Clicky

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20

Portability
77
Imaging
44
Features
36
Overall
40
Olympus E-420 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX20 front
Portability
96
Imaging
39
Features
50
Overall
43

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 Key Specs

Olympus E-420
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 426g - 130 x 91 x 53mm
  • Introduced June 2008
  • Previous Model is Olympus E-410
Sony TX20
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 125 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-100mm (F3.5-4.6) lens
  • 133g - 96 x 56 x 18mm
  • Introduced February 2012
Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 Overview

Here is a thorough analysis of the Olympus E-420 and Sony TX20, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the latter is a Ultracompact by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There exists a large gap between the image resolutions of the E-420 (10MP) and TX20 (16MP) and the E-420 (Four Thirds) and TX20 (1/2.3") boast totally different sensor dimensions.

President Biden pushes bill mandating TikTok sale or ban

The E-420 was released 4 years earlier than the TX20 and that is quite a serious difference as far as technology is concerned. The two cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-420 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony TX20 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before we go right into a comprehensive comparison, here is a short summation of how the E-420 matches up vs the TX20 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images
	
	

Reasons to pick Olympus E-420 over the Sony TX20

 E-420 TX20 

Reasons to pick Sony TX20 over the Olympus E-420

 TX20 E-420 
IntroducedFebruary 2012June 2008Fresher by 44 months
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution922k230kClearer screen (+692k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-420 and Sony TX20

 E-420 TX20 
Focus manually More exact focusing
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither features selfie screen

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is planning to carry your camera frequently, you'll have to factor its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-420 enjoys outside dimensions of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") along with a weight of 426 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Sony TX20 has proportions of 96mm x 56mm x 18mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") accompanied by a weight of 133 grams (0.29 lbs).

See the Olympus E-420 and Sony TX20 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have chosen at that time. Following is a front view overall size comparison of the E-420 vs the TX20.

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-420 and TX20 is 77 and 96 respectively.

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 Sensor Comparison

Normally, it is very tough to visualise the contrast between sensor sizing purely by reviewing technical specs. The graphic underneath might offer you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the E-420 and TX20.

As you can tell, both the cameras have different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The E-420 because of its bigger sensor will make getting shallow depth of field easier and the Sony TX20 will offer you more detail as a result of its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will help you crop shots a bit more aggressively. The older E-420 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-420 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony TX20 as a Portrait photography camera
56
focusing manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
low megapixels (10MP)
40
has manual focus
decent MP (16 megapixels)
provides face detection autofocus
lack of manual mode
no external flash support
small sensor size (1/2.3")
no RAW support
Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

Street Comparison

Olympus E-420 Street photography factors
Sony TX20 Street photography factors
64
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
lighter than competition in class (426g)
fixed screen
no image stabilization
67
has image stabilization (Optical)
provides touch focus
environment proofing
no moving screen
small sensor size (1/2.3")
no RAW support
Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

Sports Comparison

Olympus E-420 Sports photography advice
Sony TX20 Sports photography advice
38
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports phase detect auto focus
max frames per second very slow (4.0 fps)
no image stabilization
low megapixels (10 megapixels)
low battery power (500 CIPA)
50
has image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (16MP)
provides tracking autofocus
environment proofing
great battery pack (250 shots)
no shutter priority
small sensor size (1/2.3")
no phase detect autofocus
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Travel Comparison

Olympus E-420 Travel photography info
Sony TX20 Travel photography info
52
lighter than competition in class (426 grams)
flash built-in
does not have Time Lapse recording
low battery power (500 CIPA)
low megapixels (10MP)
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
72
great battery pack (250 CIPA)
environment proofing
provides touch focus
decent MP (16MP)
built-in flash
really wide (25mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
screen isn't selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month

Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-420 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony TX20 as a Landscape photography camera
47
focusing manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inches)
no image stabilization
low megapixels (10 megapixels)
low battery power (500 CIPA)
does not have Time Lapse recording
52
has manual focus
really wide (25mm)
screen size is decent (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (16MP)
environment proofing
great battery pack (250 per charge)
cannot swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
lack of manual mode
small sensor size (1/2.3")
no RAW support
doesn't have Time Lapse function
Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-420 Vlogging features
Sony TX20 Vlogging features
9
no video
35
really wide (25mm)
touchscreen functionality
has image stabilization (Optical)
provides face detection autofocus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen isn't selfie friendly
doesn't have external mic jack
Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

Olympus E-420 vs Sony TX20 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-420 and Sony TX20
 Olympus E-420Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX20
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model Olympus E-420 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX20
Category Entry-Level DSLR Ultracompact
Introduced 2008-06-23 2012-02-28
Body design Compact SLR Ultracompact
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic III BIONZ
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 10MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3 and 16:9
Peak resolution 3648 x 2736 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 1600 3200
Minimum native ISO 100 125
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Number of focus points 3 -
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-100mm (4.0x)
Largest aperture - f/3.5-4.6
Macro focus range - 1cm
Amount of lenses 45 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen sizing 2.7" 3"
Resolution of screen 230k dot 922k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen technology - XtraFine TruBlack TFT LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x -
Features
Min shutter speed 60 secs 4 secs
Max shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shutter speed 4.0 frames per second 10.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 3.70 m
Flash settings Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Max flash sync 1/180 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1440 x 1080 (60, 30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution None 1920x1080
Video file format - MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 426 grams (0.94 lb) 133 grams (0.29 lb)
Physical dimensions 130 x 91 x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") 96 x 56 x 18mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 56 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 21.5 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 10.4 not tested
DXO Low light score 527 not tested
Other
Battery life 500 pictures 250 pictures
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - NP-BN
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Duo/Memory Stick Pro Duo, Memory Stick Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Launch cost $999 $330