Canon 600D vs Sony A57 Comparison

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Canon 600D

18 MP | APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) CMOS Sensor

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Sony A57

16 MP | APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) CMOS Sensor

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Canon 600D vs Sony A57 Comparison Overview

In this review, we will be comparing 600D and A57, two Entry-Level DSLR cameras from Canon and Sony. Both cameras have APS-C sensors but Canon 600D has a 18.0 MP and Sony A57 has a 16.0 MP resolution. Canon 600D was introduced to market in March 2011 and Sony A57 was launched in September 2012. There is 18 months difference between 600D and A57 so we don't expect to see a huge technology difference between these two cameras but it would still give an advantage to younger A57, especially in sensor tech.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Canon 600D and Sony A57 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Canon 600D Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2011-03-31

18MP - APS-C CMOS Sensor

ISO 100 - 6400 ( expands to 12800)

Canon EF/EF-S Mount

3" Fully Articulated Screen

Optical (pentamirror) viewfinder

4 fps continuous shooting

Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution

570g. 133 x 100 x 80 mm

Also known as EOS Rebel T3i / EOS Kiss X5

Replaced Canon EOS 550D Compare

Sony A57 Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2012-09-13

16MP - APS-C CMOS Sensor

ISO 100 - 16000 ( expands to 25600)

Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount

Sensor-shift Image Stabilization

3" Fully Articulated Screen

1440k dot Electronic viewfinder

12 fps continuous shooting

Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution

618g. 132 x 98 x 81 mm

Replaced Sony SLT-A55 Compare

Canon 600D was replaced by Canon EOS 650D. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Canon EOS 650D vs Canon EOS 600D (EOS Rebel T3i / EOS Kiss X5)
Canon EOS 650D vs Sony SLT-A57

Sony A57 was replaced by Sony SLT-A58. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Sony SLT-A58 vs Sony SLT-A57
Sony SLT-A58 vs Canon EOS 600D (EOS Rebel T3i / EOS Kiss X5)

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Canon 600D and Sony A57 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Canon EOS 600D over Sony SLT-A57

Max Sensor Resolution	18 MP vs 16 MP	12% more pixels
LCD Screen Resolution	1.040k dots vs 921k dots	12% higher resolution screen
Weight	570 g vs 618 g	48 g lighter
Flash Coverage	13.0m vs 10.0m	3m longer range
Low Light ISO	793 vs 785	better High ISO performance
Flash Sync Port	Yes vs No	Connect off-camera flash

Reasons to choose Sony SLT-A57 over Canon EOS 600D

Image Stabilization	Sensor-shift vs None	Sharper images at longer focal lengths and long exposures
Viewfinder Magnification	0.7x vs 0.53x	Larger Viewfinder
Max ISO	16.000 vs 6.400	150% higher Max ISO
Number of Focus Points	15 vs 9	6 more focus points
Number of Cross Type Focus Points	3 vs 1	2 more cross type focus points
Viewfinder Coverage	100% vs 95%	More accurate viewfinder
Continuous Shooting	12.0fps vs 4.0fps	8 fps faster
Battery Life	550 shots vs 440 shots	110 more frames with a single charge
Color Depth	23.4 vs 22.1	higher color depth
Dynamic Range	13.0 vs 11.5	higher dynamic range
Sensor Pixel Area	22.87µm² vs 18.54µm²	23% larger pixel area

Common Strengths of Canon EOS 600D and Sony SLT-A57

Adjustable LCD Screen	Fully Articulated vs Fully Articulated	Flexible shooting positions
Built-in Flash	Yes vs Yes	Useful in low-light
External Flash Shoe	Yes vs Yes	Better for flash photography
Viewfinder	Yes (Optical) vs Yes (Electronic)	Better framing and control
RAW Support	Yes vs Yes	Better image quality
Face Detection Focus	Yes vs Yes	very handy for portraits
Microphone Port	Yes vs Yes	High quality audio recording option
AE Bracketing	Yes vs Yes	Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR
Selfie/Vlogger Friendly LCD	Yes vs Yes	Rotate LCD for taking Selfies

Common Weaknesses of Canon EOS 600D and Sony SLT-A57

Environmental Sealing	No vs No	not suitable for tough conditions
AF Micro Adjustment (Fine Tune)	No vs No	no option to fine tune Auto focus

Canon 600D vs Sony A57: Physical Specs and Body features Comparison

Size and weight is a big decision factor when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs. In this section, We are going to illustrate Canon 600D and Sony A57 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Canon 600D has external dimensions of 133 x 100 x 80 mm (5.24 x 3.94 x 3.15″) and weighs 570 g (1.26 lb / 20.11 oz) (including batteries). Sony A57 has external dimensions of 132 x 98 x 81 mm (5.2 x 3.86 x 3.19″) and weighs 618 g (1.36 lb / 21.80 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Canon 600D and Sony A57. Sony A57 is 1mm narrower and 2mm shorter than Canon 600D but it is also 1mm thicker.

