Sony NEX-5 vs Sony NEX-6

Lets take a closer look at the Sony NEX-5 vs Sony NEX-6, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless and both of them are manufactured by Sony. The resolution of the NEX-5 (14MP) and the NEX-6 (16MP) is pretty well matched and both cameras posses the same sensor size (APS-C).

Photography Glossary

The NEX-5 was unveiled 3 years before the NEX-6 and that is quite a large difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras have the same body design (Rangefinder-style mirrorless).

Before delving straight to a thorough comparison, here is a simple synopsis of how the NEX-5 matches up vs the NEX-6 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a preview of the gallery images for Sony Alpha NEX-5 & Sony Alpha NEX-6. The full galleries are provided at Sony NEX-5 Gallery & Sony NEX-6 Gallery.

In case you're planning to lug around your camera often, you'll have to consider its weight and volume. The Sony NEX-5 provides physical measurements of 111mm x 59mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.3" x 1.5") along with a weight of 287 grams (0.63 lbs) while the Sony NEX-6 has sizing of 120mm x 67mm x 43mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 345 grams (0.76 lbs).

Compare the Sony NEX-5 vs Sony NEX-6 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you choose during that time. Underneath is a front view dimension comparison of the NEX-5 versus the NEX-6.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the NEX-5 and NEX-6 is 89 and 85 respectively.

Quite often, its difficult to visualise the contrast between sensor measurements merely by looking at a spec sheet. The photograph underneath will give you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the NEX-5 and NEX-6.

As you can see, both of those cameras provide the same sensor dimensions albeit not the same resolution. You can expect the Sony NEX-6 to give greater detail having an extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will help you crop photographs more aggressively. The older NEX-5 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor technology.