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Sony A100 vs Canon D30 Comparison

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Sony A100

10 MP | APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) CCD Sensor

Sony A100
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Canon D30

12 MP | 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) BSI-CMOS Sensor

Canon D30
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Sony A100 vs Canon D30 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two cameras with different body types: Sony A100, which was introduced in July 2006 is a Entry-Level DSLR camera with a 10.0MP APS-C sensor whereas Canon D30, which was introduced in February 2014 is a Waterproof camera with a 12.0MP 1/2.3-inch sensor. As you can see, A100 is 8 years older than D30. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

Comparing a DSLR camera to a Fixed Lens camera is not an easy task but we will do our best to make this a fair comparison.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Sony A100 and Canon D30 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Sony A100 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2006-07-31
  • 10MP - APS-C CCD Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 2.5" Fixed Type Screen
  • Optical (pentamirror) viewfinder
  • 3 fps continuous shooting
  • No Video Mode
  • 638g. 133 x 95 x 71 mm
  • Replaced Konica Minolta Maxxum 5D Compare

Canon D30 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2014-02-12
  • 12MP - 1/2.3-inch BSI-CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • 28-140 mm F3.9-4.8 Zoom Lens
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3" Fixed Type Screen
  • 2 fps continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • 240fps High-Speed Video
  • Built-in GPS
  • 218g. 109 x 68 x 28 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body

Sony A100 was replaced by Sony Alpha DSLR-A580. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 vs Sony Alpha DSLR-A100
Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 vs Canon PowerShot D30

Canon D30 was replaced by Canon EOS D60. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Canon EOS D60 vs Canon PowerShot D30
Canon EOS D60 vs Sony Alpha DSLR-A100

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Sony A100 and Canon D30 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Sony Alpha DSLR-A100 over Canon PowerShot D30
External Flash Shoe
Yes vs No Better for flash photography
Viewfinder
Optical vs None Better framing and control
RAW Support
Yes vs No Better image quality
Max Mech. Shutter
1/4000s vs 1/1600s faster mechanical shutter
Continuous Shooting
3.0fps vs 2.0fps 1 fps faster
Manual Exposure
Yes vs No better exposure control
Sensor Pixel Area
37.14µm2 vs 2.34µm2 1487% larger pixel area


Reasons to choose Canon PowerShot D30 over Sony Alpha DSLR-A100
GPS
BuiltIn vs None track your location
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs No very handy for portraits
Max Sensor Resolution
12 MP vs 10 MP 19% more pixels
Max ISO
3.200 vs 1.600 100% higher Max ISO
LCD Screen Size
3" vs 2.5" 0.5 inches larger display
LCD Screen Resolution
461k dots vs 230k dots 100% higher resolution screen
Weight
218 g vs 638 g 420 g lighter
Environmental Sealing
Yes vs No shoot at tough conditions
Max Video Resolution
1920 x 1080 vs None Higher Resolution Video

Common Strengths of Sony Alpha DSLR-A100 and Canon PowerShot D30
Image Stabilization
Sensor-shift vs Optical Sharper images at longer focal lengths and long exposures
Built-in Flash
Yes vs Yes Useful in low-light
Common Weaknesses of Sony Alpha DSLR-A100 and Canon PowerShot D30
Fixed Screen
Fixed Type vs No No flexible viewing angles
LCD Screen Resolution
230k dots vs 461k dots Low resolution screens
AE Bracketing
No vs No Not good for multi-exposure HDR
Sony A100 vs Canon D30: 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 Sony A100 and Canon D30 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Sony A100 has external dimensions of 133 x 95 x 71 mm (5.24 x 3.74 x 2.8″) and weighs 638 g (1.41 lb / 22.50 oz) (including batteries). Canon D30 has external dimensions of 109 x 68 x 28 mm (4.29 x 2.68 x 1.1″) and weighs 218 g (0.48 lb / 7.69 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Sony A100 and Canon D30. Canon D30 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 24mm narrower, 27mm shorter and 43mm thinner than Sony A100. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Canon D30 has a built-in lens but Sony A100 doesn't. Once you put a lens on A100, its thickness will increase significantly.

Sony A100 vs Canon D30 Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Sony A100 and Canon D30 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Canon D30 is significantly lighter (420g ) than the Sony A100 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 A100, the total kit will weigh much higher.

