Olympus FE-45 vs Olympus TG-870

Its time to look a bit more in depth at the Olympus FE-45 vs Olympus TG-870, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Ultracompact and both are designed by Olympus. There is a sizable difference among the image resolutions of the FE-45 (10MP) and TG-870 (16MP) but both cameras offer the same sensor sizing (1/2.3").

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The FE-45 was brought out 8 years before the TG-870 and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both cameras have different body design with the Olympus FE-45 being a Compact camera and the Olympus TG-870 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before delving into a complete comparison, here is a quick summary of how the FE-45 grades versus the TG-870 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus FE-45 & Olympus Stylus Tough TG-870. The entire galleries are available at Olympus FE-45 Gallery & Olympus TG-870 Gallery.

When you are intending to lug around your camera regularly, you need to factor in its weight and size. The Olympus FE-45 enjoys outer measurements of 94mm x 62mm x 23mm (3.7" x 2.4" x 0.9") and a weight of 142 grams (0.31 lbs) while the Olympus TG-870 has specifications of 113mm x 64mm x 28mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.1") accompanied by a weight of 221 grams (0.49 lbs).

Compare the Olympus FE-45 vs Olympus TG-870 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have chosen during that time. Here is a front view physical size comparison of the FE-45 and the TG-870.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability rating of the FE-45 and TG-870 is 95 and 91 respectively.

Generally, its tough to picture the difference in sensor measurements merely by looking through technical specs. The graphic underneath will provide you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the FE-45 and TG-870.

As you can tell, both the cameras provide the same sensor dimensions albeit different MP. You can expect the Olympus TG-870 to provide you with extra detail having its extra 6MP. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop pictures more aggressively. The older FE-45 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.