Sony DSLR-A550 vs Nikon D600

Nikon D600 advantages over Sony DSLR-A550

• Lens selection
  Excellent vs Good
  Better lens selection gives you more options
• Larger sensor
  35mm vs APS-C
  More sensor area. Bigger is (generally) better.
• Bigger pixels
  ~ 5.97 vs 5.16 microns
  Better low-light and dynamic range (all else equal)
• Fast startup
  ~0.30 vs 0.5 sec
  Faster startup lets you catch the moment
• Better color depth

  Better color depth

  Color depth refers to the number of unique colors that a sensor can faithfully capture. Cameras with better color depth will demonstrate smoother transitions from one color to the next, and avoid "banding" in areas with subtle shading. (Blue skies are an example of where you might see color banding.)

  More color depth is generally better, but you'll struggle to notice a difference between two cameras with less than 1 bit of difference. Color depth above 22 bits is considered excellent.

  Want to learn more? Head over to our full glossary entry on color depth

  Color depth test data courtesy of DxO Mark.

  D600 test data on DxO Mark DSLR-A550 test data on DxO Mark
  25.1 vs 21.9 bits
  Capture richer, more accurate colors
• Higher effective ISO

  Higher effective ISO

  Maximum effective ISO is an estimate of the highest sensitivity at which a camera can capture excellent quality photos.

  Cameras with higher effective ISO will be better choices for indoor photography, night shooting, and indoor sports photography, especially if you intend to make large prints.

  You can learn more at our glossary entry.

  Maximum effective ISO test data courtesy of DxO Mark.

  D600 test data on DxO Mark DSLR-A550 test data on DxO Mark
  2,980 vs 807 iso
  Take photos in low light with less noise
• More dynamic range

  More dynamic range

  Cameras with more dynamic range allow you to take photos with dramatic differences in highlight and shadow areas while retaining detail in both.

  Think of a brilliant sunset on a rocky beach: Bright sunset in the background, with dark rocks in the foreground. High dynamic range means more of the extremes will be faithfully reproduced.

  Dynamic range test data courtesy of DxO Mark.

  D600 test data on DxO Mark DSLR-A550 test data on DxO Mark
  14.2 vs 11.8 evs
  Retain detail in highlight and shadows
• Top deck display
  Yes vs No
  Check settings with a screen on top of the camera
• External Mic Jack
  Jack vs No jack
  Improved sound fidelity when shooting video
• More cross-type AF points
  9 vs 1
  Cross-type AF points improve autofocus performance
• Pentaprism viewfinder
  Pentaprism vs Pentamirror
  Much better viewfinder picture fidelity
• Shoots 24p video
  Yes vs No
  Gives your movies a big-screen feel
• Shoots 1080p video
  Yes vs No
  You'll want this if you shoot video
• More viewfinder magnification
  0.70x vs 0.53x
  Get a bigger view of the scene through the eye-level viewfinder
• More pixels
  24.3 vs 14.2 megapixels
  Higher resolution photos
• Shoots 60p video
  Yes vs No
  A faster framerate can give you more editing options
• Dual card slots
  Yes vs No
  Gives you more storage flexibility
• More AF points
  39 vs 9
  More AF points improve autofocus
• Headphone jack
  Yes vs No
  Monitor audio recording while you shoot video
• Wider angle kit lens
  24 mm vs 27 mm
  Capture more of the scene with the included lens
• Bigger JPEG buffer
  28 vs 15 shots
  Take more JPEG shots before waiting (burst mode)
• Higher extended ISO
  25600 vs 12800 ISO
  Higher extended ISO can give more low-light flexibility