Clicky

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950

Portability
89
Imaging
37
Features
37
Overall
37
Olympus SZ-11 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S950 front
Portability
94
Imaging
33
Features
17
Overall
26

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 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
  • Launched July 2011
Sony S950
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • 33-132mm (F3.3-5.2) lens
  • 167g - 93 x 56 x 24mm
  • Announced February 2009
Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 Overview

Here, we will be contrasting the Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950, one is a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There is a significant difference between the sensor resolutions of the SZ-11 (14MP) and S950 (10MP) but both cameras have the identical sensor sizes (1/2.3").

Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

The SZ-11 was released 2 years after the S950 which is quite a sizable gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of the cameras feature the same body design (Compact).

Before delving into a full comparison, here is a quick view of how the SZ-11 grades against the S950 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video
	
	

Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-11 over the Sony S950

 SZ-11 S950 
AnnouncedJuly 2011February 2009More modern by 30 months
Screen size3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kSharper screen (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony S950 over the Olympus SZ-11

 S950 SZ-11 
Manual focus Dial precise focusing

Common features in the Olympus SZ-11 and Sony S950

 SZ-11 S950 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither comes with selfie screen
Touch screen Lack of Touch screen

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is going to carry around your camera frequently, you are going to need to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus SZ-11 comes with outside dimensions of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") accompanied by a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs) whilst the Sony S950 has measurements of 93mm x 56mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") and a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ based on the lens you have attached at that moment. The following is a front view proportions comparison of the SZ-11 against the S950.

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability score of the SZ-11 and S950 is 89 and 94 respectively.

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 Sensor Comparison

Usually, its hard to visualize the gap between sensor sizes only by going over technical specs. The pic underneath will provide you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the SZ-11 and S950.

As you have seen, both of these cameras feature the identical sensor size albeit different megapixels. You should expect the Olympus SZ-11 to offer you more detail as a result of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop pictures way more aggressively. The younger SZ-11 provides a benefit when it comes to sensor innovation.

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 sensor size comparison

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus SZ-11
Portrait photography with Sony S950
33
decent megapixels (14MP)
offers face detect focusing
lack of manual focus
no manual control
no external flash support
small sensor (1/2.3")
no RAW format
26
has manual focus
no manual control
cannot use external flash
sensor resolution low (10MP)
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 Street photography advice
Sony S950 Street photography advice
60
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than competition in class (226g)
screen does not articulate
small sensor (1/2.3")
no RAW format
56
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
screen does not articulate
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus SZ-11
Sports photography with Sony S950
43
long zoom range (25-500mm 20.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent megapixels (14MP)
offers tracking focus
no shutter priority
small sensor (1/2.3")
bad battery (200 shots)
no phase detect AF
24
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
sensor resolution low (10MP)
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks phase detect autofocus
Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

Travel Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 Travel photography info
Sony S950 Travel photography info
65
lighter than competition in class (226g)
decent megapixels (14 megapixels)
flash built-in
pretty wide (25mm)
long zoom (500mm)
no Timelapse recording
bad battery (200 CIPA)
screen isn't selfie friendly
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
50
built-in flash
no Time Lapse mode
sensor resolution low (10MP)
does not contain selfie friendly display
wide angle not good (33mm)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
President Biden pushes bill mandating TikTok sale or ban

Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus SZ-11
Landscape photography with Sony S950
40
pretty wide (25mm)
decent sized screen (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent megapixels (14MP)
lack of manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
no manual control
small sensor (1/2.3")
no RAW format
bad battery (200 per charge)
no Timelapse recording
31
has manual focus
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
cannot swap lens (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not good (33mm)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
screen is somewhat small (2.7")
no manual control
sensor resolution low (10 megapixels)
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW format
no Time Lapse mode
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SZ-11 Vlogging info
Sony S950 Vlogging info
31
pretty wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers face detect focusing
lighter than competition in class (226g)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
screen isn't selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pxls)
no microphone socket
9
no video shooting
Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

Olympus SZ-11 vs Sony S950 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SZ-11 and Sony S950
 Olympus SZ-11Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S950
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model Olympus SZ-11 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S950
Category Small Sensor Superzoom Small Sensor Compact
Launched 2011-07-27 2009-02-17
Body design Compact Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic III+ -
Sensor type CCD CCD
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 14 megapixel 10 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4288 x 3216 4000 x 3000
Max native ISO 1600 3200
Lowest native ISO 80 80
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
Continuous autofocus
Autofocus single
Tracking autofocus
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Live view autofocus
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Number of focus points - 9
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 25-500mm (20.0x) 33-132mm (4.0x)
Largest aperture f/3.0-6.9 f/3.3-5.2
Macro focus range 1cm 10cm
Crop factor 5.8 5.8
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display sizing 3 inches 2.7 inches
Display resolution 460 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Display technology TFT Color LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None None
Features
Min shutter speed 4 secs 2 secs
Max shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shutter speed 7.0fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 9.30 m (@ ISO 1600) 3.50 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30, 15fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15fps) -
Max video resolution 1280x720 None
Video format Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 226 gr (0.50 lbs) 167 gr (0.37 lbs)
Physical dimensions 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") 93 x 56 x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life 200 shots -
Style of battery Battery Pack -
Battery model LI-50B -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo, Internal
Storage slots One One
Retail pricing $253 $130