Sony S2100 vs Sony A57

Its time to examine more in depth at the Sony S2100 and Sony A57, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR and both are manufactured by Sony. There exists a sizable gap among the sensor resolutions of the S2100 (12MP) and A57 (16MP) and the S2100 (1/2.3") and A57 (APS-C) use different sensor size.

Photography Glossary

The S2100 was released 3 years earlier than the A57 and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Sony S2100 being a Compact camera and the Sony A57 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before getting in to a thorough comparison, below is a short synopsis of how the S2100 grades vs the A57 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Here is a preview of the gallery photos for Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S2100 & Sony SLT-A57. The complete galleries are available at Sony S2100 Gallery & Sony A57 Gallery.

For anyone who is intending to carry your camera often, you will have to factor its weight and proportions. The Sony S2100 provides physical measurements of 98mm x 61mm x 27mm (3.9" x 2.4" x 1.1") along with a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs) while the Sony A57 has measurements of 132mm x 98mm x 81mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.2") with a weight of 618 grams (1.36 lbs).

Examine the Sony S2100 and Sony A57 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are utilizing during that time. Following is the front view measurement comparison of the S2100 against the A57.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the S2100 and A57 is 93 and 64 respectively.

More often than not, its hard to picture the gap in sensor sizing purely by looking through technical specs. The visual underneath might give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizing in the S2100 and A57.

As you can tell, both of those cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The S2100 because of its smaller sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF harder and the Sony A57 will render greater detail as a result of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The older S2100 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor technology.