Comparison image of Canon 600D and Sony A57 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Canon 600D and Sony A57.

Top View Comparison image of Canon 600D and Sony A57 Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Canon 600D is 48g lighter than the Sony A57 but we don't think this will make a significant difference.

Also keep in mind that body weight is not the only deciding factor when comparing two interchangeable camera bodies, you have to also take into account the lenses that you will be using with these bodies. Since both Canon 600D and Sony A57 have the same APS-C sized sensor, their lenses for a similar focal length and aperture will be similar in size and weight.

Weight Comparison

DSLR Cameras

600D

A57

Min

Average

Max

Thickness Comparison

DSLR Cameras

600D

A57

Min

Average

Max

Weather Sealing

Unfortunately neither Canon EOS 600D (EOS Rebel T3i / EOS Kiss X5) nor Sony SLT-A57 provides any type of weather sealing in their body, so you have to give extra care especially when you are shooting outdoors. If weather sealing is a must-have feature for you, check these sections:
Top DSLR Cameras with Weather Sealing

LCD Screen Size and Features

Canon 600D and Sony A57's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3".

Both cameras feature Fully Articulating screens where you can change the angle of the screen to make it easier to shoot from waist or over the head levels. Fully articulating screens are also useful for taking Selfie shots and video.

Canon 600D vs Sony A57: Sensor Comparison

Canon 600D has a 18.0MP APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Digic 4 processor. On the other hand, Sony A57 has a 16.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor .

Below you can see the 600D and A57 sensor size comparison.

Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Canon 600D and Sony A57 Cameras

As seen above, Sony A57 has a 1.1x Larger sensor area than Canon 600D. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.

DxOMark Sensor Scores

DxOMark is a benchmark that scientifically assesses image quality of camera sensors. It scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Canon 600D and Sony A57 sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that A57 has a better overall score of 75, 10 points higher compared to 600D's score of 65.

Model	Overall	Color Depth	Dynamic Range	Low-light ISO
Canon 600D	65	22.1 bits	11.5 Evs	793 ISO
Sony A57	75	23.4 bits	13.0 Evs	785 ISO

Canon 600D vs Sony A57 Comparison of Available Lenses

Which camera has more lenses?

Number of available lenses is a big decision factor while choosing your interchangeable lens camera. When we look at the available lenses for these two cameras, we see that Canon 600D has an advantage over Sony A57. There are 326 lenses for Canon 600D's Canon EF/EF-S mount, on the other hand there are only 143 lenses for Sony A57's Sony/Minolta Alpha lens mount.

Another important factor is the availability of image stabilization. Sony A57 has a big advantage in this regard because it has a sensor based image stabilization which means that all the lenses mounted to this body will be stabilized. On the other hand, Canon 600D doesn't have this feature so you have to buy a lens with optical stabilization feature. Currently there are 112 lenses for Canon EF/EF-S mount with Optical Image Stabilization features.

Lens Type	# of Canon 600D Lenses	# of Sony A57 Lenses
Standard Zoom	40	20
Standard Prime	19	9
Wideangle Zoom	37	11
Wideangle Prime	49	18
Telephoto Zoom	58	26
Telephoto Prime	43	12
SuperZoom	28	19
Wideangle Fisheye Prime	7	4
Macro Prime	28	12
Perspective Control Prime	16	10
Telephoto Mirror Prime	1	2
TOTAL	326	143

Now let's compare some sample lenses from each mount with typical Focal ranges for Canon 600D and Sony A57 to see how these lenses compares:

Fast Standard Zoom Lenses

Model		FF Equiv.	Weight	Weight w/ Cam	Length	Street Price
	Canon 17-55mm f2.8 IS USM	25.5 - 82.5mm	645gr	1215gr	111mm	Amazon B&H Photo
	Sony DT 16-50mm F2.8 SSM	24 - 75mm	577gr	1195gr	88mm	Amazon B&H Photo

Fast Tele Zoom Equivalent Lenses

Model		FF Equiv.	Weight	Weight w/ Cam	Length	Street Price
	Sigma 50-150mm F2.8 EX DC OS HSM	75 - 225mm	1350gr	1920gr	198mm	Amazon B&H Photo
	Sony DT 55-200mm F4-5.6 SAM	82.5 - 300mm	305gr	923gr	85mm	Amazon B&H Photo

Fast Normal Prime Equivalent Lenses

Model		FF Equiv.	Weight	Weight w/ Cam	Length	Street Price
	Sigma 30mm F1.4 DC HSM	45mm	435gr	1005gr	63mm	Amazon B&H Photo
	Sony 35mm F1.4 G	35mm	510gr	1128gr	76mm	Amazon B&H Photo

Fast Wideangle Zoom Equivalent Lenses

Model		FF Equiv.	Weight	Weight w/ Cam	Length	Street Price
	Sigma 10-20mm F3.5 EX DC HSM	15 - 30mm	520gr	1090gr	88mm	Amazon B&H Photo
	Tamron 10-24mm f3.5-4.5 II LD	15 - 36mm	406gr	1024gr	84mm	Amazon B&H Photo

