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Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30

Portability
89
Imaging
54
Features
55
Overall
54
Sony Alpha NEX-3 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX30 front
Portability
96
Imaging
42
Features
43
Overall
42

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 Key Specs

Sony NEX-3
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 297g - 117 x 62 x 33mm
  • Introduced June 2010
  • Replacement is Sony NEX-C3
Sony TX30
(Full Review)
  • 18MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3.3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 12800
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 26-130mm (F3.5-4.8) lens
  • 141g - 96 x 59 x 15mm
  • Revealed July 2013
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Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 Overview

Here is a complete comparison of the Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Ultracompact and they are both sold by Sony. There is a sizable difference between the sensor resolutions of the NEX-3 (14MP) and TX30 (18MP) and the NEX-3 (APS-C) and TX30 (1/2.3") boast different sensor sizes.

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The NEX-3 was revealed 4 years earlier than the TX30 and that is quite a significant difference as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Sony NEX-3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony TX30 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before getting straight to a detailed comparison, here is a quick view of how the NEX-3 matches up against the TX30 for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Sony NEX-3 over the Sony TX30

 NEX-3 TX30 
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen

Reasons to pick Sony TX30 over the Sony NEX-3

 TX30 NEX-3 
RevealedJuly 2013June 2010Fresher by 38 months
Screen dimensions3.3"3"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution1229k920kClearer screen (+309k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Sony NEX-3 and Sony TX30

 NEX-3 TX30 
Manually focus More exact focus
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 Physical Comparison

For those who are going to carry your camera often, you will have to factor in its weight and measurements. The Sony NEX-3 offers outer dimensions of 117mm x 62mm x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3") having a weight of 297 grams (0.65 lbs) while the Sony TX30 has proportions of 96mm x 59mm x 15mm (3.8" x 2.3" x 0.6") accompanied by a weight of 141 grams (0.31 lbs).

See the Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have attached at that moment. Following is a front view physical size comparison of the NEX-3 against the TX30.

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the NEX-3 and TX30 is 89 and 96 respectively.

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 top view buttons comparison

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 Sensor Comparison

Oftentimes, it is very hard to visualize the gap between sensor sizing just by reading technical specs. The photograph below will offer you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the NEX-3 and TX30.

As you can tell, the two cameras have different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The NEX-3 using its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF less difficult and the Sony TX30 will offer more detail because of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The older NEX-3 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 sensor size comparison

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony NEX-3 Portrait photography info
Sony TX30 Portrait photography info
72
focusing manually
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
includes face detect focusing
supports RAW files
38
focusing manually
MP count good (18MP)
lack of manual mode
cannot use external flash
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Sony NEX-3
Street photography with Sony TX30
76
screen tilts up and down
sensor size is good (APS-C)
supports RAW files
does not have image stabilization
64
has image stabilization (Optical)
environment proofing
screen is fixed
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Sony NEX-3 Sports photography highlights
Sony TX30 Sports photography highlights
52
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
does not have image stabilization
does not have phase detect AF
46
has image stabilization (Optical)
MP count good (18 megapixels)
environment proofing
lack of shutter priority mode
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lacks phase detect AF
Photography Glossary

Travel Comparison

Sony NEX-3 Travel photography details
Sony TX30 Travel photography details
59
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
missing Time Lapse mode
screen isn't selfie friendly
69
environment proofing
MP count good (18MP)
has built in flash
fairly wide (26mm)
lack of Time Lapse function
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony NEX-3 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony TX30 as a Landscape photography camera
68
focusing manually
change lenses (Sony E mount)
screen is a decent size (3 inch)
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
supports RAW files
does not have image stabilization
missing Time Lapse mode
51
focusing manually
fairly wide (26mm)
pretty good screen size (3.3 inch)
has image stabilization (Optical)
MP count good (18 megapixels)
environment proofing
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
lack of manual mode
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
lack of Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony NEX-3 Vlogging highlights
Sony TX30 Vlogging highlights
27
includes face detect focusing
screen isn't selfie friendly
does not have image stabilization
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pxls)
missing mic jack
34
fairly wide (26mm)
screen is touchscreen
has image stabilization (Optical)
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
lack of external mic support
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Sony NEX-3 vs Sony TX30 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony NEX-3 and Sony TX30
 Sony Alpha NEX-3Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX30
General Information
Company Sony Sony
Model Sony Alpha NEX-3 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX30
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Ultracompact
Introduced 2010-06-07 2013-07-26
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Ultracompact
Sensor Information
Chip Bionz -
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size APS-C 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 23.4 x 15.6mm 6.16 x 4.62mm
Sensor surface area 365.0mm² 28.5mm²
Sensor resolution 14 megapixels 18 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 -
Highest resolution 4592 x 3056 4896 x 3672
Highest native ISO 12800 12800
Min native ISO 200 80
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Number of focus points 25 -
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount Sony E fixed lens
Lens focal range - 26-130mm (5.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.5-4.8
Amount of lenses 121 -
Focal length multiplier 1.5 5.8
Screen
Type of display Tilting Fixed Type
Display sizing 3 inch 3.3 inch
Resolution of display 920k dots 1,229k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Display technology TFT Xtra Fine LCD OLED monitor
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 30 secs 4 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shooting rate 7.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 12.00 m -
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in -
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/160 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60, 50 fps)
Highest video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video file format MPEG-4 -
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 297 grams (0.65 lbs) 141 grams (0.31 lbs)
Physical dimensions 117 x 62 x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3") 96 x 59 x 15mm (3.8" x 2.3" x 0.6")
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 photos -
Battery style Battery Pack -
Battery model NPFW50 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10sec (3 images)) -
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo -
Card slots 1 1
Cost at launch $0 $230