Olympus E-M10 IV vs Olympus SZ-16 iHS

Below is a extended review of the Olympus E-M10 IV and Olympus SZ-16 iHS, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom and they are both sold by Olympus. There exists a noticeable gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-M10 IV (20MP) and SZ-16 iHS (16MP) and the E-M10 IV (Four Thirds) and SZ-16 iHS (1/2.3") offer totally different sensor size.

Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

The E-M10 IV was unveiled 7 years later than the SZ-16 iHS and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera technology is concerned. The two cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M10 IV being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Olympus SZ-16 iHS being a Compact camera.

Before we go into a complete comparison, here is a concise view of how the E-M10 IV matches up versus the SZ-16 iHS in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus OM-D E-M10 IV & Olympus SZ-16 iHS. The full galleries are provided at Olympus E-M10 IV Gallery & Olympus SZ-16 iHS Gallery.

If you are looking to lug around your camera often, you will have to factor in its weight and size. The Olympus E-M10 IV has outer measurements of 122mm x 84mm x 49mm (4.8" x 3.3" x 1.9") with a weight of 383 grams (0.84 lbs) whilst the Olympus SZ-16 iHS has specifications of 108mm x 70mm x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs).

See the Olympus E-M10 IV and Olympus SZ-16 iHS in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have at that time. Here is a front view physical size comparison of the E-M10 IV vs the SZ-16 iHS.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-M10 IV and SZ-16 iHS is 81 and 89 respectively.

More often than not, it's tough to visualise the contrast in sensor measurements simply by checking out specs. The graphic underneath might give you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M10 IV and SZ-16 iHS.

As you can plainly see, both of those cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-M10 IV having a bigger sensor will make getting shallower depth of field simpler and the Olympus E-M10 IV will show greater detail having an extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also let you crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The fresher E-M10 IV will have an advantage in sensor tech.