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Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15

Portability
60
Imaging
46
Features
54
Overall
49
Olympus E-30 front
 
Olympus SZ-15 front
Portability
88
Imaging
40
Features
50
Overall
44

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 Key Specs

Olympus E-30
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 695g - 142 x 108 x 75mm
  • Announced March 2009
Olympus SZ-15
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 23-483mm (F2.8-5.9) lens
  • 250g - 108 x 70 x 40mm
  • Launched June 2013
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Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 Overview

On this page, we will be contrasting the Olympus E-30 versus Olympus SZ-15, former is a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom and both of them are sold by Olympus. There is a considerable difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-30 (12MP) and SZ-15 (16MP) and the E-30 (Four Thirds) and SZ-15 (1/2.3") boast totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-30 was announced 5 years prior to the SZ-15 which is a fairly large difference as far as camera tech is concerned. The two cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-30 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus SZ-15 being a Compact camera.

Before delving into a step-by-step comparison, here is a short introduction of how the E-30 scores against the SZ-15 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-30 over the Olympus SZ-15

 E-30 SZ-15 
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Selfie screen Take selfies

Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-15 over the Olympus E-30

 SZ-15 E-30 
LaunchedJune 2013March 2009Newer by 51 months
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kClearer screen (+230k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-30 and Olympus SZ-15

 E-30 SZ-15 
Manual focus Very exact focus
Touch friendly screen Neither provides Touch friendly screen

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 Physical Comparison

For those who are planning to travel with your camera frequently, you will want to consider its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-30 provides outside dimensions of 142mm x 108mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.3" x 3.0") with a weight of 695 grams (1.53 lbs) and the Olympus SZ-15 has proportions of 108mm x 70mm x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") along with a weight of 250 grams (0.55 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-30 versus Olympus SZ-15 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are working with during that time. Below is a front view scale comparison of the E-30 and the SZ-15.

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the E-30 and SZ-15 is 60 and 88 respectively.

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 Sensor Comparison

Usually, its hard to visualise the difference in sensor dimensions just by researching a spec sheet. The picture here will help offer you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-30 and SZ-15.

As you can see, both of those cameras have different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The E-30 with its bigger sensor will make getting shallow depth of field easier and the Olympus SZ-15 will result in more detail with its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop shots a bit more aggressively. The more aged E-30 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor tech.

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-30 Portrait photography features
Olympus SZ-15 Portrait photography features
59
focusing manually
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers face detect focusing
supports RAW formats
low megapixels (12MP)
44
manual focus
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
comes with face detection focusing
external flash not possible
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-30 Street photography advice
Olympus SZ-15 Street photography advice
72
screen articulates
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
60
image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than others (250g)
screen does not articulate
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-30 as a Sports photography camera
Olympus SZ-15 as a Sports photography camera
51
high shutter speed (1/8,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with phase detect AF
slow continuous shooting (5.0 frames per second)
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
low battery pack (750 per charge)
53
great zoom range (23-483mm 21.0 x zoom)
image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count good (16MP)
comes with tracking autofocus
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-30 Travel photography features
Olympus SZ-15 Travel photography features
49
flash built-in
selfie friendly display
lack of Timelapse mode
low battery pack (750 per charge)
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
68
lighter than others (250 grams)
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
quite wide (23mm)
long zoom (483mm)
no Timelapse function
display isn't selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f2.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-30
Landscape photography with Olympus SZ-15
52
focusing manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inch)
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
low battery pack (750 CIPA)
lack of Timelapse mode
49
manual focus
quite wide (23mm)
screen is a good size (3 inches)
image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
no Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-30
Vlogging with Olympus SZ-15
18
no video recording
34
quite wide (23mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detection focusing
high quality video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
lighter than others (250 grams)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
display isn't selfie friendly
no external microphone jack
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Olympus E-30 vs Olympus SZ-15 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-30 and Olympus SZ-15
 Olympus E-30Olympus SZ-15
General Information
Make Olympus Olympus
Model Olympus E-30 Olympus SZ-15
Category Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Superzoom
Announced 2009-03-24 2013-06-21
Body design 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 12MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 5:4, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4032 x 3024 4608 x 3456
Max native ISO 3200 3200
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
Continuous autofocus
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Live view autofocus
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Number of focus points 11 -
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 23-483mm (21.0x)
Highest aperture - f/2.8-5.9
Macro focus distance - 5cm
Amount of lenses 45 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Display type Fully Articulated Fixed Type
Display sizing 2.7" 3"
Resolution of display 230 thousand dot 460 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Display tech HyperCrystal II LCD LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder coverage 98% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.56x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 8s
Highest shutter speed 1/8000s 1/2000s
Continuous shooting speed 5.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 13.00 m 3.50 m
Flash modes Auto, Manual, Fill, Red-eye reduction, Slow sync with red-eye reduction, Slow sync, Slow sync 2nd curtain, Off Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/250s -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
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 format - AVI MPEG4, Motion JPEG
Microphone input
Headphone input
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 seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 695 grams (1.53 pounds) 250 grams (0.55 pounds)
Physical dimensions 142 x 108 x 75mm (5.6" x 4.3" x 3.0") 108 x 70 x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 55 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 21.3 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 10.4 not tested
DXO Low light score 530 not tested
Other
Battery life 750 photos -
Battery format Battery Pack -
Battery model BLM-1 SLB-10A
Self timer Yes (12 or 2 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
Storage slots One One
Retail price $1,299 $200