Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-15
56 Imaging
44 Features
56 Overall
48


88 Imaging
40 Features
50 Overall
44
Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-15 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 2.5" Fully Articulated Screen
- ISO 100 - 3200
- Sensor based Image Stabilization
- 1/8000s Max Shutter
- No Video
- Micro Four Thirds Mount
- 890g - 142 x 116 x 75mm
- Revealed February 2008
- Earlier Model is Olympus E-1
- Replacement is Olympus E-5
(Full Review)
- 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 3" Fixed Display
- ISO 100 - 3200
- Optical Image Stabilization
- 1920 x 1080 video
- 23-483mm (F2.8-5.9) lens
- 250g - 108 x 70 x 40mm
- Announced June 2013

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-15 Overview
Its time to take a closer look at the Olympus E-3 versus Olympus SZ-15, former is a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom and both of them are designed by Olympus. There is a substantial difference between the sensor resolutions of the E-3 (10MP) and SZ-15 (16MP) and the E-3 (Four Thirds) and SZ-15 (1/2.3") offer different sensor dimensions.

The E-3 was unveiled 6 years earlier than the SZ-15 which is quite a big difference as far as tech is concerned. The two cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-3 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus SZ-15 being a Compact camera.
Before we go into a in depth comparison, here is a simple view of how the E-3 grades against the SZ-15 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-15 Gallery
Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-3 & Olympus SZ-15. The full galleries are provided at Olympus E-3 Gallery & Olympus SZ-15 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-3 over the Olympus SZ-15
E-3 | SZ-15 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Display type | Fully Articulated | ![]() | Fixed | Fully Articulating display |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Take selfies |
Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-15 over the Olympus E-3
SZ-15 | E-3 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Announced | June 2013 | ![]() | February 2008 | More modern by 64 months |
Display dimensions | 3" | ![]() | 2.5" | Larger display (+0.5") |
Display resolution | 460k | ![]() | 230k | Sharper display (+230k dot) |
Common features in the Olympus E-3 and Olympus SZ-15
E-3 | SZ-15 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Focus manually | ![]() | Very accurate focus | ||
Touch display | ![]() | Neither offers Touch display |
Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-15 Physical Comparison
In case you're going to carry around your camera frequently, you'll need to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-3 offers outside dimensions 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-15 has measurements of 108mm x 70mm x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") and a weight of 250 grams (0.55 lbs).
Check out the Olympus E-3 versus Olympus SZ-15 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are utilizing at that moment. Below is a front view proportions comparison of the E-3 and the SZ-15.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the E-3 and SZ-15 is 56 and 88 respectively.

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-15 Sensor Comparison
Often, it is difficult to visualize the difference between sensor sizes merely by reading through technical specs. The picture underneath should give you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-3 and SZ-15.
As you have seen, each of the cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-3 with its larger sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF less difficult and the Olympus SZ-15 will give greater detail having an extra 6MP. Greater resolution can also let you crop images more aggressively. The more aged E-3 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-15 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus SZ-15 Specifications
Olympus E-3 | Olympus SZ-15 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Company | Olympus | Olympus |
Model type | Olympus E-3 | Olympus SZ-15 |
Category | Advanced DSLR | Small Sensor Superzoom |
Revealed | 2008-02-20 | 2013-06-21 |
Physical type | Mid-size SLR | Compact |
Sensor Information | ||
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 area | 224.9mm² | 28.1mm² |
Sensor resolution | 10 megapixel | 16 megapixel |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 |
Full resolution | 3648 x 2736 | 4608 x 3456 |
Max native ISO | 3200 | 3200 |
Minimum native ISO | 100 | 100 |
RAW format | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Focus manually | ||
Touch to focus | ||
Continuous autofocus | ||
Autofocus single | ||
Autofocus tracking | ||
Autofocus selectice | ||
Autofocus center weighted | ||
Autofocus multi area | ||
Live view autofocus | ||
Face detection focus | ||
Contract detection focus | ||
Phase detection focus | ||
Total focus points | 11 | - |
Cross type focus points | - | - |
Lens | ||
Lens mount type | Micro Four Thirds | fixed lens |
Lens zoom range | - | 23-483mm (21.0x) |
Largest aperture | - | f/2.8-5.9 |
Macro focusing distance | - | 5cm |
Amount of lenses | 45 | - |
Crop factor | 2.1 | 5.8 |
Screen | ||
Screen type | Fully Articulated | Fixed Type |
Screen sizing | 2.5 inch | 3 inch |
Screen resolution | 230 thousand dots | 460 thousand dots |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch screen | ||
Screen tech | - | LCD |
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | Optical (pentaprism) | None |
Viewfinder coverage | 100% | - |
Viewfinder magnification | 0.58x | - |
Features | ||
Lowest shutter speed | 60 seconds | 8 seconds |
Highest shutter speed | 1/8000 seconds | 1/2000 seconds |
Continuous shooting rate | 5.0fps | 10.0fps |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Expose Manually | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
Change white balance | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Built-in flash | ||
Flash distance | 13.00 m | 3.50 m |
Flash modes | Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync |
External flash | ||
AEB | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Highest flash synchronize | 1/250 seconds | - |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment metering | ||
Average metering | ||
Spot metering | ||
Partial metering | ||
AF area metering | ||
Center weighted metering | ||
Video features | ||
Video resolutions | - | 1920 x 1080 (30fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 480fps (176 x 128), 240fps (384 x 288) |
Max video resolution | None | 1920x1080 |
Video file format | - | AVI MPEG4, Motion JPEG |
Microphone support | ||
Headphone support | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | Built-In |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | BuiltIn |
Physical | ||
Environment sealing | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 890g (1.96 pounds) | 250g (0.55 pounds) |
Physical dimensions | 142 x 116 x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") | 108 x 70 x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" 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 ID | - | SLB-10A |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec, Double) |
Time lapse recording | ||
Type of storage | Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card | SD/SDHC/SDXC |
Card slots | 1 | 1 |
Cost at launch | $670 | $200 |