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Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P72 vs Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX500

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

Better figure, where one is clearly better

SonyCyber-shot DSC-P72SonyCyber-shot DSC-WX500
Overview
Released20032015
Image and sensor
Camera typeCompactCompact
Sensor format1/2.7-type1/2.3-type
Sensor typeSuper HAD CCDExmor R CMOS
Effective resolution3.21 MP18.2 MP
Largest image2048 × 15364896 × 3672
RAW recordingNoNo
Standard ISO range100–40080–3200
Sensor detail1/2.7-type primary-colour Super HAD CCD; approximately 3.34 million total and 3.21 million effective photosites in exact shared manual; UK specification rounds effective count to 3.2 MP1/2.3-type back-illuminated Exmor R CMOS; approximately 18.2 million effective and 21.1 million total photosites. Optical format is not physical dimensions
Image formatsJPEG Exif 2.2 stills with Fine/Standard compression; GIF Clip Motion, MPEG-1 movies and mono voice-with-still mode. No RAW or TIFF recordingJPEG with Fine or Standard compression; maximum 4896 × 3672 in 4:3, 4896 × 3264 in 3:2, 4896 × 2752 in 16:9 or 3664 × 3664 in 1:1. Sweep Panorama standard, wide or 360-degree up to 11520 × 1080
ISO detailAuto or manually selected ISO 100, 200 or 400; no continuous ISO dialSingle-exposure settings ISO 80–3200, Auto ISO 80–3200. Multi Frame NR extends to ISO 6400/12800 through processed overlaid burst exposures
Image processor14-bit DXP A/D conversion; Clear Colour NR, Clear Luminance NR and NR Slow Shutter processingBIONZ X
Lens and shooting
Built-in lens39–117 mm equivalent24–720 mm equivalent
Maximum aperturef/2.8–5.6f/3.5–6.4
Optical zoom3×30×
Stabilisation–Optical lens stabilisation
Lens detailPhysical focal length 6–18 mm, equivalent to 39–117 mm, F2.8–5.6. Normal autofocus from 50 cm; separate Macro mode from 10 cm wide or 50 cm tele in the exact manual. Lens retracts and its automatic cover closes when powered off. Smart Zoom crops at lower resolutions, up to 9.6× total at VGA; this is not additional optical zoom. Optional conversion lenses via VAD-PEA in the UK tableZEISS Vario-Sonnar T* thirty-times optical zoom, eleven elements in ten groups including five aspherical elements; five-blade iris, actual 4.1–123 mm. Equivalent 24–720 mm in 4:3, 25–750 mm in 3:2, 26.5–795 mm in 16:9 or 27.5–825 mm in 1:1. Movie 16:9 Standard 26.5–795 mm, Active 28–1180 mm, Intelligent Active 31–1210 mm; 4:3 Standard 32.5–975 mm, Active 34.5–1450 mm, Intelligent Active 38–1480 mm
AutofocusAutomatic Multi AF or centre AF with AF-assist illuminator; preset distances 0.5, 1, 3, 7 m and infinity, not continuous manual focusingContrast-detection AF-S; AF-C only in Advanced Sports and movie modes. Nine-point Wide, centre, Flexible Spot S/M/L and Expand Flexible Spot, with Lock-on AF; approximately 5 cm minimum focus wide or 250 cm telephoto
ShutterAutomatic shutter 2–1/2000 second in the exact UK specification and Sony Japan P72 table; no manual shutter selectionIntelligent Auto 4–1/2000 second; Program Auto 1–1/2000 second; aperture priority 8–1/2000 second; shutter priority and manual 30–1/2000 second
Burst detailTwo-shot Burst captures two full-size stills; exact continuous fps not established. Multi Burst stores sixteen 320×240 subframes in one 1280×960 composite with 1/30, 1/15 or 1/7.5-second intervals. Maker lists 1.5 seconds between maximum-size single shots and 2.3-second startup; neither is continuous fpsMaximum approximately 10 fps at full resolution for ten frames; this is a brief buffered burst rather than sustained continuous shooting. Some modes prevent burst shooting, and flash reduces its speed
Stabilisation detail–Optical SteadyShot for photographs. Intelligent Active movie mode combines optical and electronic compensation, including rotation correction; Sony’s five-axis launch claim applies to movies and includes electronic correction
FlashBuilt-in Auto, forced, off and slow-sync flash, red-eye reduction and daylight fill. ISO Auto recommended distance 0.5–3.8 m wide or 0.5–2.5 m tele in the exact manual; UK table headline 0.5–3.8 m does not describe both zoom ends. No hot shoe or accessory shoeBuilt-in manually raised pop-up flash, Auto, forced, slow-sync, rear-sync or off; ISO Auto range approximately 0.3–5.4 m wide or 2.5–3 m telephoto
Exposure controlsAutomatic and Program exposure with ±2 EV in 1/3 EV steps, multi-pattern/spot metering, Twilight, Twilight Portrait, Landscape, Snow and Beach scenes; no aperture/shutter priority or manual exposureIntelligent Auto, Superior Auto, Program Auto, aperture priority, shutter priority, manual, Memory Recall 1/2/3, scenes, panorama and automatic/scene movie modes. ±3 EV in 1/3 EV steps; wide-angle F3.5–F8 in aperture priority or manual. Thirteen still-image Picture Effects
Video
Highest video resolution640 × 480 at 16.6 fps1920 × 1080 at 60 fps
