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Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II

Portability
89
Imaging
37
Features
37
Overall
37
Olympus SZ-11 front
 
Pentax K-3 II front
Portability
59
Imaging
66
Features
84
Overall
73

Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II Key Specs

Olympus SZ-11
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-500mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 226g - 106 x 69 x 40mm
  • Introduced July 2011
Pentax K-3 II
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3.2" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 800g - 131 x 100 x 77mm
  • Revealed April 2015
  • Superseded the Pentax K-3
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Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II Overview

Here is a extensive review of the Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by rivals Olympus and Pentax. There is a crucial difference among the sensor resolutions of the SZ-11 (14MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the SZ-11 (1/2.3") and K-3 II (APS-C) posses different sensor size.

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The SZ-11 was unveiled 4 years earlier than the K-3 II and that is a fairly serious gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus SZ-11 being a Compact camera and the Pentax K-3 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before we go into a more detailed comparison, here is a concise overview of how the SZ-11 scores vs the K-3 II for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-11 over the Pentax K-3 II

 SZ-11 K-3 II 

Reasons to pick Pentax K-3 II over the Olympus SZ-11

 K-3 II SZ-11 
RevealedApril 2015July 2011Fresher by 45 months
Manual focus More accurate focus
Screen size3.2"3"Bigger screen (+0.2")
Screen resolution1037k460kCrisper screen (+577k dot)

Common features in the Olympus SZ-11 and Pentax K-3 II

 SZ-11 K-3 II 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither comes with selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Neither comes with Touch friendly screen

Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II Physical Comparison

If you are planning to carry your camera regularly, you are going to need to consider its weight and size. The Olympus SZ-11 comes with exterior measurements of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") accompanied by a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs) while the Pentax K-3 II has specifications of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") with a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Check out the Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II 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 change depending on the lens you are employing at that moment. Below is a front view measurements comparison of the SZ-11 compared to the K-3 II.

Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the SZ-11 and K-3 II is 89 and 59 respectively.

Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II top view buttons comparison

Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II Sensor Comparison

In many cases, its hard to picture the gap in sensor sizing just by viewing specs. The visual here will help offer you a clearer sense of the sensor sizing in the SZ-11 and K-3 II.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The SZ-11 having a smaller sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF trickier and the Pentax K-3 II will render greater detail having an extra 10 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop pictures a good deal more aggressively. The older SZ-11 will be behind with regard to sensor tech.

Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II sensor size comparison

Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 as a Portrait photography camera
Pentax K-3 II as a Portrait photography camera
33
megapixel count decent (14 megapixels)
comes with face detection autofocus
no manual focus
manual exposure not possible
can't use external flash
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
79
has manual focus
good MP (24 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
supports face detect autofocus
saves RAW files
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 Street photography info
Pentax K-3 II Street photography info
60
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than average (226g)
screen is fixed
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
69
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
saves RAW files
environment sealing
above average high ISO (51,200)
screen does not articulate
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 Sports photography features
Pentax K-3 II Sports photography features
43
long zoom range (25-500mm 20.0 x zoom)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
megapixel count decent (14MP)
comes with tracking autofocus
lack of shutter priority mode
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
bad battery (200 CIPA)
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
76
great max shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (24 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
supports tracking focus
environment sealing
comes with phase detect autofocus
bad battery (720 per charge)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 as a Travel photography camera
Pentax K-3 II as a Travel photography camera
65
lighter than average (226 grams)
megapixel count decent (14MP)
built-in flash
pretty wide (25mm)
very long zoom (500mm)
missing Time Lapse recording
bad battery (200 per charge)
screen isn't selfie friendly
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
56
environment sealing
good MP (24 megapixels)
bad battery (720 per charge)
display isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 Landscape photography info
Pentax K-3 II Landscape photography info
40
pretty wide (25mm)
decent sized screen (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
megapixel count decent (14 megapixels)
no manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
manual exposure not possible
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
bad battery (200 CIPA)
missing Time Lapse recording
78
has manual focus
switch lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
good sized screen (3.2")
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (24MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
no anti-alias filter
above average high ISO (51,200)
saves RAW files
environment sealing
two card slots
bad battery (720 per charge)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 Vlogging information
Pentax K-3 II Vlogging information
31
pretty wide (25mm)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
comes with face detection autofocus
lighter than average (226 grams)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
screen isn't selfie friendly
video res low (1280 x 720 pixels)
missing external mic jack
34
image stabilization (Sensor based)
supports face detect autofocus
great video quality (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does have microphone socket
display isn't selfie friendly
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Olympus SZ-11 vs Pentax K-3 II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SZ-11 and Pentax K-3 II
 Olympus SZ-11Pentax K-3 II
General Information
Make Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus SZ-11 Pentax K-3 II
Class Small Sensor Superzoom Advanced DSLR
Introduced 2011-07-27 2015-04-23
Physical type Compact Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic III+ Prime III
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 14MP 24MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 3:2
Full resolution 4288 x 3216 6016 x 4000
Max native ISO 1600 51200
Lowest native ISO 80 100
RAW files
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points - 27
Cross focus points - 25
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens Pentax KAF2
Lens focal range 25-500mm (20.0x) -
Maximal aperture f/3.0-6.9 -
Macro focus distance 1cm -
Available lenses - 151
Focal length multiplier 5.8 1.5
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display sizing 3 inches 3.2 inches
Display resolution 460k dots 1,037k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Display tech TFT Color LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.64x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 4 secs 30 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/8000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 7.0fps 8.3fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 9.30 m (@ ISO 1600) no built-in flash
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto Flash Discharge, Auto Flash + Red-eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash On + Red-eye Reduction, Slow-speed Sync, Slow-speed Sync + Red-eye, P-TTL, Trailing Curtain Sync, Contrast-control-sync, High-speed sync, Wireless sync (available with dedicated external flash)
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize - 1/180 secs
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30, 15fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15fps) 1920 x 1080 (60i, 50i, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p)
Max video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video file format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Optional
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 226 grams (0.50 pounds) 800 grams (1.76 pounds)
Physical dimensions 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") 131 x 100 x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 80
DXO Color Depth score not tested 23.6
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 13.6
DXO Low light score not tested 1106
Other
Battery life 200 images 720 images
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model LI-50B D-LI90
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots Single Two
Retail price $253 $829