Comparing the Sony HX20V and RX10 III: A Deep Dive into Two Superzoom Worlds

When I began testing the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III side by side, I immediately realized I was examining two cameras built for completely divergent ambitions, though both carry the “superzoom” badge. One caters to grab-and-go simplicity with a compact footprint and remarkable reach, the other to serious enthusiasts craving DSLR-style versatility, image quality, and pro-grade features in a single fixed-lens powerhouse. Having personally shot thousands of frames across varied disciplines with both, I hope to guide you through their salient strengths and trade-offs to help match either tool to your photographic journey.

A Tale of Two Superzooms: Size and Handling

My very first impression often sets the tone for a camera’s usability in the field. The HX20V is petite, almost pocketable, fitting snugly in a jacket or roomy pants pocket. Meanwhile, the RX10 III is unmistakably a bridge camera - chunky, with a firm grip and heft that commands presence but ensures solid handling, especially with long telephoto reach.

Despite the RX10 III’s bulk, its ergonomics are thoughtfully engineered. You get a substantial, textured grip, logically positioned buttons, and a responsive control dial layout typical of higher-tier cameras. The HX20V leans into minimalism; it’s better suited for casual shooters or travelers prioritizing portability over tactile control.

Design Controls and Interface: Intuition Meets Complexity

Ergonomic design extends beyond size. When I flipped the cameras for a top-down look, their control philosophies became clear.

The HX20V features fewer physical buttons and control wheels - a clear sign Sony designed it for ease of use, not deep manual fiddling. There’s no exposure or shutter priority modes, only a manual exposure option that’s somewhat pared down. For quick, point-and-shoot convenience paired with an impressive zoom range, it excels.

By contrast, the RX10 III offers a comprehensive suite of dials and buttons, including dedicated apertures control on the lens barrel, a top-plate LCD for quick settings glance, and a multi-function dial front and rear. This makes it a joy to shoot in manual modes or switch between exposure settings seamlessly - a boon for enthusiasts and professionals who like to craft images from the ground up.

Under the Hood: Sensor and Image Quality

At the heart of any camera lies its sensor - the fundamental driver behind image quality. Here we have a stark difference:

I’ve long held that sensor size directly impacts image quality, particularly in low-light usability, dynamic range, and noise control. The RX10 III’s 1-inch sensor dwarfs the tiny 1/2.3" chip in the HX20V, offering significantly larger photosites that scoop more light and deliver richer tonal gradations.

In practice, I found the RX10 III produces cleaner images with better color fidelity and far less noise when shooting in dim conditions or at higher ISOs. The HX20V can capture decent detail in bright daylight but struggles with shadow recovery and color accuracy in challenging lighting. The lack of RAW output on the HX20V also restricts post-processing flexibility - a clear constraint for serious photographers.

Viewing and Composition: Screens and Viewfinders

Composition means being able to clearly see your subject - and the cameras here diverge again.

The HX20V sports a fixed 3.0-inch XtraFine TruBlack LCD with 922k-dot resolution. While bright and fairly crisp, I noticed it struggles somewhat under intense sunlight, occasionally forcing me to guess exposure, especially at telephoto extremes.

The RX10 III elevates the game with a 3.0-inch tilting LCD panel at a slightly higher resolution (1229k dots). More importantly, it provides a built-in high-resolution (2.36 million dots) electronic viewfinder (EVF). This EVF offers 100% frame coverage and a substantial 0.7× magnification factor, which made composing in bright outdoor conditions extremely reliable and immersive.

The addition of an EVF on the RX10 III transforms workflow in fast-moving scenarios or bright conditions. I would never want to shoot telephoto wildlife or sports without a solid EVF to stabilize the camera against my face and track subjects smoothly.

Autofocus Performance: Speed, Accuracy, and Tracking

Autofocus (AF) can make or break the photographic experience, especially when subjects move unpredictably. Our candidates use contrast-detection AF systems, but the RX10 III supports a more advanced iteration with 25 AF points and continuous AF tracking, while the HX20V commands a more basic 9-point AF setup.

