Sony QX30 review

30x optical zoom for your phone... well, sort of

Reviews
By
published
Sony Cyber-shot QX30
The QX30 attaches to a clip which you adjust to fit your smartphone.

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

We shoot a specially designed chart in carefully controlled conditions and the resulting images are analysed using DXO Analyzer software to generate the data to produce the graphs below.

A high signal to noise ratio (SNR) indicates a cleaner and better quality image.

For more more details on how to interpret our test data, check out our full explanation of our noise and dynamic range tests.

Here, we compare the QX30 with the Panasonic TZ60, Sony HX60 and Canon SX700.

JPEG signal to noise ratio

Sony Cyber-shot QX30

Analysis: The QX30's signal to noise performance is quite disappointing compared to that of its chief rivals (conventional long-zoom compact cameras). It does show a sudden leap at ISO 1600, which could suggest an extra level of noise reduction kicking in. The ISO test images on the next page show less noise but more smoothing at ISO 1600 and 3200.

JPEG dynamic range

Sony Cyber-shot QX30

Analysis: The QX30's dynamic range results across the ISO range is similar to the Sony HX30's but worse than rival long-zoom compact cameras from Panasonic and Canon.

TOPICS
Amy Davies
Amy Davies

Amy has been writing about cameras, photography and associated tech since 2009. Amy was once part of the photography testing team for Future Publishing working across TechRadar, Digital Camera, PhotoPlus, N Photo and Photography Week. For her photography, she has won awards and has been exhibited. She often partakes in unusual projects - including one intense year where she used a different camera every single day. Amy is currently the Features Editor at Amateur Photographer magazine, and in her increasingly little spare time works across a number of high-profile publications including Wired, Stuff, Digital Camera World, Expert Reviews, and just a little off-tangent, PetsRadar.