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Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500 Comparison

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Nikon 1 J4

18 MP | 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) CMOS Sensor

Nikon 1 J4
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Pentax RS1500

14 MP | 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) CCD Sensor

Pentax RS1500
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Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two cameras with different body types: Nikon 1 J4, which was introduced in April 2014 is a Entry-Level Mirrorless camera with a 18.0MP 1" sensor whereas Pentax RS1500, which was introduced in March 2011 is a Small Sensor Compact camera with a 14.0MP 1/2.3" sensor. As you can see, RS1500 is 3 years older than 1 J4. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

Comparing an interchangeble lens camera to a fixed lens camera is a bit tricky but we will do our best to make this a fair comparison.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Nikon 1 J4 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2014-04-10
  • 18MP - 1" CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • Nikon 1 Mount
  • 3" Fixed Type Screen
  • 60 fps continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • 1,200 fps High-Speed Video
  • Built-in Wireless
  • 232g. 100 x 60 x 29 mm
  • Replaced Nikon 1 J3 Compare

Pentax RS1500 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2011-03-16
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" CCD Sensor
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • 28-110 mm F3.5-5.5 Zoom Lens
  • 2.7" Fixed Type Screen
  • 1 fps continuous shooting
  • HD - 1280 x 720 video resolution
  • 157g. 114 x 58 x 28 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Nikon 1 J4 over Pentax Optio RS1500
Wireless Connection
Built-In vs None Better connectivity
Touch Screen
Yes vs No Easy control of camera functions
RAW Support
Yes vs No Better image quality
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs No very handy for portraits
Max Sensor Resolution
18 MP vs 14 MP 28% more pixels
Max ISO
12.800 vs 6.400 100% higher Max ISO
Number of Focus Points
171 vs 9 162 more focus points
LCD Screen Size
3" vs 2.7" 0.3 inches larger display
LCD Screen Resolution
1.037k dots vs 230k dots 350% higher resolution screen
Max Mech. Shutter
1/4000s vs 1/1500s faster mechanical shutter
Continuous Shooting
60.0fps vs 1.0fps 59 fps faster
Battery Life
300 shots vs 260 shots 40 more frames with a single charge
Manual Exposure
Yes vs No better exposure control
Flash Coverage
5.0m vs 3.9m 1.1m longer range
Sensor Pixel Area
6.36µm2 vs 2.04µm2 211% larger pixel area
Max Video Resolution
1920 x 1080 vs 1280 x 720 Higher Resolution Video


Reasons to choose Pentax Optio RS1500 over Nikon 1 J4
Weight
157 g vs 232 g 75 g lighter
Environmental Sealing
Yes vs No shoot at tough conditions

Common Strengths of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax Optio RS1500
Built-in Flash
Yes vs Yes Useful in low-light
Common Weaknesses of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax Optio RS1500
In-body Image Stabilization
No vs No No Built-in stabilization
Fixed Screen
Fixed Type vs No No flexible viewing angles
External Flash Shoe
No vs No Not suitable for flash photography
Viewfinder
None vs None No eye-level shooting option
LCD Screen Size
3" vs 2.7" Small display
AE Bracketing
No vs No Not good for multi-exposure HDR
New4
Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500: 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 Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Nikon 1 J4 has external dimensions of 100 x 60 x 29 mm (3.92 x 2.36 x 1.12″) and weighs 232 g (0.51 lb / 8.18 oz) (including batteries). Pentax RS1500 has external dimensions of 114 x 58 x 28 mm (4.49 x 2.28 x 1.1″) and weighs 157 g (0.35 lb / 5.54 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500. Pentax RS1500 is 2mm shorter and 1mm thinner than Nikon 1 J4 but it is also 14mm wider. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Pentax RS1500 has a built-in lens but Nikon 1 J4 doesn't. Once you put a lens on 1 J4, its thickness will increase significantly.

Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500 Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Here is the back view size comparison of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500.

Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500 Camera Size Comparison - Back View
Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 Size and Weight - Back View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500.
Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500 Camera Size Comparison - Top View
Top View Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Pentax RS1500 is significantly lighter (75g ) than the Nikon 1 J4 which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.