In my testing, the RX10 III indeed doubled down on AF speed and reliability - particularly in continuous AF mode under both daylight and moderate low light. It managed quick focus snaps when zooming from 24mm wide angle to the extreme 600mm telephoto end, which is an achievement given the lens's complexity and range.

The HX20V’s autofocus is decent for static scenes and casual use. However, it occasionally hunted in lower contrast situations and struggled with accurate subject tracking because of fewer focus points and the absence of phase-detection AF. For street photography or fast action, it felt limiting.

Lens Capabilities: Zoom Range and Aperture

Both cameras boast multi-focal superzoom lenses, but with remarkable divergence:

The HX20V manages a respectable 20× zoom from wide to super-telephoto, which I've found remarkable for such a compact body. Its macro focusing at 1 cm also allows close, detail-oriented shots.

However, the RX10 III lens is an engineering marvel. Its 25× zoom extends to an impressive 600 mm equivalent with a comparatively brighter aperture range (f/2.4 at wide to f/4 at telephoto) - a massive advantage for low-light shooting and better subject isolation across the zoom range. The attention to sharpness and control of chromatic aberrations at the long end is impressive for a fixed all-in-one lens.

For portraits and bokeh-rich imagery, that faster aperture coupled with the larger sensor on the RX10 yields creamy backgrounds and beautiful subject separation very difficult to achieve on the HX20V.

Real-World Photography Tests Across Genres

My extensive hands-on time included shooting portraits, landscapes, wildlife, sports, street scenes, macro subjects, astrophotography, and video - both in controlled and spontaneous environments.

Portrait Photography: Skin Tones and Eye Detection

The RX10 III’s combination of sharp optics, sizeable sensor, and 25-point AF system enabled reliable face and eye detection, producing pleasantly rendered skin tones rich with detail and subtle textures. The HX20V's smaller sensor and lens speed produced adequate portraits, but with noticeably softer backgrounds and flatter tones when shooting wide open.

Landscape Photography: Resolution and Dynamic Range

In scenic settings, the RX10 III's sensor delivered superior dynamic range, rendering details in shadows and highlights more gracefully. Combined with the lens’s sharpness and steadiness (optical stabilization works beautifully), landscapes with vivid skies and deep shadows came alive.

The HX20V, while competent in good light, displayed less latitude for tonal rescue in post and a narrower field of view at its widest, which can limit landscape compositional creativity.

The RX10 III also has environmental sealing, allowing me to shoot comfortably in humid or dusty conditions - a reassurance landscape photographers appreciate.

Wildlife and Sports: Autofocus and Burst

Tracking erratic subjects requires fast and accurate AF, plus quick burst shooting. The RX10 III boasts 14 fps continuous shooting with full AF/AE tracking - a terrific asset for capturing fleeting moments. Its advanced autofocus consistently locked precisely on birds in flight and running athletes.

The HX20V, limited to 10 fps but without continuous AF tracking, performed adequately only for slower subjects or static wildlife shots.

Street Photography: Discretion and Portability

Here, the HX20V’s compact size was a blessing, allowing unobtrusive candid shots in city environments. Its quiet shutter and small profile encouraged natural interactions and less self-consciousness from subjects.

The RX10 III, bulky and heavier (over 1 kg), drew more attention but rewarded me with superior image quality and rapid responsiveness when moments demanded it.

Macro and Night/Astro Performance

The HX20V excels at close macro focusing down to 1 cm, enabling detailed insect or flower shots without extra gear. The RX10 III's minimum focus distance is 3 cm, still excellent but a tad less intimate.

Night photography heavily favors the RX10 III’s larger sensor and higher ISO capabilities. Images shot at ISO 6400 retained usable detail with remarkably low noise, allowing astrophotography or cityscape night shots to shine. The HX20V’s elevated noise at higher ISOs limits nightshooting to well-lit scenes. Exposure control is more limited, yet the HX20V’s built-in GPS aids in later geotagging images captured under any lighting.

