Olympus SP-800 UZ vs Panasonic LX3

Its time to look a little more in depth at the Olympus SP-800 UZ versus Panasonic LX3, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the other is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a huge gap among the sensor resolutions of the SP-800 UZ (14MP) and LX3 (10MP) and the SP-800 UZ (1/2.3") and LX3 (1/1.63") come with different sensor dimensions.

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The SP-800 UZ was revealed 16 months later than the LX3 making the cameras a generation apart from one another. Both cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before delving through a more detailed comparison, below is a quick summation of how the SP-800 UZ scores versus the LX3 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus SP-800 UZ and Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3. The full galleries are provided at Olympus SP-800 UZ Gallery and Panasonic LX3 Gallery.

For anybody who is looking to lug around your camera frequently, you're going to have to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus SP-800 UZ provides physical dimensions of 110mm x 90mm x 91mm (4.3" x 3.5" x 3.6") accompanied by a weight of 455 grams (1.00 lbs) and the Panasonic LX3 has proportions of 109mm x 60mm x 27mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.1") and a weight of 265 grams (0.58 lbs).

Look at the Olympus SP-800 UZ versus Panasonic LX3 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you use at the time. Here is the front view physical size comparison of the SP-800 UZ versus the LX3.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SP-800 UZ and LX3 is 69 and 91 respectively.

Quite often, it can be hard to visualize the gap in sensor measurements simply by seeing specs. The visual here should offer you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the SP-800 UZ and LX3.

All in all, both of these cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The SP-800 UZ with its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field trickier and the Olympus SP-800 UZ will produce greater detail because of its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop images somewhat more aggressively. The more modern SP-800 UZ should have an advantage with regard to sensor technology.