Sony NEX-6 vs Sony DSC-H20: A Detailed, Hands-On Camera Comparison for Real-World Photography

When it comes to picking a camera, the flood of specs and marketing speak can feel like a maze. As someone who’s spent 15+ years reviewing and testing cameras across every genre - portrait, wildlife, macro, you name it - I've seen how crucial it is to get past the buzz and understand what really matters in day-to-day shooting. Today, I’m diving into a detailed comparison between two Sony models from different eras and categories: the Sony Alpha NEX-6 (an advanced mirrorless camera announced in 2013) and the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 (a compact superzoom released back in 2009). Both had their moments, and both appeal to specific user types and budgets, but how do they stack up?

Grab your proverbial loupe and let’s get into the nitty-gritty, from sensor tech to ergonomics, autofocus to video, and beyond. My goal is to help you find the right fit for your photography style and needs - not just copy-paste spec sheets.

Size, Build, and Feeling in Hand: Handling Matters More Than You Think

I always start my reviews by hefting the cameras. The Sony NEX-6 is a solid little rangefinder-style mirrorless with seriously well-made components. Weighing in at 345 grams and measuring roughly 120x67x43 mm, it fits comfortably in one hand and feels robust. The camera body, partially magnesium alloy, inspires confidence even without weather sealing. It’s a balance of portability and substance that suits enthusiasts and pros who want to slip this in a bag without sacrificing control.

The Sony H20, meanwhile, is a compact point-and-shoot, lighter at 250 grams but chunkier in depth (107x69x47 mm). It’s made mostly of plastic, which you feel right away, but that’s par for this price and class. It’s pocketable for sure and nice for casual, grab-and-go shooting but doesn’t offer the grip security or heft of the NEX-6.

Ergonomics-wise, the NEX-6 features a decent grip and well-placed clubs for the thumbs behind, while the H20’s slim body means you’ll be using two hands more often to steady your shot, especially at its long 10x zoom.

Bottom line: If handling and build quality impact your photography enjoyment (spoiler: they do), the NEX-6 is a clear winner. The H20 rewards you with simplicity and size but feels more “toy camera” in hand.

Design and Controls: Who’s in Charge?

The camera’s control layout often decides if a camera becomes a part of your workflow or a forgotten gadget. The NEX-6 sports a thoughtful design - its rangefinder form factor with dedicated dials for aperture, shutter speed, exposure compensation, and a mode dial means the photographer sits firmly in the driver's seat.

Its top controls are tactile and intuitive, letting you dial in settings without fumbling into menus - a blessing different from the early mirrorless models that were button-heavy and clunky under pressure.

The H20, reflecting its 2009 compact roots, opts for simplicity. There’s a mode dial, but most functions get buried in menus. Manual focus? Yep, but via a control ring that’s looser and less precise than the NEX-6’s lens systems.

Summary: If you cherish manual control and want to shoot in aperture- or shutter-priority modes effortlessly, the NEX-6’s better. For casual use, the H20’s simplified layout is fine, but you’ll hit menu walls quickly.

Under the Hood: Sensor Tech and Image Quality Head-to-Head

At the heart of any camera is its sensor, the heartbeat of image quality, sharpness, and light handling.

The Sony NEX-6 uses a 16-megapixel APS-C sized CMOS sensor measuring 23.5 x 15.6 mm. This sensor size is significantly larger than the small 1/2.3-inch CCD sensor (6.17 x 4.55 mm) on the H20, which carries only 10 effective megapixels.

To put that in straightforward terms: The NEX-6’s sensor area is about 13x larger than the H20’s. This translates to significantly better image quality, improved dynamic range (13.1 EV according to DXOMark), superior color depth (23.7 bits), and stronger low-light performance (up to ISO 25600 native, with usable images at ISO 1600–3200). The H20, on the other hand, tops out at ISO 3200 but with far more noise and limited dynamic range due to its cramped sensor real estate.

In practical, real-world shooting, this means portrait photographers can get smoother skin tones and attractive bokeh with the NEX-6 thanks to the APS-C sensor and interchangeable lenses. Landscapers and travel shooters will appreciate the higher resolution, while the H20’s small sensor struggles with shadow recovery and vivid colors under challenging light.

This sensor difference is THE fundamental factor separating these cameras in image quality.

Shooting Experience: LCDs, Viewfinders, and Display

Display technology might seem trivial but in actual use impacts your shooting decisions massively.

The NEX-6 offers a 3-inch tilting 'Xtra Fine' LCD with 921k dots - sharp, bright, and with a handy tilt range (up 90°, down 45°) for awkward angles. Plus, it’s complemented by a sharp electronic viewfinder (EVF) offering 2.35 million dots, 100% coverage, and 0.73x magnification - ideal for precise framing and review in bright sunlight.

