Samsung NX1 Comparison Review

The Samsung NX1 is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera that was revealed to the public in September 2014 and is equipped with an APS-C sensor. It offers a resolution of 28 megapixel.

Is the Samsung NX1 a good camera? The NX1 has a Camera Elo of 2600. This rating puts the NX1 among the top 40 percent of all mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (APS cameras), the NX1 ranks among the top 20 percent. Based on its within category standings, the camera earns a 4-star performance rating.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

The side-by-side display below illustrates the physical size of the Samsung NX1 vis-à-vis a credit card. Three successive views from the front, the top, and the rear are shown. All width, height and depth dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Samsung NX1 alongside a set of similar cameras. If you want to review a particular camera pair side-by-side, just move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Samsung NX1	139 mm	102 mm	66 mm	550 g	500	Y	Sep 2014	1,499
2.		Fujifilm X-Pro2	141 mm	83 mm	46 mm	495 g	350	Y	Jan 2016	1,699
3.		Fujifilm X-T2	133 mm	92 mm	49 mm	507 g	340	Y	Jul 2016	1,599
4.		Leica Q Typ 116	130 mm	80 mm	93 mm	640 g	300	n	Jun 2015	4,249
5.		Leica SL	147 mm	104 mm	39 mm	847 g	400	Y	Oct 2015	7,450
6.		Nikon D7200	136 mm	107 mm	76 mm	765 g	1110	Y	Mar 2015	1,199
7.		Panasonic GH4	133 mm	93 mm	84 mm	560 g	500	Y	Feb 2014	1,499
8.		Samsung NX500	120 mm	64 mm	43 mm	287 g	370	n	Feb 2015	799
9.		Sony A6500	120 mm	67 mm	53 mm	453 g	350	Y	Oct 2016	1,399
10.		Sony RX10 II	129 mm	88 mm	102 mm	813 g	400	Y	Jun 2015	1,299
11.		Sony A7	127 mm	94 mm	48 mm	474 g	340	Y	Oct 2013	1,699
Notes: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Samsung NX1 was launched in the US market at a price of $1,499. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The imaging sensor is at the core of digital cameras and its size is one of the main determining factors of image quality. A large sensor will generally have larger individual pixels that offer better low-light sensitivity, provide wider dynamic range, and have richer color-depth than smaller pixels in a sensor of the same technological generation. Furthermore, a large sensor camera will give the photographer more possibilities to use shallow depth-of-field in order to isolate a subject from the background. On the downside, larger sensors are more costly to manufacture and tent to lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

The Samsung NX1 features an APS-C sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.5. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Samsung NX1 among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability.

For most cameras, data on sensor performance has been reported by DXO Mark. This service is based on lab testing and assigns an overall score to each camera sensor, as well as ratings for dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), color depth ("DXO Portrait"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"). The table below summarizes the physical sensor characteristics and sensor quality findings and compares them across a set of similar cameras.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Samsung NX1	APS-C	28.0	6480	4320	4K/30p	24.2	13.2	1363	83
2.		Fujifilm X-Pro2	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	..	..	..	..
3.		Fujifilm X-T2	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	..	..	..	..
4.		Leica Q Typ 116	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.3	12.7	2221	85
5.		Leica SL	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	25.0	13.4	1821	88
6.		Nikon D7200	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.5	14.6	1333	87
7.		Panasonic GH4	Four Thirds	15.9	4608	3456	4K/30p	23.2	12.8	791	74
8.		Samsung NX500	APS-C	28.0	6480	4320	4K/30p	24.8	13.9	1379	87
9.		Sony A6500	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	24.5	13.7	1405	85
10.		Sony RX10 II	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	4K/30p	23.0	12.6	531	70
11.		Sony A7	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.8	14.2	2248	90

