Pentax K-S1 has a
20.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Prime MII processor. On the other hand, Sony NEX-6 has a
16.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Bionz processor.
Another difference between these two cameras is that Pentax K-S1's sensor lacks anti-alias (Low-Pass) filter. Removing anti-alias filter increases the sharpness and level of detail but at the same time, it increases the chance of moiré occurring in certain scenes.
Below you can see the K-S1 and NEX-6 sensor size comparison.
Pentax K-S1 and Sony NEX-6 have the same sensor sizes so they will provide same level of control over the depth of field when used with same focal length and aperture. On the other hand, since Sony NEX-6 has 24% larger pixel area (22.87µm2 vs 18.37µm2) compared to Pentax K-S1, it has larger pixel area to collect light hence potential to have less noise in low light / High ISO images.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
At Camera Decision, we also look at Dxo Mark sensors when available as we think it is a good indicator of image quality.
Model |
Overall |
Color Depth |
Dynamic Range |
Low-light ISO |
Pentax K-S1 |
78 |
23.5 bits |
13.0 Evs |
1061 ISO |
Sony NEX-6 |
78 |
23.7 bits |
13.1 Evs |
1018 ISO |