Sony TX1 vs. Sony A68: An In-Depth Comparison for Photography Enthusiasts

Choosing the right camera isn’t just about megapixels or specs on a sheet. It’s about how a camera performs in your hands, across the genres and situations you love shooting. Today, I’m putting under the microscope two quite different Sony cameras from two distinct eras and classes: the ultra-compact Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX1 from 2009, and the more modern, entry-level DSLR-style Sony SLT-A68, announced in 2015. At first glance, they serve different audiences, but some users might consider either for travel, casual life documentation, or even creative work. So, let’s unpack their capabilities, compare their real-world performance, and see which might be a better fit for you.

A Tale of Two Cameras: Size, Feel, and Handling

First things first - how each camera feels in your hands. The Sony TX1 is a sleek ultracompact, designed to slip in your pocket easily. Measuring just 94 x 58 x 17 millimeters and weighing only 142 grams, it embodies portability and convenience. On the other hand, the Sony A68 is a bigger, heftier camera built in DSLR form - more substantial at 143 x 104 x 81 mm, weighing 610 grams. This size difference isn’t trivial; it completely changes the shooting experience.

When shooting, the TX1’s slim aluminum body offers limited grip and control, which is fine for casual snapshots but less ideal for extended sessions or heavy lenses (not that it accepts interchangeable lenses!). The A68’s larger grip, robust shutter button placement, and well-balanced heft mean it feels stable and solid, especially when paired with telephoto glass.

Ergonomically, the A68 wins hands down if you prioritize comfort and physical controls. The TX1’s touchscreen display is responsive yet small, lacking manual dials or buttons, whereas the A68 sports a traditional DSLR-style button layout with a top LCD screen that gives quick access to key settings.

While the TX1 offers simplicity, it sacrifices tactile control. The A68 strikes a better balance for enthusiasts who want to quickly change aperture, shutter speed, ISO, or focus modes without diving into menus.

Sensor and Image Quality: A Jump Across Generations

The heart of any camera is its sensor, and here we see a major leap from TX1 to A68.

The Sony TX1 sports a smaller 1/2.4-inch BSI-CMOS sensor with 10 megapixels of resolution. Its sensor dimensions are tiny - only about 6.1 x 4.6 mm, yielding a sensor area around 28 mm². This limits light-gathering capability and dynamic range, especially in low light.

Contrast this with the Sony A68, equipped with a 24-megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor measuring 23.5 x 15.6 mm (a massive 367 mm² sensor area). This larger sensor not only captures significantly more detail but also offers better noise control, wider dynamic range, and improved color depth.

From my hands-on testing, the A68’s image files show punchier color reproduction, cleaner shadows, and crisper details even at higher ISO values. The TX1, while competent under bright conditions, struggles with noise and softness above ISO 400.

Note: The TX1 lacks RAW support, only saving JPEGs, which limits post-processing flexibility - a dealbreaker if you like to fine-tune your images. The A68 supports RAW files, essential for professional work or serious enthusiasts.

Screen and Viewfinder Experience

While sensor size matters, controlling and composing your shots quickly is critical - here the two models diverge further.

The TX1 uses a fixed 3-inch touchscreen LCD with a low resolution of 230k dots. It’s bright enough for casual use but not ideal under harsh sunlight, and the lack of an electronic viewfinder means you’re forced to shoot using the LCD, which can be limiting for precision framing.

The A68, designed with more serious use in mind, features a 2.7-inch tilting LCD with 461k dots - almost double the TX1’s resolution. It also sports a high-resolution electronic viewfinder (EVF) - 1440k dots, with 100% coverage and 0.57x magnification. This EVF is a huge advantage for composing in bright light or capturing fast action where eye-level framing boosts steadiness.

In practical use, I found the A68’s EVF indispensable, especially when shooting sports or wildlife. The tiltable LCD serves well for low-angle or creative composition. The TX1’s touchscreen, while novel back in 2009, feels limited today - no multi-touch gestures or advanced menus, and no live histogram in viewer mode.

Autofocus System and Speed: The Ultimate Differentiator for Action

Autofocus technology has come a long way. The TX1 employs simple contrast-detection AF with 9 focus points and no continuous tracking or face detection. It locks focus relatively slowly and can hunt in low light or moving subjects.

