Sony RX100

Sony RX100 is Sony's Large Sensor Compact camera originally introduced on August of 2012. It uses a 20 MegaPixel, CMOS 1" size sensor with a peak resolution of 5472 x 3648.

Sony introduced the newer Sony RX100 II (Read Full Comparison) in an effort to upgrade this camera.

The RX100 stands at #43 out of 65 in Large Sensor Compact cameras and all round #348 out of 1465 for cameras in our database. You can check our Advanced camera finder to get camera ratings based on your personalized factors.

Below is a chart of specific criteria used in the scoring system.

The Sony RX100 comes with a history of related cameras. Listed below, you can take a look at all past and newer models as well as important features.

You can look at the RX100 from various angles in the gallery underneath.

Here is a checklist of pros and cons of the Sony RX100 based on things which are often seen as necessary in a camera.

The sensor measurement in the Sony RX100 is 13.2mm x 8.8mm (1"). The 116 mm² sensor is able to resolve 5472 x 3648 pixels using aspect ratios of 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9. The camera includes Image Stabilization (Optical). Optical stabilization is more desirable than digital stabilization as the latter may cause cropping.

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The CMOS sensor boasts 20MP and supports a native ISO range of 100 - 25600. RAW files are supported therefore the user has more margin for error.

The graphic underneath displays the RX100's sensor size in comparison to other common sizes. The RX100 sensor comes with a crop factor of 2.7 and is showcased in green.

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To get an understanding of various aspect ratios, you should refer to the visual below.

Sony RX100 weighs around 0.53 lb (240g / 8.47 oz) and the physical size of the camera is 102mm x 58mm x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4"). The weight of general Large Sensor Compact camera is 396g so the Sony RX100 is lighter as compared with other competitors.

Photography Glossary

Underneath is a picture of the Sony RX100 alongside a soft drink so you can have a sense of its size.

The top view under will show the button design on the RX100.

The RX100 offers a built-in lens having a focal range of 28-100mm making it a 3.6 x zoom which is not significant however it will definitely be convenient in certain scenarios.

At it's widest 28mm, the lens offers an aperture of f1.8 which is perfect in low light events and capturing good bokeh. It will also enable you to go with a much lower ISO in order to get crisper pictures. At the long end, 100mm comes at f4.9 which is pretty slow and you will have to use slow shutter speeds.

The RX100 has the following connectivity:

• USB Yes
• Wireless Yes
• NFC Yes
• HDMI Yes

Cameras that contain NFC and / or Bluetooth connectivity can be used wirelessly by smartphones. You are able to send pictures and usually alter settings without connecting physically with the camera.

Certain apps also stream a Liveview and press the shutter in case you aren't near the camera. If the camera provides a HDMI out, it can be attached to an external screen. Many cameras enable you to recharge the battery through the USB socket.

The highest video resolution in the Sony RX100 is 1920 x 1080 and it can record in MPEG-4 and AVCHD format. 1080p resolution will provide a decent balance between quality versus file size but FULL HD is not going to leave you with much room to downsample. The body doesn't include a mic and / or headphone socket which means that you have absolutely no control over your audio. It is perhaps best to take a look at another model in case you want decent audio in your video clips.

There is no weather sealing for the Sony RX100 so you have to be cautious in wet or dusty situations.

The Sony RX100 houses a 3 inch fixed display screen having a resolution of 1,229 thousand dots.

Unfortunately the display screen is not a touch screen.

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The View Finder details regarding Sony RX100 are below:

• ViewFinder None

In those sunny outdoor situations that make the camera screens washed out and difficult to view, viewfinders are quite helpful.

Sony RX100 continuous shooting rate is 10.0 fps. The max shutter speed is 1/2000 sec.

Sony RX100 includes just inbuilt flash lacking external flash ability. The max flash sync is 1/2000 sec.

Sony RX100 includes only Contrast Detect AF and does not have Phase Detect AF. Phase Detection focusing is a lot quicker & exact as compared with Contrast Detect focusing. The camera boasts Face detect making it useful for taking photos of people.

The AF system boasts 25 focus points to choose from. It also includes Tracking AF for subjects on the move. Sony RX100 boasts manual focus when required during low light conditions or you want to have more exact control on focus.

The battery power (NP-BX1) for the Sony RX100 is built to last for 330 images as per the CIPA specifications making it about the same as its rivals. The typical Large Sensor Compact camera battery life is 301. Leica X-U features the highest (450) battery life within this range of cameras.

Listed below is a list of Large Sensor Compact cameras that have the strongest battery life:

ModelVisualizeBattery LifeRAWNFCBluetooth

Leica X-U
RX100 vs X-U450 yesnono

Leica X Vario
RX100 vs X Vario450 yesnono

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Leica X2
RX100 vs X2450 yesnono

Fujifilm X100V
RX100 vs Fujifilm X100V420 yesnoyes

Fujifilm X100F
RX100 vs Fujifilm X100F390 yesnono

The following graph displays a summation of the Sony RX100 for varying types of photography. To view more, visit the specific paragraph underneath.

The Sony RX100 receives a score of 64 which is very good, and means the camera is a fine pick to use for portrait photography. Taking portraits favors greatly towards sensor resolution, support for RAW files and flexibility to utilize off-camera lighting.

Getting a exceptional score of 79, the Sony RX100 is a wonderful pick for street photography. A good street photography camera has a good balance of image quality plus portability.

A nice sports photography score of 65 suggests the Sony RX100 is a respectable pick for photographing sports. A camera must have good focusing and fast continuous shooting for sports photography.

Portability is extremely important when buying a camera for travel. All things considered, the Sony RX100 gets a fantastic 79 as a travel camera which is a fantastic fit to buy for your holidays.

In case you're looking to purchase a digital camera for landscape photos, the most significant factor will be image quality. The Sony RX100 and it's very good grade of 74 as a landscape camera is a fine choice in the current marketplace.

A vlogging camera really should posses a moving screen, microphone input and if possible IBIS. Taking everything in to account, the Sony RX100 is not acceptable as a vlog camera as it delivers a horrible rating of 38.

If you are in the market for replacements to the RX100, below is a number of the top placed cameras that fall within the category of Large Sensor Compact.

The line chart listed below will give you a bird's eye view of the RX100 compared to it's top ranked rivals mentioned previously.

Following are several cameras you may check out as alternative options. To read a complete comparison, visit the "compare" link.