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Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100

Portability
92
Imaging
33
Features
30
Overall
31
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 front
Portability
91
Imaging
50
Features
68
Overall
57

Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 Key Specs

Sony HX5
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/2.4" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 125 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-250mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 200g - 102 x 58 x 29mm
  • Introduced June 2010
Sony RX100
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-100mm (F1.8-4.9) lens
  • 240g - 102 x 58 x 36mm
  • Revealed August 2012
  • Refreshed by Sony RX100 II
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Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 Overview

In this article, we will be looking at the Sony HX5 versus Sony RX100, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Large Sensor Compact and both are created by Sony. There is a large difference among the resolutions of the HX5 (10MP) and RX100 (20MP) and the HX5 (1/2.4") and RX100 (1") feature different sensor sizes.

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The HX5 was manufactured 3 years prior to the RX100 and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. The two cameras offer different body type with the Sony HX5 being a Compact camera and the Sony RX100 being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before delving straight into a complete comparison, below is a short introduction of how the HX5 matches up against the RX100 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Sony HX5 over the Sony RX100

 HX5 RX100 

Reasons to pick Sony RX100 over the Sony HX5

 RX100 HX5 
RevealedAugust 2012June 2010Fresher by 26 months
Manual focus Dial exact focusing
Screen resolution1229k230kCrisper screen (+999k dot)

Common features in the Sony HX5 and Sony RX100

 HX5 RX100 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen dimensions
Selfie screen Neither comes with selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Lack of Touch friendly screen

Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 Physical Comparison

When you are going to carry your camera frequently, you will want to factor its weight and measurements. The Sony HX5 comes with external measurements of 102mm x 58mm x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1") and a weight of 200 grams (0.44 lbs) whilst the Sony RX100 has proportions of 102mm x 58mm x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") and a weight of 240 grams (0.53 lbs).

See the Sony HX5 versus Sony RX100 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have at that moment. Below is the front view dimension comparison of the HX5 vs the RX100.

Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability rating of the HX5 and RX100 is 92 and 91 respectively.

Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 top view buttons comparison

Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 Sensor Comparison

Oftentimes, it is hard to picture the contrast in sensor sizing just by researching a spec sheet. The visual below will help give you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the HX5 and RX100.

Clearly, both of those cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The HX5 because of its smaller sensor is going to make getting bokeh trickier and the Sony RX100 will result in more detail due to its extra 10 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop pictures a little more aggressively. The older HX5 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.

Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 sensor size comparison

Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony HX5 Portrait photography info
Sony RX100 Portrait photography info
19
lack of manual focus
external flash not possible
MP count low (10MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.4")
lack of RAW support
64
manual focus
flash sync speed is above average (1/2,000s)
good MP (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
offers face detect focus
exports RAW formats
external flash not possible
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Street Comparison

Sony HX5 Street photography information
Sony RX100 Street photography information
55
built in image stabilization (Optical)
screen does not articulate
sensor size is tiny (1/2.4")
lack of RAW support
79
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is nice (1")
exports RAW formats
lighter than average in class (240g)
good ISO range (25,600)
fixed screen
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Sports Comparison

Sony HX5 Sports photography factors
Sony RX100 Sports photography factors
26
built in image stabilization (Optical)
no shutter priority mode
MP count low (10MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.4")
lack of phase detect auto focus
65
built in image stabilization (Optical)
good MP (20 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (1")
offers tracking focus
lack of phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Sony HX5 Travel photography features
Sony RX100 Travel photography features
60
flash built-in
quite wide (25mm)
great zoom (250mm)
no Timelapse recording
MP count low (10 megapixels)
display isn't selfie friendly
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
79
lighter than average in class (240 grams)
good MP (20 megapixels)
flash built-in
decently wide (28mm)
good max aperture (f1.8)
display is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Sony HX5
Landscape photography with Sony RX100
37
quite wide (25mm)
screen size is good (3")
built in image stabilization (Optical)
lack of manual focus
cannot change lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
MP count low (10MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.4")
lack of RAW support
no Timelapse recording
74
manual focus
decently wide (28mm)
good max aperture (f1.8)
nice screen size (3")
built in image stabilization (Optical)
good MP (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
good ISO range (25,600)
exports RAW formats
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony HX5 Vlogging details
Sony RX100 Vlogging details
31
quite wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
display isn't selfie friendly
no external microphone port
38
decently wide (28mm)
good max aperture (f1.8)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
offers face detect focus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
lighter than average in class (240g)
display is not selfie friendly
no microphone jack
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Sony HX5 vs Sony RX100 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony HX5 and Sony RX100
 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100
General Information
Make Sony Sony
Model type Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100
Class Small Sensor Compact Large Sensor Compact
Introduced 2010-06-16 2012-08-28
Body design Compact Large Sensor Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Bionz -
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.4" 1"
Sensor measurements 6.104 x 4.578mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 27.9mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 10MP 20MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 3456 x 2592 5472 x 3648
Maximum native ISO 3200 25600
Minimum native ISO 125 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
AF continuous
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points 9 25
Lens
Lens mount type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens zoom range 25-250mm (10.0x) 28-100mm (3.6x)
Highest aperture f/3.5-5.5 f/1.8-4.9
Macro focusing range 5cm 5cm
Focal length multiplier 5.9 2.7
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of display 230 thousand dot 1,229 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Display tech - WhiteMagic TFT LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 30s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/1600s 1/2000s
Continuous shooting speed 10.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 3.80 m -
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Slow syncro Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync - 1/2000s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1440 x 1080 (60, 30fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video data format AVCHD MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS BuiltIn None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 200 gr (0.44 lbs) 240 gr (0.53 lbs)
Dimensions 102 x 58 x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1") 102 x 58 x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 66
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 22.6
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 12.4
DXO Low light rating not tested 390
Other
Battery life - 330 pictures
Battery format - Battery Pack
Battery ID NP-BG1 NP-BX1
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, portrait1/portrait2) Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2)
Time lapse feature With downloadable app
Type of storage Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo/ PRO HG-Duo, optional SD/SDHC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Price at launch $275 $448