Sony NEX-3N vs Sony W550

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.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Sony Alpha NEX-3N & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W550. The complete galleries are viewable at Sony NEX-3N Gallery & Sony W550 Gallery.

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.

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.

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

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.