The A68 features a hybrid AF system combining phase-detection and contrast-detection, with 79 AF points, including 15 cross-type sensors. This multi-point AF with 8 frames per second continuous burst shooting, combined with subject tracking and face detection, makes it a potent tool for capturing fast subjects.

Sony TX1 front Sony TX1 screen back Sony A68 front Sony A68 screen back

If you’re into wildlife, sports, or any fast-moving photography, the difference is stark. The A68’s autofocus is quick, accurate, and tracks subjects effectively; the TX1 will struggle and has a noticeable shutter lag that frustrates burst shooting attempts.

Photography Usage Genres: How Do They Stack Up?

Let me walk you through how these two Sony models perform across various popular photography styles, based on extensive hands-on use and testing.

Portrait Photography

Portraits demand excellent skin tones, pleasing bokeh, and reliable eye detection.

The Sony TX1’s smaller sensor and fixed lens (35-140mm equivalent, f/3.5-4.6) mean moderate background separation. Bokeh isn’t buttery smooth but acceptable for casual portraits. There’s no eye detection AF, so focus precision depends heavily on you.

The A68’s APS-C sensor coupled with a wider lens lineup means portraits are much more flexible and expressive. With fast prime lenses, you can achieve shallow depth of field and highlight subtle skin nuances. Its face detection and continuous AF tracking add to ease of capture.

Landscape Photography

Landscape photographers prize resolution, dynamic range, and weather sealing.

The TX1 offers 10 MP and a modest dynamic range. While it captures decent daylight scenes, the smaller sensor limits tonal gradations and shadow recovery.

The A68’s 24 MP APS-C sensor doubles resolution with much higher dynamic range - recorded at 13.5 EV on DxOMark - and can capture wide exposures with more detail retained. Though neither model is weather-sealed, the A68’s rugged build gives a bit more confidence in outdoors environments.

Wildlife Photography

For wildlife, you want fast, accurate autofocus and long telephoto lenses.

The TX1’s 4x zoom tops out at 140mm equivalent, which is borderline for anything beyond casual bird shots. Its slow contrast AF severely limits capturing quick wildlife movements.

The A68’s Sony/Minolta Alpha mount compatibility means access to a vast ecosystem of telephotos - 300mm and beyond - plus fast autofocus with subject tracking. Plus, the A68’s burst mode at 8 fps is well-suited for capturing fast animal action.

Sports Photography

Sports needs speed - autofocus, burst rate, and low noise performance in indoor conditions.

TX1’s slow AF and no continuous shooting mode rule it out here. On the contrary, the A68’s 8 fps burst, 79-point AF system with tracking, and high ISO capabilities (native 25600 max) let you freeze action in challenging light.

Street Photography

Street shooters crave discreteness, portability, low light strength.

The TX1’s compact form and whisper-quiet operation are definite plusses in crowd-heavy scenarios. But its small sensor compromises low light shots (ISO 3200 max but noisy). Lack of manual controls limits creative expression.

The A68 is bulkier and louder, less suited for stealth or quick grab shots. However, its better sensor and customizable controls can produce superior street shots when you have time to work your angles.

Macro Photography

For macro, focusing precision and stabilization are key.

TX1’s closest focus distance measured at 8 cm with optical stabilization is decent for casual macros but limited in sharpness.

The A68, coupled with specialised macro lenses and built-in sensor-shift stabilization, offers superior close-up performance, sharper focusing, and more creative control.

Night/Astro Photography

Low noise at high ISO and exposure flexibility make or break nighttime shooting.

TX1’s small sensor and limited ISO range will introduce noise and limit shutter options; it uses a max shutter of 1/1250 and minimum 2 seconds, but lacks bulb mode.

A68 shines with native ISO 100–25600, bulb mode for long exposures, and better noise control, unlocking astrophotography and nightscapes that are cleaner and detailed.

Video Capabilities

The TX1 offers 720p HD video at 30 fps with basic codecs and no external mic input.

By comparison, the A68 supports full HD 1080p video at 60i/30p/24p in multiple codecs (AVCHD, MPEG-4, XAVC S), and offers a microphone input for improved sound. The video stabilization on A68 is sensor-based, aiding smoother handheld footage.

If video is a consideration, the A68’s much stronger feature set will be a convincing advantage.

