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Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR

Portability
67
Imaging
41
Features
31
Overall
37
Olympus E-300 front
 
Olympus SZ-30MR front
Portability
89
Imaging
39
Features
39
Overall
39

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR Key Specs

Olympus E-300
(Full Review)
  • 8MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 1.8" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 400 (Raise to 1600)
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 624g - 147 x 85 x 64mm
  • Revealed January 2005
  • Additionally referred to as EVOLT E-300
  • Renewed by Olympus E-330
Olympus SZ-30MR
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 226g - 106 x 69 x 40mm
  • Revealed March 2011
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Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR Overview

Below is a thorough assessment of the Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom and they are both built by Olympus. There exists a considerable gap between the resolutions of the E-300 (8MP) and SZ-30MR (16MP) and the E-300 (Four Thirds) and SZ-30MR (1/2.3") have totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-300 was brought out 7 years prior to the SZ-30MR and that is quite a large difference as far as technology is concerned. Both of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-300 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus SZ-30MR being a Compact camera.

Before going into a more detailed comparison, here is a brief highlight of how the E-300 grades against the SZ-30MR when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-300 over the Olympus SZ-30MR

 E-300 SZ-30MR 
Focus manually Very precise focusing

Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-30MR over the Olympus E-300

 SZ-30MR E-300 
RevealedMarch 2011January 2005More recent by 74 months
Display size3"1.8"Larger display (+1.2")
Display resolution460k134kCrisper display (+326k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-300 and Olympus SZ-30MR

 E-300 SZ-30MR 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither has Touch friendly display

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR Physical Comparison

For anybody who is intending to lug around your camera frequently, you will have to take into account its weight and volume. The Olympus E-300 has outside measurements of 147mm x 85mm x 64mm (5.8" x 3.3" x 2.5") accompanied by a weight of 624 grams (1.38 lbs) whilst the Olympus SZ-30MR has sizing of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you are working with at the time. Below is a front view proportions comparison of the E-300 versus the SZ-30MR.

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-300 and SZ-30MR is 67 and 89 respectively.

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, it is difficult to see the contrast between sensor measurements only by going over a spec sheet. The visual underneath will help offer you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-300 and SZ-30MR.

As you can see, both of those cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-300 featuring a larger sensor will make shooting shallow DOF less difficult and the Olympus SZ-30MR will offer greater detail having its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also allow you to crop photos way more aggressively. The older E-300 is going to be behind in sensor tech.

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR sensor size comparison

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-300 as a Portrait photography camera
Olympus SZ-30MR as a Portrait photography camera
48
you can focus manually
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
no liveview feature
sensor resolution not great (8MP)
34
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
features face detection autofocus
lack of manual focus
manual mode not possible
no external flash support
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-300 Street photography information
Olympus SZ-30MR Street photography information
51
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
fixed screen
does not have image stabilization
low max ISO (400)
60
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than competitors (226 grams)
screen is fixed
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-300 Sports photography information
Olympus SZ-30MR Sports photography information
37
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
comes with phase detect auto focus
no liveview feature
slow fps (3.0 frames/s)
does not have image stabilization
sensor resolution not great (8MP)
41
amazing zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
features tracking autofocus
low fps (2.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority
very small sensor (1/2.3")
low battery (220 CIPA)
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-300 Travel photography info
Olympus SZ-30MR Travel photography info
45
built-in flash
missing Time Lapse recording
sensor resolution not great (8 megapixels)
does not offer selfie friendly screen
65
lighter than competitors (226 grams)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
built-in flash
pretty wide (25mm)
great zoom (600mm)
lack of Time Lapse mode
low battery (220 CIPA)
doesn't offer selfie friendly screen
slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-300 Landscape photography advice
Olympus SZ-30MR Landscape photography advice
43
you can focus manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
screen is small (1.8 inches)
no liveview feature
does not have image stabilization
sensor resolution not great (8MP)
low max ISO (400)
missing Time Lapse recording
41
pretty wide (25mm)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
lack of manual focus
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
manual mode not possible
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
low battery (220 shots)
lack of Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-300 Vlogging details
Olympus SZ-30MR Vlogging details
9
can't record video
34
pretty wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
features face detection autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
lighter than competitors (226g)
slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
doesn't offer selfie friendly screen
lack of external mic support
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Olympus E-300 vs Olympus SZ-30MR Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-300 and Olympus SZ-30MR
 Olympus E-300Olympus SZ-30MR
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Olympus
Model Olympus E-300 Olympus SZ-30MR
Otherwise known as EVOLT E-300 -
Class Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Superzoom
Revealed 2005-01-10 2011-03-02
Physical type Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by - TruePic III+
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 8 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 3264 x 2448 4608 x 3456
Maximum native ISO 400 3200
Maximum boosted ISO 1600 -
Min native ISO 100 80
RAW files
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 3 -
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-600mm (24.0x)
Largest aperture - f/3.0-6.9
Macro focus range - 1cm
Number of lenses 45 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Type of screen Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 1.8 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 134k dots 460k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Screen technology - TFT Hypercrystal III Color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 secs 4 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1700 secs
Continuous shooting rate 3.0 frames/s 2.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range - 4.00 m
Flash settings Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/180 secs -
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)
Maximum video resolution None 1920x1080
Video data format - MPEG-4
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 1.0 (1.5 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 624 grams (1.38 lb) 226 grams (0.50 lb)
Physical dimensions 147 x 85 x 64mm (5.8" x 3.3" x 2.5") 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life - 220 pictures
Style of battery - Battery Pack
Battery model - LI-50B
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 12 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II) SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots Single Single
Price at launch $800 $279