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Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV

Portability
94
Imaging
33
Features
30
Overall
31
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-G3 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV front
Portability
89
Imaging
52
Features
79
Overall
62

Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV Key Specs

Sony G3
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3.5" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 35-140mm (F3.5-10.0) lens
  • 185g - 97 x 59 x 22mm
  • Introduced January 2009
Sony RX100 IV
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-70mm (F1.8-2.8) lens
  • 298g - 102 x 58 x 41mm
  • Revealed June 2015
  • Succeeded the Sony RX100 III
  • Refreshed by Sony RX100 V
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Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV Overview

Lets look closer at the Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Large Sensor Compact and both are manufactured by Sony. There is a substantial difference among the sensor resolutions of the G3 (10MP) and RX100 IV (20MP) and the G3 (1/2.3") and RX100 IV (1") posses totally different sensor dimensions.

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The G3 was announced 7 years before the RX100 IV and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both cameras have different body design with the Sony G3 being a Compact camera and the Sony RX100 IV being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before diving straight to a in depth comparison, here is a concise summary of how the G3 scores against the RX100 IV with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Sony G3 over the Sony RX100 IV

 G3 RX100 IV 
Display dimensions3.5"3"Larger display (+0.5")
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Sony RX100 IV over the Sony G3

 RX100 IV G3 
RevealedJune 2015January 2009More recent by 78 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display resolution1229k921kSharper display (+308k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies

Common features in the Sony G3 and Sony RX100 IV

 G3 RX100 IV 
Manually focus More exact focus

Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV Physical Comparison

In case you're aiming to lug around your camera frequently, you have to think about its weight and volume. The Sony G3 comes with outer dimensions of 97mm x 59mm x 22mm (3.8" x 2.3" x 0.9") along with a weight of 185 grams (0.41 lbs) and the Sony RX100 IV has sizing of 102mm x 58mm x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6") accompanied by a weight of 298 grams (0.66 lbs).

Look at the Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have attached during that time. Here is a front view measurements comparison of the G3 versus the RX100 IV.

Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability score of the G3 and RX100 IV is 94 and 89 respectively.

Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV top view buttons comparison

Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV Sensor Comparison

In many cases, it can be hard to visualise the difference in sensor measurements just by researching a spec sheet. The photograph below may give you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the G3 and RX100 IV.

As you can see, each of these cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The G3 having a smaller sensor will make achieving shallower DOF more difficult and the Sony RX100 IV will result in more detail with its extra 10MP. Greater resolution will enable you to crop images a bit more aggressively. The older G3 will be behind with regard to sensor innovation.

Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV sensor size comparison

Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV Screen and ViewFinder

Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony G3 Portrait photography advice
Sony RX100 IV Portrait photography advice
26
has manual focus
no manual control
external flash not possible
megapixel count low (10MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
65
has manual focus
above average flash sync speed (1/2,000s)
megapixel count good (20 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (1")
comes with face detect focusing
supports RAW formats
cannot use external flash
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Street Comparison

Sony G3 Street photography highlights
Sony RX100 IV Street photography highlights
56
built in image stabilization (Optical)
screen is fixed
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
85
tilting screen
has image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is decent (1")
supports RAW formats
lighter than average (298g)
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Sports Comparison

Sony G3 Sports photography details
Sony RX100 IV Sports photography details
23
built in image stabilization (Optical)
max shutter speed is low (1/1,000 seconds)
low fps (2.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority mode
megapixel count low (10MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect auto focus
68
quiet shooting (1/32,000s)
fast continuous shooting (16.0 frames per second)
has image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count good (20MP)
sensor size is decent (1")
comes with tracking focus
doesn't have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Sony G3 Travel photography information
Sony RX100 IV Travel photography information
50
built-in flash
no Time Lapse function
megapixel count low (10 megapixels)
does not feature selfie friendly screen
wide angle not the best (35mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
86
lighter than average (298g)
megapixel count good (20MP)
built-in flash
selfie friendly screen
quite wide (24mm)
good maximum aperture (f1.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony G3 Landscape photography information
Sony RX100 IV Landscape photography information
36
has manual focus
very good size screen (3.5 inches)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not the best (35mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
no manual control
megapixel count low (10MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
no Time Lapse function
74
has manual focus
quite wide (24mm)
good maximum aperture (f1.8)
pretty good screen size (3")
has image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count good (20MP)
sensor size is decent (1")
supports RAW formats
can't swap lens (fixed lens mount)
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony G3 Vlogging features
Sony RX100 IV Vlogging features
27
touchscreen functionality
built in image stabilization (Optical)
wide angle not the best (35mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
does not feature selfie friendly screen
video resolution low (640 x 480 resolution)
no external mic port
81
quite wide (24mm)
good maximum aperture (f1.8)
selfie friendly screen
has image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detect focusing
video res high (3840 x 2160 pixels)
lighter than average (298 grams)
does not have mic jack
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Sony G3 vs Sony RX100 IV Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony G3 and Sony RX100 IV
 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-G3Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV
General Information
Company Sony Sony
Model type Sony Cyber-shot DSC-G3 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV
Class Small Sensor Compact Large Sensor Compact
Introduced 2009-01-08 2015-06-10
Body design Compact Large Sensor Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - Bionz X
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1"
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 10 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 3648 x 2736 5472 x 3648
Max native ISO 3200 12800
Max enhanced ISO - 25600
Min native ISO 80 125
RAW files
Min enhanced ISO - 80
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points 9 25
Lens
Lens mount type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens zoom range 35-140mm (4.0x) 24-70mm (2.9x)
Largest aperture f/3.5-10.0 f/1.8-2.8
Macro focusing range - 5cm
Focal length multiplier 5.8 2.7
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Tilting
Display sizing 3.5" 3"
Resolution of display 921 thousand dot 1,229 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.59x
Features
Min shutter speed 1s 30s
Max shutter speed 1/1000s 1/2000s
Max quiet shutter speed - 1/32000s
Continuous shutter speed 2.0fps 16.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation - Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 4.30 m (Auto ISO) -
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync -
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Max flash sync - 1/2000s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps) 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p/60i/24p), 1280 x 720 (60p/30p/24p/120p), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 640x480 3840x2160
Video format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 185 grams (0.41 pounds) 298 grams (0.66 pounds)
Physical dimensions 97 x 59 x 22mm (3.8" x 2.3" x 0.9") 102 x 58 x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested 70
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 22.9
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 12.6
DXO Low light rating not tested 562
Other
Battery life - 280 photographs
Style of battery - Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-BX1
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes
Time lapse shooting With downloadable app
Type of storage Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo, Internal SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Retail pricing $200 $898