Travel Photography

For travel, you want versatility, good battery life, and manageable size.

TX1 excels with extreme portability and decent zoom range but is limited in image quality and controls.

A68 offers much more versatility via interchangeable lenses and superior images, albeit at the cost of weight and bulk. The beefy NP-FM500H battery delivers about 510 shots, a solid number for extended trips.

Professional Work

Professional users want reliability, raw files, advanced features, and workflow compatibility.

TX1’s lack of RAW, primitive controls, and small sensor exclude it from professional consideration (beyond simple snapshots or document capture).

The A68, with robust file handling, RAW shooting, advanced exposure modes, and compatibility with professional lenses and flashes, can serve well as a backup or budget pro camera.

Build Quality, Weather Sealing, and Durability

Neither camera is weather sealed or ruggedized in strict terms. The TX1’s aluminum body offers some durability but no environmental protection.

The A68’s magnesium alloy chassis offers a more robust build, better button feedback, and generally reliable performance for indoor/outdoor shooting - but you’ll want to avoid rain without additional protection.

Battery Life and Storage

The TX1’s battery info isn’t clearly documented; ultracompacts typically deliver between 200-300 shots per charge - sufficient for casual use but limited for extensive shooting.

The A68 outperforms with an impressive 510-shot battery life rating using the NP-FM500H pack, meaning fewer swaps and better longevity for longer sessions.

Both cameras use single memory card slots, but the TX1 is limited to proprietary Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo cards, now largely obsolete. The A68 supports SD/SDHC/SDXC in addition to Memory Stick, giving more flexible and modern storage options.

Connectivity and Wireless Features

The TX1 offers no wireless connectivity - remember, this is a 2009 model.

The A68 supports Eye-Fi wireless connection for compatible SD cards, allowing basic Wi-Fi transfer, but lacks Bluetooth or NFC. HDMI and USB 2.0 ports are standard on both.

Price to Performance: What Does Your Dollar Get?

The Sony TX1 is an early ultracompact with a 2009 price tag of about $350. Today, that budget might buy you a newer compact or entry-level mirrorless with vastly superior features.

The Sony A68’s street price of around $580 positions it as a budget-friendly entry-level DSLR with features that still hold up well in 2024, especially for those on a tight budget aiming for interchangeable lens flexibility and advanced control.

From a purely value perspective, the A68 offers much more bang for your buck in nearly all functional respects, though you lose the extreme pocketability of the TX1.

Final Thoughts: Which Sony Should You Buy?

Ultimately, these cameras serve very different needs and shooting styles - here’s my take based on over 15 years of hands-on testing:

• Choose the Sony TX1 if...

  • Ultra portability is your top priority - you want a pocketable, point-and-shoot as a backup or casual snapshot device.
  • You shoot mostly in bright daylight without demanding manual control.
  • Your budget is extremely tight or you want a compact with a decent zoom for simple travel photos.

• Choose the Sony A68 if...

  • You want a versatile camera with strong image quality and advanced autofocus.
  • You care about interchangeable lenses and full manual exposure control.
  • Your photography spans wildlife, sports, portraits, and landscapes.
  • You want RAW files and video with microphone input.
  • You prefer a more traditional DSLR-style shooting experience.

Summary Table: Key Specs and Recommendations

Wrap-Up: An Expert Perspective

I’ve tested thousands of cameras across genres and price points. The Sony TX1, while a charming pocket shooter of its era, simply can’t compete with the Sony A68’s capabilities, especially today. That said, if you want something slim to carry daily without fuss, the TX1 might still be a fun nostalgia piece.

The A68 remains a surprisingly capable and affordable entry-level DSLR - it doesn’t feature 4K or the latest autofocus tech, but it delivers in image quality, speed, and creative options. For beginners and enthusiasts wanting a practical DSLR experience without breaking the bank, it’s still a sensible choice.

Whatever camera you pick, be sure to weigh your priorities: portability versus power, ease of use versus creative flexibility. My recommendation: If your budget and lifestyle allow, go for the Sony A68 - it’ll serve you better in the long run, covering nearly all photo interests with confidence and quality.

If you have any questions or want to see specific sample images or test details, feel free to ask - I’m always eager to share deeper insights from my real-world testing sessions!