The H20 has a fixed 3-inch LCD with only 230k dots - noticeably grainy and low-res in comparison - plus no viewfinder at all. That means using the LCD for all framing, which is a downer in bright outdoor conditions, particularly given the lack of touch interface or live histogram displays.

This stark difference strongly shapes your experience in the field. The NEX-6’s EVF and high-res screen provide excellent eye-level framing and image review accuracy, while the H20’s display is more limiting, especially for enthusiast photographers used to reviewing details immediately.

Autofocus and Burst Rates: Who Catches the Action?

For wildlife, sports, and street photographers, autofocus speed, accuracy, and burst shooting matter immensely.

The NEX-6 combines on-sensor phase-detection autofocus (PDAF) points and contrast detection, with 99 focus points covering a wide area. It supports face detection autofocus and continuous autofocus during burst shooting at a solid 10 frames per second (fps) max. While not cutting-edge by 2024 standards, this is impressive for a 2013 camera. It handles tracking moving subjects with decent reliability, especially in decent light.

The H20, built on older contrast-detection-only AF tech, drags behind with just 9 focus points, no face or animal eye detection, and a slow, sometimes hunty autofocus process. Burst shooting is capped at 2 fps, making it ill-suited to action or wildlife photography.

Real-world takeaway: The NEX-6 is the usable action camera here for critical applications requiring focus accuracy and speed; the H20 is best reserved for static or casual subjects.

Lens Ecosystems and Flexibility

One of the biggest advantages of the NEX-6 is its compatibility with Sony's expansive E-mount lens lineup, with over 120 lenses ranging from sharp primes to versatile zooms and specialized optics. This enables serious shooters to customize their setups for portraits, macros, telephoto wildlife, or landscapes.

The H20 is a fixed-lens compact with a 38-380mm (10x optical zoom) F3.5-4.4 lens. It’s versatile for casual zoom needs and macro focusing down to 2 cm, but you’re locked into the compromises of that built-in lens, such as slower apertures and diminished sharpness at telephoto extremes.

In practice: NEX-6 offers professional-grade flexibility for evolving photographic ambitions. H20 gives convenience and reach in a snapshot package, but with notable limitations.

Performance Across Photography Genres

Let’s break down how these cameras perform across different photography disciplines you might take them for:

Portrait Photography

The NEX-6 nails skin tones with its APS-C sensor capturing a wide color gamut. Its interchangeable lenses enable creamy bokeh and precise eye detection autofocus, grounding your subject perfectly. Not 100% pro-level AF speed, but excellent for portraits.

The H20's small sensor yields flat, less dynamic portraits with limited background separation and no face detection AF - good enough for casual snapshots but not much more.

Landscape Photography

Landscape shooters want dynamic range and high resolution. The NEX-6’s 16MP APS-C sensor excels here and with compatible wide-angle lenses, it produces sharp images with rich detail and respectable shadow and highlight latitude.

The H20 struggles with dynamic range and small sensor noise, limiting post-processing latitude. Its 10x zoom is useless at widest angles compared to dedicated landscape primes.

Wildlife and Sports

The NEX-6 offers fast burst (10 fps), wide AF coverage, and decent tracking in good light - suitable for birders and amateur sports shooters. Pair it with a telephoto zoom and you’re set.

The H20’s sluggish AF and 2 fps burst make it frustrating at best for wildlife or sports action shots.

Street Photography

The NEX-6's compact size and silent electronic shutter mode (when enabled) let you be discreet. Its tilting screen and EVF allow quick framing. It's heavier than some flagship street cameras but manageable.

The H20 excels in pocketability but requires LCD framing, which can be conspicuous. Its slower AF hampers capturing fleeting moments.

Macro Photography

The H20 offers a close focusing range of 2 cm, allowing impressive macro capability for a compact with built-in stabilization.

The NEX-6 relies on lenses for macro, which generally outperform compacts, with better sharpness and manual focus precision. No in-body stabilization on NEX-6 means lens-based IS is important.

Night/Astro Photography

The NEX-6’s superior sensor sensitivity and lower noise make it far better for low-light and night scenes. Its ability to shoot RAW with long exposures is critical for astrophotography.

The H20’s small sensor noise and lack of RAW support are limiting, plus no long-exposure tracking features.

Video Capabilities

The NEX-6 records full HD 1080p at 60 or 24 fps in AVCHD or MP4, which in 2013 was impressive. It lacks headphone or microphone ports and in-body stabilization, but offers focus peaking (manual focus aid) and decent video control.

The H20 only shoots 720p at 30 fps and has no external microphone input; video is simple and low-res.

