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Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550

Portability
89
Imaging
57
Features
52
Overall
55
Sony Alpha NEX-3N front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W550 front
Portability
96
Imaging
37
Features
28
Overall
33

Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 Key Specs

Sony NEX-3N
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 16000
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 269g - 110 x 62 x 35mm
  • Revealed February 2013
  • Earlier Model is Sony NEX-F3
  • New Model is Sony a5000
Sony W550
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 26-104mm (F2.7-5.7) lens
  • 110g - 94 x 56 x 19mm
  • Revealed July 2011
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Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 Overview

Its time to look a bit more closely at the Sony NEX-3N and Sony W550, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Ultracompact and both are offered by Sony. The image resolution of the NEX-3N (16MP) and the W550 (14MP) is relatively well matched but the NEX-3N (APS-C) and W550 (1/2.3") posses different sensor measurements.

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The NEX-3N was launched 20 months later than the W550 which makes them a generation apart from one another. Both cameras have different body design with the Sony NEX-3N being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony W550 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before diving into a more detailed comparison, here is a brief overview of how the NEX-3N grades vs the W550 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Photography Glossary
	
	

Reasons to pick Sony NEX-3N over the Sony W550

 NEX-3N W550 
RevealedFebruary 2013July 2011Fresher by 20 months
Manually focus Very precise focusing
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution460k230kCrisper screen (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony W550 over the Sony NEX-3N

 W550 NEX-3N 

Common features in the Sony NEX-3N and Sony W550

 NEX-3N W550 
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen measurements
Selfie screen Neither includes selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Neither includes Touch friendly screen

Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 Physical Comparison

If you are going to carry your camera regularly, you're going to have to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Sony NEX-3N features exterior measurements of 110mm x 62mm x 35mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.4") having a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs) whilst the Sony W550 has dimensions of 94mm x 56mm x 19mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.7") with a weight of 110 grams (0.24 lbs).

Check the Sony NEX-3N and Sony W550 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are utilizing at that time. The following is a front view over all size comparison of the NEX-3N compared to the W550.

Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the NEX-3N and W550 is 89 and 96 respectively.

Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 top view buttons comparison

Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, its tough to imagine the gap between sensor sizing simply by reading through specs. The graphic here will help give you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the NEX-3N and W550.

All in all, both cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The NEX-3N due to its bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF simpler and the Sony NEX-3N will resolve more detail utilizing its extra 2MP. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The younger NEX-3N provides an edge with regard to sensor tech.

Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 sensor size comparison

Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony NEX-3N as a Portrait photography camera
Sony W550 as a Portrait photography camera
66
has manual focus
megapixel count good (16MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
cannot use external flash
28
MP count good (14 megapixels)
focusing manually not possible
no manual exposure
can't use external flash
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Street Comparison

Sony NEX-3N as a Street photography camera
Sony W550 as a Street photography camera
77
tilting screen
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
no image stabilization
57
image stabilization (Optical)
screen is fixed
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Sony NEX-3N Sports photography info
Sony W550 Sports photography info
53
megapixel count good (16MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
great battery pack (480 CIPA)
low frames per second (4.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
does not have phase detect auto focus
35
image stabilization (Optical)
MP count good (14MP)
slow fps (1.0 fps)
no shutter priority
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Sony NEX-3N Travel photography details
Sony W550 Travel photography details
71
great battery pack (480 CIPA)
megapixel count good (16MP)
flash built-in
missing Time Lapse recording
does not have selfie friendly display
65
MP count good (14 megapixels)
flash built-in
fairly wide (26mm)
lack of Time Lapse function
display is not selfie friendly
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.7)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Sony NEX-3N
Landscape photography with Sony W550
70
has manual focus
switch lenses (Sony E mount)
nice screen size (3")
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
great battery pack (480 CIPA)
no image stabilization
missing Time Lapse recording
42
fairly wide (26mm)
screen size is good (3 inch)
image stabilization (Optical)
MP count good (14MP)
focusing manually not possible
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.7)
no manual exposure
sensor is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
lack of Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony NEX-3N Vlogging info
Sony W550 Vlogging info
28
good video quality (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does not have selfie friendly display
no image stabilization
missing external mic jack
29
fairly wide (26mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.7)
display is not selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 resolution)
lack of mic support
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Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony NEX-3N and Sony W550
 Sony Alpha NEX-3NSony Cyber-shot DSC-W550
General Information
Brand Name Sony Sony
Model type Sony Alpha NEX-3N Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W550
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Ultracompact
Revealed 2013-02-25 2011-07-24
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Ultracompact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Bionz BIONZ
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size APS-C 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 23.5 x 15.6mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 366.6mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 14 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 4:3 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4912 x 3264 4320 x 3240
Highest native ISO 16000 3200
Min native ISO 200 80
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points 25 9
Lens
Lens mount type Sony E fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 26-104mm (4.0x)
Highest aperture - f/2.7-5.7
Macro focusing distance - 5cm
Total lenses 121 -
Crop factor 1.5 5.8
Screen
Display type Tilting Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of display 460 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display technology - Clear Photo LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 30s 2s
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000s 1/1600s
Continuous shooting rate 4.0 frames/s 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance - 3.80 m
Flash settings - Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/160s -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video format MPEG-4, AVCHD MPEG-4
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None None
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 269 gr (0.59 lbs) 110 gr (0.24 lbs)
Physical dimensions 110 x 62 x 35mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.4") 94 x 56 x 19mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.7")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 74 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 22.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.5 not tested
DXO Low light rating 1067 not tested
Other
Battery life 480 shots -
Battery style Battery Pack -
Battery ID NPFW50 NP-BN1
Self timer - Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Duo/Memory Stick Pro Duo, Memory Stick Pro-HG Duo
Card slots 1 -
Retail price $399 $119