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Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99

Portability
90
Imaging
37
Features
36
Overall
36
Olympus SZ-10 front
 
Sony SLT-A99 front
Portability
57
Imaging
69
Features
88
Overall
76

Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 Key Specs

Olympus SZ-10
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-504mm (F3.1-4.4) lens
  • 215g - 106 x 67 x 38mm
  • Launched February 2011
Sony A99
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 812g - 147 x 111 x 78mm
  • Revealed December 2012
  • Replaced the Sony A900
  • Replacement is Sony A99 II
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Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 Overview

In this write-up, we will be reviewing the Olympus SZ-10 and Sony A99, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by companies Olympus and Sony. There is a huge difference between the image resolutions of the SZ-10 (14MP) and A99 (24MP) and the SZ-10 (1/2.3") and A99 (Full frame) feature totally different sensor dimensions.

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The SZ-10 was released 22 months before the A99 which makes the cameras a generation apart from each other. Both the cameras offer different body type with the Olympus SZ-10 being a Compact camera and the Sony A99 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before we go through a detailed comparison, below is a concise overview of how the SZ-10 grades versus the A99 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-10 over the Sony A99

 SZ-10 A99 

Reasons to pick Sony A99 over the Olympus SZ-10

 A99 SZ-10 
RevealedDecember 2012February 2011More recent by 22 months
Manual focus More accurate focusing
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Screen resolution1229k460kSharper screen (+769k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Common features in the Olympus SZ-10 and Sony A99

 SZ-10 A99 
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen sizing
Touch screen Neither offers Touch screen

Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 Physical Comparison

When you are looking to lug around your camera, you will want to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus SZ-10 offers outer measurements of 106mm x 67mm x 38mm (4.2" x 2.6" x 1.5") along with a weight of 215 grams (0.47 lbs) whilst the Sony A99 has measurements of 147mm x 111mm x 78mm (5.8" x 4.4" x 3.1") accompanied by a weight of 812 grams (1.79 lbs).

Look at the Olympus SZ-10 and Sony A99 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you are working with during that time. Following is the front view measurements comparison of the SZ-10 vs the A99.

Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability grade of the SZ-10 and A99 is 90 and 57 respectively.

Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 Sensor Comparison

Usually, it can be tough to see the difference between sensor measurements just by looking at specifications. The graphic below will help give you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the SZ-10 and A99.

Plainly, both of those cameras enjoy different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The SZ-10 due to its tinier sensor will make achieving shallow depth of field trickier and the Sony A99 will give you extra detail as a result of its extra 10 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also let you crop shots far more aggressively. The older SZ-10 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.

Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 sensor size comparison

Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SZ-10 Portrait photography highlights
Sony A99 Portrait photography highlights
33
good megapixels (14MP)
includes face detect autofocus
focusing manually not possible
no manual mode
can't use external flash
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
81
focusing manually
good resolution (24 megapixels)
sensor size is big (Full frame)
offers face detection focus
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus SZ-10 Street photography details
Sony A99 Street photography details
60
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than average (215g)
no articulating screen
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
75
screen can move to multiple angles
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is big (Full frame)
saves RAW files
weather sealing
great ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SZ-10 as a Sports photography camera
Sony A99 as a Sports photography camera
40
amazing zoom range (28-504mm 18.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (14 megapixels)
includes tracking focus
continuous shooting slow (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority
small sensor (1/2.3")
bad battery life (220 shots)
does not have phase detect autofocus
78
great max shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good resolution (24MP)
sensor size is big (Full frame)
offers tracking autofocus
weather sealing
supports phase detect auto focus
terrible battery (500 per charge)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SZ-10 Travel photography features
Sony A99 Travel photography features
65
lighter than average (215 grams)
good megapixels (14 megapixels)
flash built-in
quite wide (28mm)
great reach (504mm)
lack of Timelapse recording
bad battery life (220 shots)
does not posses selfie friendly display
sluggish max aperture (f3.1)
60
weather sealing
good resolution (24 megapixels)
selfie friendly display
no Timelapse mode
terrible battery (500 shots)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SZ-10 Landscape photography details
Sony A99 Landscape photography details
40
quite wide (28mm)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (14 megapixels)
focusing manually not possible
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f3.1)
no manual mode
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
bad battery life (220 per charge)
lack of Timelapse recording
74
focusing manually
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
good sized screen (3 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good resolution (24 megapixels)
sensor size is big (Full frame)
great ISO range (25,600)
saves RAW files
weather sealing
2 card slots
terrible battery (500 CIPA)
no Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SZ-10 Vlogging info
Sony A99 Vlogging info
31
quite wide (28mm)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
includes face detect autofocus
lighter than average (215 grams)
sluggish max aperture (f3.1)
does not posses selfie friendly display
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pxls)
lack of microphone socket
76
selfie friendly display
image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection focus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
comes with external microphone support
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Olympus SZ-10 vs Sony A99 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SZ-10 and Sony A99
 Olympus SZ-10Sony SLT-A99
General Information
Make Olympus Sony
Model Olympus SZ-10 Sony SLT-A99
Category Small Sensor Superzoom Advanced DSLR
Launched 2011-02-08 2012-12-12
Physical type Compact Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic III+ Bionz
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" Full frame
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 35.8 x 23.8mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 852.0mm²
Sensor resolution 14 megapixel 24 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 4288 x 3216 6000 x 4000
Maximum native ISO 1600 25600
Minimum native ISO 80 100
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Autofocus live view
Face detect autofocus
Contract detect autofocus
Phase detect autofocus
Number of focus points - 19
Cross focus points - 11
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens Sony/Minolta Alpha
Lens focal range 28-504mm (18.0x) -
Maximal aperture f/3.1-4.4 -
Macro focus range 1cm -
Number of lenses - 143
Crop factor 5.8 1
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Fully Articulated
Display size 3 inches 3 inches
Display resolution 460 thousand dots 1,229 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display tech TFT Color LCD TFT Xtra Fine color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dots
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.71x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 4s 30s
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000s 1/8000s
Continuous shooting rate 1.0 frames/s 10.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 7.10 m no built-in flash
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize - 1/250s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30, 15fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15fps) 1920 x 1080 (60, 24 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 640 x 424 (29.97 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 215g (0.47 lb) 812g (1.79 lb)
Dimensions 106 x 67 x 38mm (4.2" x 2.6" x 1.5") 147 x 111 x 78mm (5.8" x 4.4" x 3.1")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 89
DXO Color Depth score not tested 25.0
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 14.0
DXO Low light score not tested 1555
Other
Battery life 220 photographs 500 photographs
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model LI-50B NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC Memory Stick PRO Duo/Pro-HG Duo; SD, SDHC and SDXC
Card slots 1 2
Retail pricing $300 $1,998