Video detailMPEG-1 VX 640×480 at 16.6 fps in exact UK specifications, with mono sound; US maker press rounds to 16 fps. Mail 160×112 mode is separate. Clip length limited by card capacity; zoom cannot change during recordingMaximum 1920 × 1080 progressive at 60p NTSC or 50p PAL. XAVC S up to 50 Mbps; AVCHD up to 28 Mbps and MP4 up to 28 Mbps. Japan also lists 1080p30/p24 XAVC S, interlaced AVCHD and 720p30 MP4; regional frame rates differ and PAL/NTSC can be switched. XAVC S requires a Class 10 or faster SDXC card. Approximately 29-minute clip limit; MP4 28M reaches its 4 GB limit in approximately 20 minutes. Optical zoom works during recording; 4K output is still photographs only
AudioBuilt-in electret condenser microphone and dynamic speaker; mono movie recording and still-image voice memo for 5 seconds after a tap or up to 40 seconds while holding shutterBuilt-in stereo microphone and mono speaker; XAVC S LPCM two-channel, AVCHD Dolby Digital two-channel or MP4 AAC-LC two-channel audio
Screen and viewfinder
ViewfinderOpticalNone
Screen size1.5″3″
Screen dots123,200921,600
TouchscreenNoNo
Tilting screenNoYes
Display detailFixed 1.5-type TFT with 123,200 colour-subpixel dots (560×220); these are not 123,200 image pixels3.0-type Xtra Fine TFT LCD with 921600 dots, manual five-step brightness; tilts upward approximately 180 degrees for self-portraits. No touchscreen or viewfinder
Viewfinder detailOptical zoom finder; SmartZoom cropping and Macro framing differ from finder image, so maker directs Macro use to LCD–
Connections and design
Wi-Fi–Yes
Battery life (maker's claim)–400 photographs
Body weight197 g209 g
Release detailSony Europe announced the family on 3 February 2003 with planned March/April European availability. Sony Japan announcement on 25 February states planned P72 availability on 14 March. The exact Imaging Resource test dated 8 May 2003 marks availability as Now, establishing actual sale in 2003 by then; earliest actual retail month unresolved, so year precision retained. No explicit direct predecessor link establishedReleased in 2015. Sony’s 7 May Hong Kong announcement scheduled mid-June launch after a pre-order period; the prospective date does not establish the actual first on-sale day or month
Recording mediaMemory Stick and Memory Stick PRO serial interface; 16 MB supplied. Exact shared manual supports PRO through 1 GB; maker launch explicitly excludes high-speed transfer. Duo requires Memory Stick adaptor; MagicGate data unsupportedSD, SDHC and SDXC with UHS-I support, microSD/microSDHC/microSDXC with adapters, Memory Stick Duo/PRO Duo/PRO-HG Duo and Memory Stick Micro with an adapter
PortsUSB mini-B with normal mass-storage or PTP settings; exact UK table explicitly excludes USB 2.0 Hi-Speed despite US USB 2.0 compatibility wording. Mono A/V OUT minijack with selectable NTSC/PAL; DC IN for optional AC-LS5Multi/micro-USB terminal with USB 2.0 Hi-Speed; micro-HDMI output
Wireless connections–Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11b/g/n at 2.4 GHz and NFC Forum Type 3 Tag for one-touch pairing; smartphone transfer/remote control, TV viewing and computer transfer with compatible software. PlayMemories Camera Apps support and Eye-Fi; no GPS
Battery life detailTwo supplied NH-AA-DA Ni-MH AA cells; R6 alkaline AA also permitted with lower runtime. Exact manual average-use test at 25°C: approximately 300 images/150 minutes with LCD on or 500 images/250 minutes with LCD off, at maximum image size and Fine compression, one shot every 30 seconds, alternating zoom ends, flash every second shot and restart every 10 shots; not labelled CIPA. Sony alkaline comparison: 70 images/35 minutes with LCD on or 130 images/65 minutes with LCD off. Continuous 160×112 movies approximately 160 minutes with LCD on or 210 minutes off, distinct from the still-shooting testSupplied NP-BX1; approximately 400 photographs or 200 minutes under CIPA conditions, approximately 75 minutes actual movie use or 110 minutes continuous movie use, distinct from per-clip limits
ChargingSupplied external BC-CS2A/CS2B charger: approximately six hours for depleted supplied Ni-MH cells at 25°C; remove cells from camera for charging. Optional BC-CSQ2 quick charger approximately 2.5 hours for two cells or five hours for four, not standard charger performance; optional AC-LS5 supplies camera powerIn-camera USB charging and external USB power with supplied AC adapter and battery fitted
Dimensions119.5×57.7×36.8 mm width×height×depth, excluding protruding portions in the exact manual; Japan launch labels maximum exterior dimensions101.6 × 58.1 × 35.5 mm (width × height × depth), CIPA compliant
Weight detailApproximately 197 g body only in the exact UK specification and Sony Japan launch; approximately 259 g with two batteries, Memory Stick and wrist strap in the exact manualApproximately 209 g body-only; approximately 236 g including NP-BX1 and Memory Stick Duo
Colours–Black, white or red; regional choices differ
In the boxTwo NH-AA-DA rechargeable AA Ni-MH cells, battery case, BC-CS2A/CS2B charger and mains lead, 16 MB Memory Stick, USB and mono A/V cables, wrist strap, software CD and operating instructions; AC-LS5 optionalNP-BX1, AC-UB10C/UB10D, micro-USB cable, wrist strap and instructions; regional contents differ

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