Weather Sealing

LCD Screen Size and Features

Canon D30's 3" LCD screen is slightly larger than Sony A100's 2.5" screen.

Unfortunately, both cameras has fixed screens so they don't tilt or flip in directions.
Sony A100 vs Canon D30: Sensor Comparison

Sony A100 has a 10.0MP APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm ) sized CCD sensor . On the other hand, Canon D30 has a 12.0MP 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized BSI-CMOS sensor and features DIGIC 4 processor.

Below you can see the A100 and D30 sensor size comparison.

Sony A100 vs Canon D30 Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony A100 and Canon D30 Cameras


As seen above, Sony A100 has a 13.3x Larger sensor area than Canon D30. 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 Sony A100 and Canon D30 Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Sony A100 and Canon D30 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.

Sony A100 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE

Canon D30 for Portrait Photography

POOR
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 10.0MP
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Sony A100 for Street Photography

GOOD

Canon D30 for Street Photography

GOOD
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
No Live-view
Large Body
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
Slow Lens at Wide: f3.90
Read the details

Sony A100 for Sports Photography

GOOD

Canon D30 for Sports Photography

POOR
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
Slow Continuous Shooting: 3.0fps
Environmental Sealings
9 Focus Points
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Environmental Sealings
140 mm Tele Lens
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Slow Continuous Shooting: 2.0fps
Slow Max shutter speed: 1/1600s
9 Focus Points
Read the details

Sony A100 for Daily Photography

GOOD

Canon D30 for Daily Photography

GOOD
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Large Body
638g
Body Thickness 71mm
Read the details
Compact Body
218g
Environmental Sealings
5.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Read the details

Sony A100 for Landscape Photography

POOR

Canon D30 for Landscape Photography

POOR
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 10.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
No Live-view
Read the details
Environmental Sealings
Built-in GPS
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Exposure Mode
Read the details

Sony A100 vs Canon D30: 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 Sony A100 and Canon D30, 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 Sony A100 and Canon D30 scores compare:

Sony A100
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #61 out of 79 in Compact SLR cameras
Ranked #495 out of 1226 in all Cameras
Canon D30
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #131 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked #634 out of 1226 in all Cameras

Sony A100 scores higher than the Canon D30 in Overall. It has better image quality and better value than Canon D30. On the other hand, Canon D30 is more portable and has more features than Sony A100.
If image quality is very important for you and you want to get the most bang for your bucks, choose the Sony A100.
If you are looking for a small camera where you can take everywhere with you, and having more features are also important, Canon D30 is the right choice for you.

Sony A100
Sony A100
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Canon D30
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Canon D30 vs Sony A100 Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Sony Alpha DSLR-A100 Canon PowerShot D30
Brand Sony Canon
Announced 2006-07-31 2014-02-12
Body Type Compact SLR Compact
Sensor
Type CCD BSI-CMOS
Size APS-C 1/2.3-inch
Dimensions 23.6 x 15.8 mm 6.17 x 4.55 mm
Area 372.88mm2 28.07mm2
Megapixels 10 megapixels 12 megapixels
Max Resolution 3872 x 2592 4000 x 3000
Max Native Light sensitivity 1,600 ISO 3,200 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 9
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount Sony/Minolta Alpha fixed lens
Lens Focal Range no lens 28-140 mm (5×)
Max Aperture no lens F3.9-4.8
Macro Focus Range no lens 1cm
Screen
Type Fixed type Fixed type
Size 2.5" 3"
Resolution 230k dots 461k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder Coverage 95% n/a
Viewfinder Magnification 0.55x n/a
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/4000s 1/1600s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization Sensor-shift Optical
Built-in Flash
Flash Range n/a 3.50 m
Max Flash Sync 1/160s n/a
External Flash
Continuous Shooting 3.0 fps 2.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution None 1920 x 1080
Video Formats n/a H.264
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity None None
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 638g 218g
Dimensions 133 x 95 x 71mm 109 x 68 x 28mm
Battery Life n/a 300 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS None Built-in
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score 61 not tested
DxO Color Depth 22.0 not tested
DxO Dynamic Range 11.2 not tested
DxO Low Light ISO 476 not tested
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