Many modern cameras are not only capable of taking still images, but also of capturing video footage. The NX1 indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the NX1 can use is 4K/30p.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a variety of features. For example, the NX1 has an electronic viewfinder with a resolution of 2360k dots. The viewfinder offers a field of view of 100% and a magnification of 0.69x. The adjacent tables list some of the other core features of the Samsung NX1 along with similar information for a selection of comparators.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Specifications (inch/000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Mech Shutter Speed	Shutter Flaps (1/sec)	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Samsung NX1	2360	Y	3.0 / 1036	tilting	Y	1/8000s	15.0	Y	n
2.		Fujifilm X-Pro2	2360	n	3.0 / 1620	fixed	n	1/8000s	8.0	n	n
3.		Fujifilm X-T2	2360	n	3.0 / 1040	tilting	n	1/8000s	8.0	n	n
4.		Leica Q Typ 116	3680	n	3.0 / 1040	fixed	Y	1/2000s	10.0	n	Y
5.		Leica SL	4400	Y	3.0 / 1040	fixed	Y	1/8000s	11.0	n	n
6.		Nikon D7200	optical	Y	3.2 / 1229	fixed	n	1/8000s	6.0	Y	n
7.		Panasonic GH4	2359	n	3.0 / 1036	swivel	Y	1/8000s	12.0	Y	n
8.		Samsung NX500	none	n	3.0 / 1036	tilting	Y	1/6000s	9.0	Y	n
9.		Sony A6500	2359	n	3.0 / 922	tilting	Y	1/4000s	11.0	Y	Y
10.		Sony RX10 II	2359	Y	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/3200s	14.0	Y	Y
11.		Sony A7	2400	n	3.0 / 1230	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0	n	n

The LCD screen on the Samsung NX1 is flexibly attached to the body. In particular, the LCD can be tilted vertically to facilitate odd-angle shots in landscape orientation. This tilting design is often preferred, for example, by street photographers to a fully articulated, swivel type of LCD attachment, as it is more unobtrusive during shooting than a screen that flips out to the side.

One convenient feature of the NX1 is the presence of an on-board flash. While this built-in flash is not very powerful, it can at times be useful as a fill-in light to brighten deep shadow areas.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Samsung NX1 and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Mic / Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Samsung NX1	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.0	Y	Y	Y
2.		Fujifilm X-Pro2	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	micro	2.0	Y	-	-
3.		Fujifilm X-T2	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	micro	3.0	Y	-	-
4.		Leica Q Typ 116	Y	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
5.		Leica SL	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	full	3.0	Y	-	-
6.		Nikon D7200	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	mini	2.0	Y	Y	-
7.		Panasonic GH4	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
8.		Samsung NX500	Y	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	Y
9.		Sony A6500	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
10.		Sony RX10 II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
11.		Sony A7	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-

It is notable that the NX1 has a microphone port. Such an external microphone input can help to substantially improve the quality of audio recordings when a good external microphone is used.

Expert reviews

While the specs-based evaluation of cameras is instructive in revealing their potential as photographic tools, it says nothing about, for example, the handling, responsiveness, and overall imaging quality of the NX1 in practical situations. User reviews, such as those found at amazon, can sometimes inform about these issues, but such feedback is often incomplete, inconsistent, and biased. This is why expert reviews are important. The table below summarizes the assessments of some of the best known camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], digitalcameraworld [DCW], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DCW   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Samsung NX1	5/5	..	..	87/100	5/5	5/5	Sep 2014	1,499
2.		Fujifilm X-Pro2	..	+	..	83/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jan 2016	1,699
3.		Fujifilm X-T2	5/5	+ +	..	86/100	4.5/5	5/5	Jul 2016	1,599
4.		Leica Q Typ 116	5/5	..	..	80/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jun 2015	4,249
5.		Leica SL	4/5	..	4/5	84/100	4.5/5	4/5	Oct 2015	7,450
6.		Nikon D7200	4/5	+ +	..	84/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Mar 2015	1,199
7.		Panasonic GH4	5/5	+ +	..	85/100	5/5	5/5	Feb 2014	1,499
8.		Samsung NX500	4.5/5	..	..	81/100	5/5	4.5/5	Feb 2015	799
9.		Sony A6500	5/5	+ +	3.5/5	85/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Oct 2016	1,399
10.		Sony RX10 II	5/5	+ +	..	82/100	4.5/5	4/5	Jun 2015	1,299
11.		Sony A7	5/5	+ +	..	80/100	5/5	5/5	Oct 2013	1,699
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

Care should be taken when interpreting the review scores above, though. The assessments were made in relation to similar cameras of the same technological generation. Hence, a score should always be seen in the context of the camera's market launch date and its price, and comparisons of ratings among very different cameras or across long time periods have little meaning. It should also be noted that some of the review sites have over time altered the way they render their verdicts.

Camera to camera comparisons

In case you are interested in seeing how this camera compares to another one, just use the search menu below. There is also a set of direct links to comparison reviews that other users of the CAM-parator app explored.

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