Sony W230 vs Sony A58

Lets look a bit more closely at the Sony W230 vs Sony A58, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR and they are both designed by Sony. There is a considerable difference between the resolutions of the W230 (12MP) and A58 (20MP) and the W230 (1/2.3") and A58 (APS-C) come with different sensor sizing.

Photography Glossary

The W230 was launched 5 years prior to the A58 and that is quite a large difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Sony W230 being a Compact camera and the Sony A58 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving in to a more detailed comparison, below is a quick overview of how the W230 scores against the A58 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a preview of the gallery photos for Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W230 & Sony SLT-A58. The complete galleries are provided at Sony W230 Gallery & Sony A58 Gallery.

For anybody who is planning to lug around your camera regularly, you will have to factor in its weight and proportions. The Sony W230 has outside dimensions of 95mm x 57mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") having a weight of 156 grams (0.34 lbs) whilst the Sony A58 has measurements of 129mm x 95mm x 78mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 3.1") along with a weight of 492 grams (1.08 lbs).

See the Sony W230 vs Sony A58 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have chosen at that time. Following is the front view dimensions comparison of the W230 compared to the A58.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability grade of the W230 and A58 is 95 and 68 respectively.

Usually, it is very difficult to visualize the contrast between sensor measurements merely by reviewing technical specs. The photograph here will provide you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the W230 and A58.

As you have seen, the 2 cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The W230 featuring a tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF more difficult and the Sony A58 will offer you greater detail utilizing its extra 8 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The older W230 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor technology.