Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A55

Following is a detailed comparison of the Olympus SZ-10 versus Sony A55, former is a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the SZ-10 (14MP) and the A55 (16MP) is pretty close but the SZ-10 (1/2.3") and A55 (APS-C) provide different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The SZ-10 was manufactured 6 months after the A55 and they are of a similar age. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus SZ-10 being a Compact camera and the Sony A55 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving straight to a in depth comparison, here is a short overview of how the SZ-10 matches up vs the A55 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus SZ-10 & Sony SLT-A55. The entire galleries are provided at Olympus SZ-10 Gallery & Sony A55 Gallery.

If you are looking to carry around your camera, you'll have to consider its weight and size. The Olympus SZ-10 comes with external measurements of 106mm x 67mm x 38mm (4.2" x 2.6" x 1.5") with a weight of 215 grams (0.47 lbs) while the Sony A55 has specifications of 124mm x 92mm x 85mm (4.9" x 3.6" x 3.3") along with a weight of 500 grams (1.10 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus SZ-10 versus Sony A55 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are working with at that time. Here is a front view scale comparison of the SZ-10 versus the A55.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the SZ-10 and A55 is 90 and 67 respectively.

Generally, it's hard to picture the contrast in sensor sizes just by researching specifications. The pic here should provide you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the SZ-10 and A55.

To sum up, both cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The SZ-10 because of its smaller sensor is going to make shooting bokeh trickier and the Sony A55 will provide you with more detail due to its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop photographs a bit more aggressively.