Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12
56 Imaging
44 Features
56 Overall
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89 Imaging
37 Features
36 Overall
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Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 2.5" Fully Articulated Screen
- ISO 100 - 3200
- Sensor based Image Stabilization
- 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
- No Video
- Micro Four Thirds Mount
- 890g - 142 x 116 x 75mm
- Introduced February 2008
- Replaced the Olympus E-1
- Updated by Olympus E-5
(Full Review)
- 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 3" Fixed Screen
- ISO 80 - 1600
- Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
- 1280 x 720 video
- 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
- 226g - 106 x 69 x 40mm
- Released January 2012
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Let's take a deeper look at the Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom and both of them are created by Olympus. There exists a considerable gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-3 (10MP) and SZ-12 (14MP) and the E-3 (Four Thirds) and SZ-12 (1/2.3") have totally different sensor sizes.
Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD CardsThe E-3 was brought out 4 years before the SZ-12 and that is quite a large difference as far as technology is concerned. Both of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-3 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera.
Before getting into a in depth comparison, here is a simple introduction of how the E-3 grades vs the SZ-12 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12 Gallery
Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus E-3 & Olympus SZ-12. The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus E-3 Gallery & Olympus SZ-12 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-3 over the Olympus SZ-12
| E-3 | SZ-12 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Focus manually | Very precise focusing | |||
| Screen type | Fully Articulated | Fixed | Fully Articulating screen | |
| Selfie screen | Take selfies |
Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-12 over the Olympus E-3
| SZ-12 | E-3 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Released | January 2012 | February 2008 | More recent by 47 months | |
| Screen size | 3" | 2.5" | Bigger screen (+0.5") | |
| Screen resolution | 460k | 230k | Crisper screen (+230k dot) |
Common features in the Olympus E-3 and Olympus SZ-12
| E-3 | SZ-12 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Touch friendly screen | No Touch friendly screen |
Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12 Physical Comparison
When you are aiming to lug around your camera regularly, you will have to factor in its weight and size. The Olympus E-3 has physical measurements of 142mm x 116mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") with a weight of 890 grams (1.96 lbs) whilst the Olympus SZ-12 has specifications of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") and a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs).
Analyze the Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Take into account, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have attached at the time. Following is a front view proportions comparison of the E-3 vs the SZ-12.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-3 and SZ-12 is 56 and 89 respectively.
Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12 Sensor Comparison
Typically, it's tough to envision the gap between sensor measurements merely by checking specs. The visual here may offer you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the E-3 and SZ-12.
As you can plainly see, both of the cameras come with different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-3 featuring a bigger sensor will make achieving shallow DOF easier and the Olympus SZ-12 will give you more detail having its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop photographs a good deal more aggressively. The older E-3 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor tech.
Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12 Screen and ViewFinder
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Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-12 Specifications
| Olympus E-3 | Olympus SZ-12 | |
|---|---|---|
| General Information | ||
| Make | Olympus | Olympus |
| Model type | Olympus E-3 | Olympus SZ-12 |
| Category | Advanced DSLR | Small Sensor Superzoom |
| Introduced | 2008-02-20 | 2012-01-10 |
| Body design | Mid-size SLR | Compact |
| Sensor Information | ||
| Processor Chip | TruePic III | - |
| Sensor type | CMOS | CCD |
| Sensor size | Four Thirds | 1/2.3" |
| Sensor measurements | 17.3 x 13mm | 6.17 x 4.55mm |
| Sensor surface area | 224.9mm² | 28.1mm² |
| Sensor resolution | 10MP | 14MP |
| Anti alias filter | ||
| Aspect ratio | 4:3 | - |
| Maximum resolution | 3648 x 2736 | 4288 x 3216 |
| Maximum native ISO | 3200 | 1600 |
| Lowest native ISO | 100 | 80 |
| RAW pictures | ||
| Autofocusing | ||
| Focus manually | ||
| AF touch | ||
| AF continuous | ||
| Single AF | ||
| AF tracking | ||
| AF selectice | ||
| AF center weighted | ||
| Multi area AF | ||
| Live view AF | ||
| Face detection focusing | ||
| Contract detection focusing | ||
| Phase detection focusing | ||
| Total focus points | 11 | - |
| Cross type focus points | - | - |
| Lens | ||
| Lens mount type | Micro Four Thirds | fixed lens |
| Lens zoom range | - | 25-600mm (24.0x) |
| Max aperture | - | f/3.0-6.9 |
| Total lenses | 45 | - |
| Focal length multiplier | 2.1 | 5.8 |
| Screen | ||
| Screen type | Fully Articulated | Fixed Type |
| Screen size | 2.5 inch | 3 inch |
| Screen resolution | 230k dot | 460k dot |
| Selfie friendly | ||
| Liveview | ||
| Touch operation | ||
| Screen tech | - | TFT Color LCD |
| Viewfinder Information | ||
| Viewfinder | Optical (pentaprism) | None |
| Viewfinder coverage | 100 percent | - |
| Viewfinder magnification | 0.58x | - |
| Features | ||
| Slowest shutter speed | 60s | 4s |
| Maximum shutter speed | 1/8000s | 1/1700s |
| Continuous shooting speed | 5.0 frames per second | 1.0 frames per second |
| Shutter priority | ||
| Aperture priority | ||
| Expose Manually | ||
| Exposure compensation | Yes | - |
| Change WB | ||
| Image stabilization | ||
| Integrated flash | ||
| Flash distance | 13.00 m | - |
| Flash modes | Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in |
| External flash | ||
| Auto exposure bracketing | ||
| WB bracketing | ||
| Maximum flash sync | 1/250s | - |
| Exposure | ||
| Multisegment exposure | ||
| Average exposure | ||
| Spot exposure | ||
| Partial exposure | ||
| AF area exposure | ||
| Center weighted exposure | ||
| Video features | ||
| Video resolutions | - | 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 180 (30fps) |
| Maximum video resolution | None | 1280x720 |
| Video format | - | MPEG-4, H.264 |
| Microphone jack | ||
| Headphone jack | ||
| Connectivity | ||
| Wireless | None | None |
| Bluetooth | ||
| NFC | ||
| HDMI | ||
| USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
| GPS | None | None |
| Physical | ||
| Environmental seal | ||
| Water proofing | ||
| Dust proofing | ||
| Shock proofing | ||
| Crush proofing | ||
| Freeze proofing | ||
| Weight | 890g (1.96 pounds) | 226g (0.50 pounds) |
| Physical dimensions | 142 x 116 x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") | 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") |
| DXO scores | ||
| DXO All around rating | 56 | not tested |
| DXO Color Depth rating | 21.6 | not tested |
| DXO Dynamic range rating | 10.5 | not tested |
| DXO Low light rating | 571 | not tested |
| Other | ||
| Battery life | - | 220 images |
| Type of battery | - | Battery Pack |
| Battery ID | - | LI-50B |
| Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 12 sec, pet auto shutter) |
| Time lapse feature | ||
| Type of storage | Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card | SD/SDHC/SDXC |
| Storage slots | 1 | 1 |
| Launch pricing | $670 | $350 |