater detail due to its extra 5MP. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop images way more aggressively. The older A850 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.