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Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS

Portability
60
Imaging
46
Features
54
Overall
49
Olympus E-30 front
 
Olympus TG-820 iHS front
Portability
92
Imaging
36
Features
37
Overall
36

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS 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
  • Revealed March 2009
Olympus TG-820 iHS
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.9-5.9) lens
  • 206g - 101 x 65 x 26mm
  • Launched February 2012
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS Overview

Here, we will be looking at the Olympus E-30 versus Olympus TG-820 iHS, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Waterproof and both of them are created by Olympus. The sensor resolution of the E-30 (12MP) and the TG-820 iHS (12MP) is pretty comparable but the E-30 (Four Thirds) and TG-820 iHS (1/2.3") have different sensor measurements.

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The E-30 was launched 3 years before the TG-820 iHS and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-30 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus TG-820 iHS being a Compact camera.

Before diving right into a in-depth comparison, here is a short synopsis of how the E-30 grades versus the TG-820 iHS in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-30 over the Olympus TG-820 iHS

 E-30 TG-820 iHS 
Manually focus More accurate focusing
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Selfie screen Take selfies

Reasons to pick Olympus TG-820 iHS over the Olympus E-30

 TG-820 iHS E-30 
LaunchedFebruary 2012March 2009Fresher by 35 months
Screen size3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution1030k230kCrisper screen (+800k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-30 and Olympus TG-820 iHS

 E-30 TG-820 iHS 
Touch friendly screen Neither comes with Touch friendly screen

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS Physical Comparison

When you are aiming to carry your camera frequently, you will have to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-30 comes with physical dimensions of 142mm x 108mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.3" x 3.0") having a weight of 695 grams (1.53 lbs) whilst the Olympus TG-820 iHS has measurements of 101mm x 65mm x 26mm (4.0" x 2.6" x 1.0") with a weight of 206 grams (0.45 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-30 versus Olympus TG-820 iHS in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have chosen at that time. The following is a front view dimensions comparison of the E-30 vs the TG-820 iHS.

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability grade of the E-30 and TG-820 iHS is 60 and 92 respectively.

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS Sensor Comparison

Generally, it is very hard to imagine the contrast in sensor sizing purely by seeing specs. The visual below may give you a better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-30 and TG-820 iHS.

As you can plainly see, both cameras come with the identical MP albeit different sensor sizing. The E-30 comes with the bigger sensor which is going to make getting shallow depth of field easier. The older E-30 will be behind in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS sensor size comparison

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-30 Portrait photography information
Olympus TG-820 iHS Portrait photography information
59
you can focus manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes face detection focusing
supports RAW files
low megapixels (12MP)
27
supports face detection focusing
lack of manual focus
no manual exposure
cannot use external flash
sensor resolution low (12MP)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-30
Street photography with Olympus TG-820 iHS
72
fully articulated screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
61
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
weather proofing
fixed screen
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-30 Sports photography features
Olympus TG-820 iHS Sports photography features
51
high shutter speed (1/8,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports phase detect AF
very slow continuous shooting (5.0 fps)
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
not so great battery pack (750 shots)
34
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
supports tracking autofocus
weather proofing
painfully slow continuous shooting (5.0 frames/s)
lack of shutter priority mode
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
not so great battery power (220 CIPA)
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-30 Travel photography details
Olympus TG-820 iHS Travel photography details
49
built-in flash
selfie friendly display
lack of Timelapse function
not so great battery pack (750 shots)
low megapixels (12MP)
59
weather proofing
has built in flash
fairly wide (28mm)
lack of Timelapse recording
not so great battery power (220 shots)
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.9)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-30 Landscape photography information
Olympus TG-820 iHS Landscape photography information
52
you can focus manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
small screen (2.7")
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
not so great battery pack (750 shots)
lack of Timelapse function
38
fairly wide (28mm)
pretty good screen size (3")
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
weather proofing
lack of manual focus
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.9)
no manual exposure
sensor resolution low (12MP)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
not so great battery power (220 CIPA)
lack of Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-30 as a Vlogging camera
Olympus TG-820 iHS as a Vlogging camera
18
lack of video recording
33
fairly wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
supports face detection focusing
great video quality (1920 x 1080 pxls)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.9)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
lack of external microphone support
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Olympus E-30 vs Olympus TG-820 iHS Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-30 and Olympus TG-820 iHS
 Olympus E-30Olympus TG-820 iHS
General Information
Make Olympus Olympus
Model type Olympus E-30 Olympus TG-820 iHS
Type Advanced DSLR Waterproof
Revealed 2009-03-24 2012-02-08
Physical type Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic III+ TruePic VI
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
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 12 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 5:4, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 -
Highest resolution 4032 x 3024 3968 x 2976
Highest native ISO 3200 6400
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW data
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points 11 -
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-140mm (5.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.9-5.9
Macro focusing distance - 1cm
Number of lenses 45 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Display type Fully Articulated Fixed Type
Display size 2.7 inches 3 inches
Resolution of display 230 thousand dots 1,030 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Display tech HyperCrystal II LCD HyperCrystal III TFT Color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder coverage 98% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.56x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 4s
Highest shutter speed 1/8000s 1/2000s
Continuous shooting rate 5.0fps 5.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 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
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/250s -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (30 fps)1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 180 (30fps)
Highest video resolution None 1920x1080
Video data format - MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 695g (1.53 lb) 206g (0.45 lb)
Physical dimensions 142 x 108 x 75mm (5.6" x 4.3" x 3.0") 101 x 65 x 26mm (4.0" x 2.6" x 1.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 55 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.3 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.4 not tested
DXO Low light rating 530 not tested
Other
Battery life 750 images 220 images
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLM-1 LI-50B
Self timer Yes (12 or 2 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
Card slots Single Single
Retail pricing $1,299 $500