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Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R

Portability
89
Imaging
37
Features
36
Overall
36
Olympus SZ-12 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DC-S1R front
Portability
54
Imaging
79
Features
84
Overall
81

Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R Key Specs

Olympus SZ-12
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 226g - 106 x 69 x 40mm
  • Released January 2012
Panasonic S1R
(Full Review)
  • 47MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3.2" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600 (Push to 51200)
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Leica L Mount
  • 1020g - 149 x 110 x 97mm
  • Released February 2019
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R Overview

The following is a in-depth analysis of the Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R, former is a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Pro Mirrorless by rivals Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a considerable gap among the sensor resolutions of the SZ-12 (14MP) and S1R (47MP) and the SZ-12 (1/2.3") and S1R (Full frame) provide totally different sensor sizes.

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The SZ-12 was manufactured 8 years prior to the S1R which is a fairly large difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both cameras have different body design with the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera and the Panasonic S1R being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before delving right into a complete comparison, here is a brief summation of how the SZ-12 scores vs the S1R when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-12 over the Panasonic S1R

 SZ-12 S1R 

Reasons to pick Panasonic S1R over the Olympus SZ-12

 S1R SZ-12 
ReleasedFebruary 2019January 2012Newer by 85 months
Manually focus More precise focusing
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen dimensions3.2"3"Bigger screen (+0.2")
Screen resolution2100k460kSharper screen (+1640k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus SZ-12 and Panasonic S1R

 SZ-12 S1R 
Selfie screen Neither offers selfie screen

Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R Physical Comparison

In case you're going to travel with your camera, you will have to factor in its weight and measurements. The Olympus SZ-12 offers outside 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 Panasonic S1R has proportions of 149mm x 110mm x 97mm (5.9" x 4.3" x 3.8") with a weight of 1020 grams (2.25 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you choose at the time. Below is a front view size comparison of the SZ-12 versus the S1R.

Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the SZ-12 and S1R is 89 and 54 respectively.

Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R top view buttons comparison

Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R Sensor Comparison

Typically, it's difficult to envision the contrast in sensor dimensions merely by researching specs. The pic here will help provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the SZ-12 and S1R.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The SZ-12 due to its smaller sensor will make getting shallow depth of field trickier and the Panasonic S1R will provide you with more detail due to its extra 33MP. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The more aged SZ-12 will be behind when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R sensor size comparison

Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Portrait photography advice
Panasonic S1R Portrait photography advice
33
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
includes face detection autofocus
focusing manually not possible
lack of manual mode
external flash not possible
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
87
focusing manually
great flash sync speed (1/320s)
high megapixels (47MP)
large sensor size (Full frame)
provides face detect focus
exports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Street photography details
Panasonic S1R Street photography details
60
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than others (226 grams)
fixed screen
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
71
screen tilts up and down
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
large sensor size (Full frame)
exports RAW files
comes with touch to focus
environment proofing
very good ISO range (25,600)
more heavy than competition in class (1,020g)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 as a Sports photography camera
Panasonic S1R as a Sports photography camera
40
amazing zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
includes tracking autofocus
slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
sensor is small (1/2.3")
bad battery power (220 shots)
lack of phase detect autofocus
78
max shutter speed is good (1/8,000s)
silent mode (1/16,000s)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
high megapixels (47 megapixels)
large sensor size (Full frame)
provides tracking focus
environment proofing
not so great battery power (360 CIPA)
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 as a Travel photography camera
Panasonic S1R as a Travel photography camera
65
lighter than others (226g)
decent sensor resolution (14MP)
flash built-in
pretty wide (25mm)
very long reach (600mm)
no Time Lapse recording
bad battery power (220 shots)
doesn't have a selfie friendly screen
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.0)
60
environment proofing
connects via bluetooth
comes with touch to focus
high megapixels (47MP)
not so great battery power (360 CIPA)
more heavy than competition in class (1,020g)
doesn't feature selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Landscape photography details
Panasonic S1R Landscape photography details
40
pretty wide (25mm)
screen is a decent size (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
focusing manually not possible
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.0)
lack of manual mode
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
bad battery power (220 per charge)
no Time Lapse recording
82
focusing manually
change lenses (Leica L mount)
screen is a decent size (3.2 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
high megapixels (47MP)
large sensor size (Full frame)
does not have anti aliasing filter
very good ISO range (25,600)
exports RAW files
environment proofing
has double storage slots
not so great battery power (360 CIPA)
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 as a Vlogging camera
Panasonic S1R as a Vlogging camera
31
pretty wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
includes face detection autofocus
lighter than others (226g)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.0)
doesn't have a selfie friendly screen
low res video (1280 x 720 resolution)
no external mic socket
32
built-in touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
provides face detect focus
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pxls)
does have microphone port
doesn't feature selfie friendly screen
more heavy than competition in class (1,020g)
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Panasonic S1R Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SZ-12 and Panasonic S1R
 Olympus SZ-12Panasonic Lumix DC-S1R
General Information
Company Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus SZ-12 Panasonic Lumix DC-S1R
Type Small Sensor Superzoom Pro Mirrorless
Released 2012-01-10 2019-02-01
Body design Compact SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor - Venus Engine
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" Full frame
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 36 x 24mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 864.0mm²
Sensor resolution 14MP 47MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio - 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4288 x 3216 8000 x 6000
Max native ISO 1600 25600
Max boosted ISO - 51200
Lowest native ISO 80 100
RAW support
Lowest boosted ISO - 50
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
AF continuous
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points - 225
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens Leica L
Lens focal range 25-600mm (24.0x) -
Maximum aperture f/3.0-6.9 -
Available lenses - 30
Focal length multiplier 5.8 1
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Tilting
Screen size 3 inch 3.2 inch
Screen resolution 460 thousand dot 2,100 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen tech TFT Color LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 5,760 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.78x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 4 secs 60 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/1700 secs 1/8000 secs
Highest silent shutter speed - 1/16000 secs
Continuous shooting speed 1.0 frames per second 9.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range - no built-in flash
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto, Auto/Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Forced On/Red-eye Reduction, Slow Sync, Slow Sync w/Red-eye Reduction, Forced Off
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync - 1/320 secs
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 180 (30fps) 3840 x 2160 @ 60p / 150 Mbps, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM
Max video resolution 1280x720 3840x2160
Video format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) Yes (can be charged with high-power laptop/tablet chargers or portable power banks)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 226g (0.50 lb) 1020g (2.25 lb)
Physical dimensions 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") 149 x 110 x 97mm (5.9" x 4.3" x 3.8")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 100
DXO Color Depth score not tested 26.4
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 14.1
DXO Low light score not tested 3525
Other
Battery life 220 pictures 360 pictures
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model LI-50B -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, pet auto shutter) Yes
Time lapse shooting
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC -
Storage slots One Two
Launch cost $350 $3,698