Alongside the Cyber-shot HX90V, Sony also unveiled the Cyber-shot WX500 to join its nimble fleet of compact cameras. If from the front you can’t tell the difference between the HX90V and WX500, don’t worry, it’s not you. Besides sharing a near identical shell, the WX500 also provides near identical specs as the more expensive HX90V.

So what’s the difference between the two units and why is there a price difference? Details after the jump.

As I mentioned, what the two units share goes beyond design. They offer the same 8.2-megapixel Exmor R CMOS sensor with 30x zoom and 60x digital zoom. The same five-axis image stabilization (Optical SteadyShot) and 1080p recording with Sony’s Bionz X processor is also present along side GPS for Geotagging photos and videos.

 Packing a huge 30x optical zoom range into the tiny camera bodies, the high-quality ZEISS Vario-Sonnar T* lens pulls friends and family, wildlife and distant scenes closer. The advanced design ensures impressively sharp, low-distortion images, even at high zoom settings where budget optics struggle to main clarity and definition. Want to go larger still? Clear Image Zoom boosts magnification to a gargantuan 60x, with Optical SteadyShot and 5-axis image stabilisationiv keeping handheld camera wobbles in check for crisper handheld Full HD videos. 

In fact, the WX500 also has NFC, WiFi and a 3-inch 180-degree (pictured above) LCD that will make your selfies shine, especially when compared to a smartphone that usually offers a 1 to 5 megapixel front-facing camera. In fact, if you want to know more about what this camera does, I recommend you read our HX90V overview, which once again begs the question – what’s the difference between the HX90V and WX500?

The answer is a retractable electronic viewfinder – which is also found on the flagship Sony RX100, or lack thereof. If you want more than an LCD screen for viewing and taking your photos, which can be a great benefit in sunny situations, the HX90V is the one to go with. If that’s something you can live without, then your wallet will thank you.

While the HX90V costs $430, you can shave off $100 from that price tag and enjoy the WX500 at $330. And unlike the HX90V, you can choose between the black, white, and red during checkout while purchasing the more affordable unit. The WX500 will be available for pre-order later this month and ships in June.

Update:

Thanks to eagle-eyed reader Mark for the following. We’d previously reported that the WX500 would come with GPS. According to updated information, the WX500 does not offer GPS, while the HX90V does.

Discuss:

What do you think about the Sony WX500?