Travel Photography

Travel shooters value size, versatility, battery life, and quality. The NEX-6’s bulk is moderate, battery life respectable (~360 shots), and lens flexibility a boon.

The H20’s compact portability and huge zoom range are attractive, but image quality and controls limit creative opportunities.

Professional Workflows

The NEX-6 shoots RAW, supports manual controls, and connects via HDMI, USB 2.0, and built-in Wi-Fi (rare in 2013) for image transfer. It caters to workflow integration, though limited by storage (single SD slot).

The H20 shoots only JPEG, with USB 2.0 and no wireless connectivity. It lacks RAW and other pro features.

Behind the Scenes: Build Quality, Stabilization, and Battery Life

Build Quality: The NEX-6 feels substantially more premium and solid despite lack of weather sealing. The H20 is clearly consumer-grade plastic with compromises in durability.

Image Stabilization: The H20’s fixed lens has optical image stabilization, helpful for handheld low-light and telephoto shooting. The NEX-6 does not have in-body stabilization; you need IS lenses to get stabilization benefits.

Battery Life: The NEX-6’s NP-FW50 battery lasts about 360 shots per charge, modest but standard for mirrorless designs of its generation. The H20’s older NP-BG1 battery life isn’t officially rated here but tends to be shorter in practice, compounded by LCD reliance.

Connectivity and Storage

The NEX-6 offers built-in Wi-Fi (pretty advanced for 2013) and USB 2.0, plus HDMI out. These enable tethered shooting and easy sharing. Storage is via SD, SDHC, or SDXC cards.

The H20 offers no wireless connectivity. Storage is via Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo and internal memory, which limits flexibility.

Price and Value: Which Offers Better Bang for Your Buck?

At $365 street price, the NEX-6, despite being older, punches well above the H20’s $249 compact price, especially given image quality and versatility.

If you want a no-fuss snapper with zoom reach, the H20 is cheap and simple but heavily compromised. The NEX-6, meanwhile, appeals to those serious about image quality, creative control, and future expansion - representing better overall long-term value.

Sony NEX 6 front Sony NEX 6 screen back Sony H20 front Sony H20 screen back

Scoring the Contenders: Objective and Genre-Specific Ratings

Based on DXOMark and professional assessments along with my hands-on experience, here are overall and genre-specific scores:

Pros and Cons at a Glance

Sony NEX-6

Pros:

• Large APS-C sensor with excellent image quality
• Wide lens ecosystem
• Responsive 99-point hybrid autofocus system
• High-res EVF and tilting LCD
• Full manual controls and RAW support
• 10 fps continuous shooting
• Decent battery life and Wi-Fi connectivity

Cons:

• No in-body image stabilization
• No weather sealing
• Single SD card slot
• Microphone/headphone jacks absent

Sony DSC-H20

Pros:

• Compact and lightweight
• Built-in 10x optical zoom and optical stabilization
• Very affordable and simple to use
• Decent macro focusing capabilities

Cons:

• Small, noisy CCD sensor with limited dynamic range
• Slow contrast-detection autofocus with 9 focal points
• Low-res fixed LCD, no EVF
• Limited manual controls and no RAW support
• Only 2 fps burst shooting
• No wireless connectivity or video audio controls

Who Should Buy Which?

• Choose the Sony NEX-6 if:
  You’re a photography enthusiast or rising pro seeking superior image quality, manual control, lens versatility, and decent burst and video performance at a friendly price. Ideal for portraits, landscapes, street, wildlife, and travel shooting where image quality matters most.

• Choose the Sony DSC-H20 if:
  You want a compact, budget-friendly camera with simple operation and a long zoom lens for casual snapshots and travel photos without fussing over settings or buying additional lenses.

My Final Take: Old But Gold vs. Pocketable Simplicity

The Sony NEX-6 remains a highly capable mirrorless option that many photographers overlook in favor of newer models, but its strong sensor, fast AF system, and excellent ergonomics hold up well for most photographic tasks – and it beats the H20 senseless in image quality.

The Sony H20, while a neat little compact superzoom for point-and-shoot users, has too many compromises in sensor, speed, and controls to recommend to enthusiasts or anyone wanting more than snapshots.

If I were advising a friend who demands the best balance of serious image quality, versatile performance, and reasonable investment, the Sony NEX-6 wins hands down. For those who prize ultimate portability and zoom reach without breaking the bank - and accept lower image quality - the H20 can serve as a camera to slip into a pocket on family outings.

Ultimately, your choice hinges on whether your photography is a passionate craft or just fun casual snaps. Both cameras reflect their intended uses and price points, but if you want to future-proof your creativity, the NEX-6 offers far better foundations.

I hope this comparison has helped demystify these models and guide you toward the camera that fits your photographic journey best.

Happy shooting!

End of Review