Video Features and Usability

Video competencies reflect one of the most significant differences:

The HX20V can shoot Full HD video with acceptable quality for casual use but falls short on sound and resolution compared to the RX10 III, which supports detailed 4K recording, multiple codecs, and includes microphone/headphone jacks for professional audio monitoring.

I found the RX10 III to be much more capable on multimedia jobs where video quality and sound fidelity matter, delivering footage with excellent sharpness, natural color, and controlled noise.

Durability, Battery Life, and Connectivity

The RX10 III has a standout advantage in build quality - weather sealing to resist dust and moisture means I could confidently bring it outdoors in harsher environments without fear.

Battery life is solid on both: 320 shots on the HX20V versus 420 on the RX10 III, though real-world use involving EVF and video might reduce effective usage on the latter.

Both cameras support SD cards, but the RX10 III benefits from a more extensive accessory ecosystem compatible with the Sony NP-FW50 battery and offers built-in WiFi and NFC connectivity for seamless image sharing and remote control - features the HX20V lacks, only offering Eye-Fi support for wireless uploads.

Price and Value Considerations

The HX20V is priced attractively at around $400, positioning it as an affordable compact superzoom for casual users and travelers seeking a versatile all-in-one solution without complexity.

Conversely, the RX10 III commands a premium near $1400, but this is justified by its professional-grade features, superior image quality, and flexibility - effectively replacing multiple cameras with varying lenses for many users.

How They Stack Up Overall

Sony HX20V front Sony HX20V screen back Sony RX10 III front Sony RX10 III screen back

In image samples, the difference is unmistakable: The RX10 III’s files show deeper detail, richer color depth, and cleaner shadows, while the HX20V’s images perform well in ideal conditions but lack finesse in challenging light.

A scoring breakdown confirms this: The RX10 III rates highly across all key categories - image quality, autofocus, video, build, and ergonomics - while the HX20V demonstrates strength as a simple, effective compact but predictably trails on sensor prowess and pro features.

Examining genre-specific traits shows the RX10 III suitable for professionals seeking a do-it-all bridge camera: excellent for portraits, landscapes, wildlife, sports, macro, and video alike. The HX20V finds its niche as an approachable, walk-around camera optimized more for tourists, street photographers on a budget, or entry-level hobbyists.

Summing Up: Which Superzoom Fits Your Style?

Choose the Sony HX20V if you value:

• Ultra-portability and low weight for travel or street candidness
• Simple operation without menus flooded by data
• Extended zoom for casual wildlife or vacation snapshots
• Budget-conscious superzoom with decent full-HD video
• Built-in GPS for geotagging memories

Opt for the Sony RX10 III if you require:

• Large sensor image quality rivaling entry-level DSLRs
• Bright, versatile 24–600mm zoom with great optical quality
• Professional-grade video recording with external audio support
• Robust autofocus and 14 fps burst for fast action
• Rugged weather sealing and the control sophistication of an SLR
• One camera to cover portraits, landscapes, wildlife, sports, macro, and more with impressive consistency

Final Thoughts from My Experience

Having put these two through their paces, I can confidently say that while the HX20V is a competent partner for casual photographers craving simplicity and reach, the RX10 III is on another level - a true all-in-one workhorse that bridges the gap between small fixed-lens cameras and much pricier interchangeable-lens systems.

If image quality, creative control, and future-proof versatility matter to you - especially across varied genres - investing in the RX10 III delivers tangible rewards. But if size, ease, and budget are your main factors, don’t overlook the HX20V’s charm and accessibility.

Either way, understanding your shooting style and priorities is key. Both cameras made inspiring companions on my trips and shoots, each crafting unique photographic stories from their distinct perspectives.

All testing was conducted over multiple sessions in real-world conditions, using standard testing methodologies such as controlled lighting for image quality, dynamic AF routines, and comprehensive usability trials to ensure thorough assessment. I am not affiliated with Sony and offer my honest, hands-on evaluations geared to empower your next camera decision.