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Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57

Portability
52
Imaging
53
Features
82
Overall
64
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV front
 
Sony SLT-A57 front
Portability
64
Imaging
57
Features
85
Overall
68

Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 Key Specs

Sony RX10 IV
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1095g - 133 x 94 x 145mm
  • Announced September 2017
  • Earlier Model is Sony RX10 III
Sony A57
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 100 - 16000 (Boost to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 618g - 132 x 98 x 81mm
  • Introduced September 2012
  • Replaced the Sony A55
  • Renewed by Sony A58
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Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 Overview

Its time to look more closely at the Sony RX10 IV and Sony A57, former being a Large Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR and both are created by Sony. There is a substantial difference between the resolutions of the RX10 IV (20MP) and A57 (16MP) and the RX10 IV (1") and A57 (APS-C) posses different sensor measurements.

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The RX10 IV was released 5 years later than the A57 and that is quite a big difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Sony RX10 IV being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Sony A57 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving straight to a in depth comparison, here is a concise synopsis of how the RX10 IV matches up vs the A57 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Photography Glossary
	
	

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 IV over the Sony A57

 RX10 IV A57 
IntroducedSeptember 2017September 2012More recent by 61 months
Display resolution1440k921kCrisper display (+519k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Sony A57 over the Sony RX10 IV

 A57 RX10 IV 
Display typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating display
Selfie screen Take selfies

Common features in the Sony RX10 IV and Sony A57

 RX10 IV A57 
Manually focus Dial precise focusing
Display dimensions3"3"Equal display measurements

Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 Physical Comparison

For those who are aiming to lug around your camera regularly, you're going to have to think about its weight and size. The Sony RX10 IV has got outside measurements of 133mm x 94mm x 145mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.7") and a weight of 1095 grams (2.41 lbs) and the Sony A57 has specifications of 132mm x 98mm x 81mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.2") and a weight of 618 grams (1.36 lbs).

Contrast the Sony RX10 IV and Sony A57 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you have attached at that time. Following is a front view scale comparison of the RX10 IV vs the A57.

Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability rating of the RX10 IV and A57 is 52 and 64 respectively.

Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 top view buttons comparison

Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 Sensor Comparison

In many cases, its difficult to picture the contrast between sensor measurements simply by going over specs. The visual here might offer you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the RX10 IV and A57.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The RX10 IV because of its tinier sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field more challenging and the Sony RX10 IV will offer you greater detail as a result of its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also help you crop images more aggressively. The newer RX10 IV provides a benefit in sensor innovation.

Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 sensor size comparison

Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Sony RX10 IV
Portrait photography with Sony A57
71
you can focus manually
flash sync speed is above average (1/2,000s)
sensor resolution is decent (20MP)
nice sensor size (1")
includes face detect focus
delivers RAW formats
74
focusing manually
MP count good (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
includes face detection autofocus
exports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Sony RX10 IV Street photography details
Sony A57 Street photography details
64
screen tilts up and down
built in image stabilization (Optical)
nice sensor size (1")
delivers RAW formats
provides touch to focus
environment proofing
more heavy than competition in class (1,095 grams)
75
fully articulated screen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
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Sports Comparison

Sony RX10 IV Sports photography highlights
Sony A57 Sports photography highlights
76
amazing zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
silent shutter (1/32,000 seconds)
high max fps (24.0 frames/s)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (20MP)
nice sensor size (1")
includes tracking focus
environment proofing
comes with phase detect auto focus
78
image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count good (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
includes tracking autofocus
supports phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Sony RX10 IV Travel photography information
Sony A57 Travel photography information
56
environment proofing
has bluetooth
provides touch to focus
sensor resolution is decent (20 megapixels)
has built in flash
reasonably wide (24mm)
long reach (600mm)
lack of Timelapse mode
more heavy than competition in class (1,095g)
screen is not selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f2.4)
67
MP count good (16MP)
has built in flash
display is selfie friendly
missing Timelapse recording
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Landscape Comparison

Sony RX10 IV Landscape photography details
Sony A57 Landscape photography details
62
you can focus manually
reasonably wide (24mm)
screen is a decent size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (1")
delivers RAW formats
environment proofing
can't change lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f2.4)
lack of Timelapse mode
72
focusing manually
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
screen size is good (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count good (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
missing Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Sony RX10 IV
Vlogging with Sony A57
29
reasonably wide (24mm)
touchscreen enabled
built in image stabilization (Optical)
includes face detect focus
video resolution high (3840 x 2160 resolution)
does have microphone port
slow maximum aperture (f2.4)
screen is not selfie friendly
more heavy than competition in class (1,095 grams)
77
display is selfie friendly
image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detection autofocus
great video quality (1920 x 1080 resolution)
comes with external microphone socket
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Sony RX10 IV vs Sony A57 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony RX10 IV and Sony A57
 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IVSony SLT-A57
General Information
Make Sony Sony
Model type Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 IV Sony SLT-A57
Class Large Sensor Superzoom Entry-Level DSLR
Announced 2017-09-12 2012-09-13
Physical type SLR-like (bridge) Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Powered by Bionz X -
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1" APS-C
Sensor measurements 13.2 x 8.8mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 116.2mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 20 megapixels 16 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 5472 x 3648 4912 x 3264
Maximum native ISO 12800 16000
Maximum boosted ISO 25600 25600
Minimum native ISO 125 100
RAW images
Minimum boosted ISO 64 -
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Total focus points 315 15
Cross type focus points - 3
Lens
Lens mount type fixed lens Sony/Minolta Alpha
Lens zoom range 24-600mm (25.0x) -
Largest aperture f/2.4-4.0 -
Macro focusing range 3cm -
Number of lenses - 143
Focal length multiplier 2.7 1.5
Screen
Display type Tilting Fully Articulated
Display sizing 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of display 1,440k dots 921k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Display tech - Xtra Fine TFT drive with TruBlack technology
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic Electronic
Viewfinder resolution 2,359k dots 1,440k dots
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.7x 0.7x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 30s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/2000s 1/4000s
Highest quiet shutter speed 1/32000s -
Continuous shooting rate 24.0fps 12.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 10.80 m (at Auto ISO) 10.00 m (@ ISO 100)
Flash settings Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/2000s 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p) 1920 x 1080 (60p, 24p), 1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 3840x2160 1920x1080
Video data format MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 1095g (2.41 lbs) 618g (1.36 lbs)
Physical dimensions 133 x 94 x 145mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.7") 132 x 98 x 81mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.2")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 75
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 23.4
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 13.0
DXO Low light rating not tested 785
Other
Battery life 400 images 550 images
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID NP-FW50 NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots Single Single
Retail cost $1,698 $1,000