Sony A850 vs Sony A57

Below is a thorough comparison of the Sony A850 and Sony A57, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR and they are both offered by Sony. There is a considerable difference between the image resolutions of the A850 (25MP) and A57 (16MP) and the A850 (Full frame) and A57 (APS-C) use totally different sensor sizing.

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The A850 was revealed 3 years earlier than the A57 and that is quite a large difference as far as tech is concerned. The two cameras come with different body type with the Sony A850 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony A57 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving straight into a more detailed comparison, below is a short summary of how the A850 grades versus the A57 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a preview of the gallery photos for Sony Alpha DSLR-A850 & Sony SLT-A57. The full galleries are available at Sony A850 Gallery & Sony A57 Gallery.

If you are going to lug around your camera frequently, you should factor in its weight and proportions. The Sony A850 has outer dimensions of 156mm x 117mm x 82mm (6.1" x 4.6" x 3.2") along with a weight of 895 grams (1.97 lbs) and the Sony A57 has measurements of 132mm x 98mm x 81mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.2") accompanied by a weight of 618 grams (1.36 lbs).

See the Sony A850 and Sony A57 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you have chosen during that time. Underneath is the front view overall size comparison of the A850 and the A57.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the A850 and A57 is 54 and 64 respectively.

In many cases, it's difficult to see the gap between sensor measurements merely by reading a spec sheet. The photograph here will help give you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the A850 and A57.

Clearly, both of those cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The A850 having a bigger sensor will make getting shallower DOF less difficult and the Sony A850 will deliver greater detail because of its extra 9MP. Higher resolution will help you crop shots much more aggressively. The older A850 is going to be behind with regard to sensor tech.