24-105mm f4 Equivalent Lenses

Model		FF Equiv.	Weight	Weight w/ Cam	Length	Street Price
	Canon 15-85mm f3.5-5.6 IS USM	22.5 - 127.5mm	575gr	1145gr	88mm	Amazon B&H Photo
	Sony DT 16-80mm F3.5-4.5 ZA	24 - 120mm	445gr	1063gr	83mm	Amazon B&H Photo

Super-Tele Zoom Equivalent Lenses

Model		FF Equiv.	Weight	Weight w/ Cam	Length	Street Price
	Canon 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM	100 - 400mm	1590gr	2160gr	193mm	Amazon B&H Photo
	Sony 70-400mm F4-5.6 G SSM II	70 - 400mm	1500gr	2118gr	196mm	Amazon B&H Photo

What types of Photography are Canon 600D and Sony A57 Good for?

In this section, we rank and compare Canon 600D and Sony A57 for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.

Canon 600D for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE

Sony A57 for Portrait Photography

GOOD

Large APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
Read the details

Canon 600D for Street Photography

GOOD

Sony A57 for Street Photography

EXCELLENT

Large APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Fully Articulated LCD Screen
No Image Stabilization
Large Body
Read the details

Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Fully Articulated LCD Screen
Large Body
Read the details

Canon 600D for Sports Photography

GOOD

Sony A57 for Sports Photography

EXCELLENT

Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
1 Cross Type Focus sensors
Average Continuous Shooting: 4.0fps
No Image Stabilization
Environmental Sealings
9 Focus Points
Read the details

Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Continuous Shooting: 12.0fps
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
3 Cross Type Focus sensors
15 Focus Points
Good Battery Life: 550 shots
Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Canon 600D for Daily Photography

AVERAGE

Sony A57 for Daily Photography

GOOD

Large APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) sensor
Large Body
570g
Body Thickness 80mm
Read the details

Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Large Body
618g
Body Thickness 81mm
Read the details

Canon 600D for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE

Sony A57 for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE

Large APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Live-view
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Canon 600D vs Sony A57: OUR DECISION

You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Canon 600D and Sony A57, below you can find their scores in five different aspects. Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.

Here is a summary of how Canon 600D and Sony A57 scores compare:

Canon 600D

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #34 out of 79 in Compact SLR cameras
Ranked #254 out of 1226 in all Cameras

Sony A57

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #10 out of 79 in Compact SLR cameras
Ranked #154 out of 1226 in all Cameras

Sony A57 is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Canon 600D in all criteria except one: Portability.
If small size and light body is a big priority for you, choose Canon 600D. Otherwise, Sony A57 is the better camera overall.

Sony A57 vs Canon 600D Specs Table

Detailed comparison of specifications

General	Canon EOS 600D	Sony SLT-A57
Brand	Canon	Sony
Announced	2011-03-31	2012-09-13
Body Type	Compact SLR	Compact SLR
Sensor
Type	CMOS	CMOS
Size	APS-C	APS-C
Dimensions	22.3 x 14.9 mm	23.5 x 15.6 mm
Area	332.27mm²	366.60mm²
Megapixels	18 megapixels	16 megapixels
Max Resolution	5184 x 3456	4912 x 3264
Max Native Light sensitivity	6,400 ISO	16,000 ISO
Max Boosted Light Sensitivity	12800 ISO	25600 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity	100 ISO	100 ISO
RAW Support
Autofocus
AF Touch
AF Continuous
AF Single
AF Tracking
AF Selective
AF Center
AF Multi Area
AF Live View
AF Face Detection
AF Contrast Detection
AF Phase Detection
Number of Focus Points	9	15
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount	Canon EF/EF-S	Sony/Minolta Alpha
Number of Available Lenses	326	143
Screen
Type	Fully Articulated	Fully Articulated
Size	3"	3"
Resolution	1,040k dots	921k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder	Optical (pentamirror)	Electronic
Viewfinder Resolution	no electronic viewfinder	1,440k dots
Viewfinder Coverage	95%	100%
Viewfinder Magnification	0.53x	0.7x
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter	1/4000s	1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization	No	Sensor-shift
Built-in Flash
Flash Range	13.00 m	10.00 m (@ ISO 100)
Max Flash Sync	1/200s	1/160s
External Flash
Continuous Shooting	4.0 fps	12.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution	1920 x 1080	1920 x 1080
Video Formats	MPEG-4, H.264	MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity	Eye-Fi Connected	Eye-Fi Connected
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight	570g	618g
Dimensions	133 x 100 x 80mm	132 x 98 x 81mm
Battery Life	440 shots	550 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS	None	None
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score	65	75
DxO Color Depth	22.1	23.4
DxO Dynamic Range	11.5	13.0
DxO Low Light ISO	793	785
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