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Sony TX20 vs Sony W290

Portability
96
Imaging
39
Features
50
Overall
43
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX20 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290 front
Portability
94
Imaging
34
Features
28
Overall
31

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 Key Specs

Sony TX20
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 125 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-100mm (F3.5-4.6) lens
  • 133g - 96 x 56 x 18mm
  • Released February 2012
Sony W290
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.3-5.2) lens
  • 167g - 98 x 57 x 23mm
  • Announced February 2009
Photography Glossary

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 Overview

In this article, we will be reviewing the Sony TX20 vs Sony W290, former being a Ultracompact while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are created by Sony. There exists a sizable gap among the resolutions of the TX20 (16MP) and W290 (12MP) but they use the same exact sensor size (1/2.3").

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The TX20 was manufactured 3 years later than the W290 and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras offer different body type with the Sony TX20 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony W290 being a Compact camera.

Before delving in to a detailed comparison, below is a brief synopsis of how the TX20 matches up against the W290 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Sony TX20 over the Sony W290

 TX20 W290 
AnnouncedFebruary 2012February 2009More recent by 37 months
Screen resolution922k230kClearer screen (+692k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony W290 over the Sony TX20

 W290 TX20 

Common features in the Sony TX20 and Sony W290

 TX20 W290 
Manually focus Very accurate focusing
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen size
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 Physical Comparison

For those who are aiming to lug around your camera often, you will need to take into account its weight and size. The Sony TX20 provides external dimensions of 96mm x 56mm x 18mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") with a weight of 133 grams (0.29 lbs) and the Sony W290 has specifications of 98mm x 57mm x 23mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

Look at the Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have at the time. Below is the front view size comparison of the TX20 versus the W290.

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the TX20 and W290 is 96 and 94 respectively.

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 top view buttons comparison

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it is tough to visualize the gap in sensor measurements just by viewing specs. The visual below should give you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the TX20 and W290.

As you can plainly see, the two cameras offer the same exact sensor sizing albeit different resolution. You can expect the Sony TX20 to render more detail due to its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop photographs a little more aggressively. The more modern TX20 should have a benefit in sensor technology.

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 sensor size comparison

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony TX20 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony W290 as a Portrait photography camera
40
manual focus
decent MP (16MP)
supports face detect autofocus
no manual exposure
external flash not possible
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
27
you can focus manually
no manual mode
can't use external flash
MP count low (12 megapixels)
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
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Street Comparison

Sony TX20 as a Street photography camera
Sony W290 as a Street photography camera
67
image stabilization (Optical)
has focus by touch
environment proof
fixed screen
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
56
has image stabilization (Optical)
fixed screen
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Sony TX20 as a Sports photography camera
Sony W290 as a Sports photography camera
50
image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (16 megapixels)
supports tracking focus
environment proof
great battery (250 shots)
no shutter priority mode
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
25
has image stabilization (Optical)
continuous shooting slow (2.0 frames/s)
lack of shutter priority mode
MP count low (12 megapixels)
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Sony TX20 Travel photography highlights
Sony W290 Travel photography highlights
72
great battery (250 shots)
environment proof
has focus by touch
decent MP (16MP)
has built in flash
reasonably wide (25mm)
missing Timelapse mode
screen isn't selfie friendly
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
57
flash built-in
really wide (28mm)
missing Time Lapse recording
MP count low (12MP)
doesn't posses selfie friendly screen
slow max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Sony TX20
Landscape photography with Sony W290
52
manual focus
reasonably wide (25mm)
screen size is good (3 inch)
image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (16MP)
environment proof
great battery (250 per charge)
cannot switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
no manual exposure
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
missing Timelapse mode
41
you can focus manually
really wide (28mm)
nice screen size (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Optical)
cannot swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.3)
no manual mode
MP count low (12MP)
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
missing Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony TX20 Vlogging info
Sony W290 Vlogging info
35
reasonably wide (25mm)
touchscreen enabled
image stabilization (Optical)
supports face detect autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen isn't selfie friendly
missing microphone socket
28
really wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
slow max aperture (f3.3)
doesn't posses selfie friendly screen
video res low (1280 x 720 pxls)
missing mic socket
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Sony TX20 vs Sony W290 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony TX20 and Sony W290
 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX20Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290
General Information
Company Sony Sony
Model Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX20 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290
Category Ultracompact Small Sensor Compact
Released 2012-02-28 2009-02-17
Physical type Ultracompact Compact
Sensor Information
Processor BIONZ -
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CCD
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 12MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4608 x 3456 4000 x 3000
Max native ISO 3200 3200
Lowest native ISO 125 80
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Selective autofocus
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Autofocus live view
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Number of focus points - 9
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 25-100mm (4.0x) 28-140mm (5.0x)
Highest aperture f/3.5-4.6 f/3.3-5.2
Macro focus range 1cm 10cm
Focal length multiplier 5.8 5.8
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 922k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Screen technology XtraFine TruBlack TFT LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 4 seconds 2 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/1600 seconds 1/1600 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 10.0 frames per sec 2.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 3.70 m 3.90 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1440 x 1080 (60, 30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps) 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video file format MPEG-4, AVCHD MPEG-4
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 133 grams (0.29 pounds) 167 grams (0.37 pounds)
Dimensions 96 x 56 x 18mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") 98 x 57 x 23mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life 250 shots -
Battery type Battery Pack -
Battery model NP-BN -
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Duo/Memory Stick Pro Duo, Memory Stick Pro-HG Duo Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo, Internal
Card slots One One
Launch pricing $330 $230