Olympus SZ-12 vs Olympus TG-1 iHS

Its time to look more in depth at the Olympus SZ-12 vs Olympus TG-1 iHS, former is a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Waterproof and both are sold by Olympus. The sensor resolution of the SZ-12 (14MP) and the TG-1 iHS (12MP) is pretty close and both cameras posses the identical sensor sizes (1/2.3").

Photography Glossary

The SZ-12 was introduced 3 months prior to the TG-1 iHS which means that they are of a similar age. Both the cameras feature the same body design (Compact).

Before getting into a detailed comparison, here is a concise view of how the SZ-12 matches up versus the TG-1 iHS when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus SZ-12 & Olympus Tough TG-1 iHS. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus SZ-12 Gallery & Olympus TG-1 iHS Gallery.

If you are looking to carry around your camera regularly, you will want to consider its weight and size. The Olympus SZ-12 provides 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) and the Olympus TG-1 iHS has specifications of 112mm x 67mm x 30mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.2") with a weight of 230 grams (0.51 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus SZ-12 vs Olympus TG-1 iHS in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you are employing at the time. Underneath is a front view dimension comparison of the SZ-12 and the TG-1 iHS.

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the SZ-12 and TG-1 iHS is 89 and 91 respectively.

Sometimes, it is very tough to envision the gap in sensor sizes merely by viewing technical specs. The picture below should offer you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the SZ-12 and TG-1 iHS.

As you have seen, each of the cameras feature the identical sensor size albeit not the same megapixels. You can expect the Olympus SZ-12 to render more detail using its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures way more aggressively.