Pentax K-3 II has a
24.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Prime III processor. On the other hand, Sony NEX-3N has a
16.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Bionz processor.
Pentax K-3 II's sensor provides 8MP more than Sony NEX-3N's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely.
On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.
Another difference between these two cameras is that Pentax K-3 II'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-3 II and NEX-3N sensor size comparison.
Pentax K-3 II and Sony NEX-3N 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-3N has 50% larger pixel area (22.87µm2 vs 15.24µm2) compared to Pentax K-3 II, it has larger pixel area to collect light hence potential to have less noise in low light / High ISO images.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
Both Pentax K-3 II and Sony NEX-3N sensors have been tested by DxoMark. DxoMark 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. Of the two cameras that we are comparing, K-3 II has scored 80, 6 points higher than NEX-3N.
Model |
Overall |
Color Depth |
Dynamic Range |
Low-light ISO |
Pentax K-3 II |
80 |
23.6 bits |
13.6 Evs |
1106 ISO |
Sony NEX-3N |
74 |
22.8 bits |
12.5 Evs |
1067 ISO |