Again, this comparison may not be very useful in real life as we are comparing the weight of a camera with a built-in lens to the body-only weight of an interchangeable lens camera. Once you put a lens on 1 J4, the total kit will weigh much higher.

Weather Sealing

Thanks to the weather sealed body of RS1500, you can use this camera with more confidence under conditions where there is risk of exposure to water and dust compared to 1 J4.

LCD Screen Size and Features

Nikon 1 J4's 3" LCD screen is slightly larger than Pentax RS1500's 2.7" screen.

Unfortunately, both cameras has fixed screens so they don't tilt or flip in directions.
Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500: Sensor Comparison

Nikon 1 J4 has a 18.0MP 1" (13.2 x 8.8 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 4 processor. On the other hand, Pentax RS1500 has a 14.0MP 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized CCD sensor .

Below you can see the 1 J4 and RS1500 sensor size comparison.

Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500 Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 Cameras


As seen above, Nikon 1 J4 has a 4.1x Larger sensor area than Pentax RS1500. 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.

What types of Photography are Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 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.

Nikon 1 J4 for Portrait Photography

POOR

Pentax RS1500 for Portrait Photography

POOR
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details
Average Resolution Sensor: 14.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 for Street Photography

AVERAGE

Pentax RS1500 for Street Photography

POOR
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details
Small Body
Live-view
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 for Sports Photography

GOOD

Pentax RS1500 for Sports Photography

POOR
Fast Continuous Shooting: 60.0fps
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
105 Cross Type Focus sensors
171 Focus Points
Wireless Connection
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Environmental Sealings
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Slow Continuous Shooting: 1.0fps
Slow Max shutter speed: 1/1500s
9 Focus Points
Poor Battery Life: 260 shots
110 mm Tele Lens
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 for Daily Photography

AVERAGE

Pentax RS1500 for Daily Photography

AVERAGE
232g
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Medium size Body
Read the details
Compact Body
157g
Environmental Sealings
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
3.9X Optical Zoom
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 for Landscape Photography

POOR

Pentax RS1500 for Landscape Photography

POOR
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Live-view
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Environmental Sealings
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 14.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Exposure Mode
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax RS1500: 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 Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500, 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 Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax RS1500 scores compare:

Nikon 1 J4
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #70 out of 126 in Rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #327 out of 1220 in all Cameras
Pentax RS1500
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #353 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked #1012 out of 1220 in all Cameras

Nikon 1 J4 is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Pentax RS1500 in all criteria except one: Portability. But the size difference between these cameras are negligible in real world so it is not a big disadvantage for Nikon 1 J4.

Nikon 1 J4
Nikon 1 J4
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Pentax RS1500
Pentax RS1500
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Pentax RS1500 vs Nikon 1 J4 Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Nikon 1 J4 Pentax Optio RS1500
Brand Nikon Pentax
Announced 2014-04-10 2011-03-16
Body Type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor
Type CMOS CCD
Size 1" 1/2.3"
Dimensions 13.2 x 8.8 mm 6.17 x 4.55 mm
Area 116.16mm2 28.07mm2
Megapixels 18 megapixels 14 megapixels
Max Resolution 5232 x 3488 4288 x 3216
Max Native Light sensitivity 12,800 ISO 6,400 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity 160 ISO 80 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 171 9
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount Nikon 1 fixed lens
Lens Focal Range no lens 28-110 mm (4×)
Max Aperture no lens F3.5-5.5
Macro Focus Range no lens 1cm
Screen
Type Fixed type Fixed type
Size 3" 2.7"
Resolution 1,037k dots 230k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder None None
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/4000s 1/1500s
Max Electronic Shutter 1/16000s n/a
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization No No
Built-in Flash
Flash Range 5.00 m (ISO 100) 3.90 m
External Flash
Continuous Shooting 60.0 fps 1.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution 1920 x 1080 1280 x 720
Video Formats MPEG-4, H.264 Motion JPEG
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity Built-In None
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 232g 157g
Dimensions 100 x 60 x 29mm 114 x 58 x 28mm
Battery Life 300 shots 260 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS None None
DxO Sensor Scores
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