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Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV

Portability
89
Imaging
54
Features
55
Overall
54
Sony Alpha NEX-3 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV front
Portability
52
Imaging
53
Features
82
Overall
64

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV Key Specs

Sony NEX-3
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 297g - 117 x 62 x 33mm
  • Introduced June 2010
  • Successor is Sony NEX-C3
Sony RX10 IV
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Expand to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1095g - 133 x 94 x 145mm
  • Revealed September 2017
  • Succeeded the Sony RX10 III
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Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV Overview

Its time to look a little more in depth at the Sony NEX-3 versus Sony RX10 IV, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Large Sensor Superzoom and they are both offered by Sony. There is a sizeable difference among the resolutions of the NEX-3 (14MP) and RX10 IV (20MP) and the NEX-3 (APS-C) and RX10 IV (1") use totally different sensor sizing.

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The NEX-3 was unveiled 8 years before the RX10 IV and that is a fairly large gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Sony NEX-3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony RX10 IV being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before getting in to a more detailed comparison, below is a quick view of how the NEX-3 grades versus the RX10 IV in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Sony NEX-3 over the Sony RX10 IV

 NEX-3 RX10 IV 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 IV over the Sony NEX-3

 RX10 IV NEX-3 
RevealedSeptember 2017June 2010More recent by 88 months
Display resolution1440k920kSharper display (+520k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Common features in the Sony NEX-3 and Sony RX10 IV

 NEX-3 RX10 IV 
Manually focus More exact focus
Display typeTiltingTiltingTilting display
Display dimension3"3"Identical display measurement
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV Physical Comparison

In case you're looking to lug around your camera regularly, you will want to factor its weight and measurements. The Sony NEX-3 enjoys outside measurements of 117mm x 62mm x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 297 grams (0.65 lbs) whilst 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).

Check out the Sony NEX-3 versus Sony RX10 IV in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you have attached at that time. Following is the front view over all size comparison of the NEX-3 against the RX10 IV.

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the NEX-3 and RX10 IV is 89 and 52 respectively.

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV top view buttons comparison

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV Sensor Comparison

Often, it is tough to visualise the difference in sensor measurements only by viewing specs. The visual below should give you a greater sense of the sensor sizing in the NEX-3 and RX10 IV.

As you can plainly see, the 2 cameras have got different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The NEX-3 using its larger sensor will make shooting shallow DOF easier and the Sony RX10 IV will render more detail having an extra 6MP. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop pics much more aggressively. The older NEX-3 will be behind when it comes to sensor technology.

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV sensor size comparison

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV Screen and ViewFinder

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony NEX-3 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony RX10 IV as a Portrait photography camera
72
manual focus
resolution is good (14 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
supports face detect focus
delivers RAW files
71
focusing manually
above average flash sync speed (1/2,000 seconds)
decent MP (20MP)
good sensor size (1")
comes with face detect focus
exports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Sony NEX-3 as a Street photography camera
Sony RX10 IV as a Street photography camera
76
screen tilts up and down
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
does not have image stabilization
64
tilting screen
has image stabilization (Optical)
good sensor size (1")
exports RAW files
features focus by touch
weather proofing
more heavy than competition (1,095g)
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Sports Comparison

Sony NEX-3 Sports photography details
Sony RX10 IV Sports photography details
52
resolution is good (14MP)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
does not have image stabilization
has no phase detect auto focus
76
great zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
silent shutter (1/32,000 seconds)
high frames per second (24.0 frames per second)
has image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (20MP)
good sensor size (1")
comes with tracking focus
weather proofing
supports phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Sony NEX-3 Travel photography details
Sony RX10 IV Travel photography details
59
resolution is good (14 megapixels)
no Timelapse function
display isn't selfie friendly
56
weather proofing
supports bluetooth
features focus by touch
decent MP (20 megapixels)
built-in flash
really wide (24mm)
great zoom (600mm)
missing Timelapse function
more heavy than competition (1,095 grams)
doesn't feature selfie friendly screen
sluggish max aperture (f2.4)
Photography Glossary

Landscape Comparison

Sony NEX-3 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony RX10 IV as a Landscape photography camera
68
manual focus
switch lenses (Sony E mount)
screen is a good size (3 inches)
resolution is good (14 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
does not have image stabilization
no Timelapse function
62
focusing manually
really wide (24mm)
decent sized screen (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (20MP)
good sensor size (1")
exports RAW files
weather proofing
cannot swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f2.4)
missing Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Sony NEX-3
Vlogging with Sony RX10 IV
27
supports face detect focus
display isn't selfie friendly
does not have image stabilization
low video resolution (1280 x 720 pxls)
no microphone support
29
really wide (24mm)
touchscreen capability
has image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detect focus
video resolution high (3840 x 2160 pxls)
comes with microphone port
sluggish max aperture (f2.4)
doesn't feature selfie friendly screen
more heavy than competition (1,095 grams)
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Sony NEX-3 vs Sony RX10 IV Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony NEX-3 and Sony RX10 IV
 Sony Alpha NEX-3Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV
General Information
Brand Sony Sony
Model Sony Alpha NEX-3 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Large Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2010-06-07 2017-09-12
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Processor Bionz Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size APS-C 1"
Sensor measurements 23.4 x 15.6mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 365.0mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 14MP 20MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4592 x 3056 5472 x 3648
Max native ISO 12800 12800
Max boosted ISO - 25600
Min native ISO 200 125
RAW support
Min boosted ISO - 64
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Autofocus live view
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Number of focus points 25 315
Lens
Lens mounting type Sony E fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-600mm (25.0x)
Max aperture - f/2.4-4.0
Macro focus range - 3cm
Available lenses 121 -
Crop factor 1.5 2.7
Screen
Screen type Tilting Tilting
Screen size 3 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 920 thousand dot 1,440 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen tech TFT Xtra Fine LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 30s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/2000s
Highest silent shutter speed - 1/32000s
Continuous shooting speed 7.0fps 24.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 12.00 m 10.80 m (at Auto ISO)
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/160s 1/2000s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Max video resolution 1280x720 3840x2160
Video format MPEG-4 MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
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 seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 297 gr (0.65 lb) 1095 gr (2.41 lb)
Dimensions 117 x 62 x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3") 133 x 94 x 145mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.7")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 68 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 22.1 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 12.0 not tested
DXO Low light score 830 not tested
Other
Battery life 330 images 400 images
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model NPFW50 NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10sec (3 images)) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Pricing at launch $0 $1,698