Olympus SZ-12 vs Pentax K-5 IIs

Here is a comprehensive review of the Olympus SZ-12 versus Pentax K-5 IIs, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Advanced DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. The resolution of the SZ-12 (14MP) and the K-5 IIs (16MP) is fairly comparable but the SZ-12 (1/2.3") and K-5 IIs (APS-C) offer different sensor measurements.

Photography Glossary

The SZ-12 was introduced 17 months before the K-5 IIs making them a generation apart from one another. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera and the Pentax K-5 IIs being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before getting into a thorough comparison, here is a concise introduction of how the SZ-12 grades vs the K-5 IIs with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus SZ-12 & Pentax K-5 IIs. The whole galleries are available at Olympus SZ-12 Gallery & Pentax K-5 IIs Gallery.

If you're looking to carry your camera regularly, you'll have to factor its weight and volume. The Olympus SZ-12 has got outside measurements of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs) while the Pentax K-5 IIs has sizing of 131mm x 97mm x 73mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 2.9") along with a weight of 760 grams (1.68 lbs).

Look at the Olympus SZ-12 versus Pentax K-5 IIs in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you select at that time. The following is a front view over all size comparison of the SZ-12 and the K-5 IIs.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability score of the SZ-12 and K-5 IIs is 89 and 60 respectively.

Quite often, it is hard to visualize the difference in sensor sizing simply by seeing technical specs. The photograph underneath will help provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the SZ-12 and K-5 IIs.

As you have seen, both of these cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The SZ-12 with its smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field more difficult and the Pentax K-5 IIs will produce greater detail using its extra 2MP. Greater resolution will help you crop pics way more aggressively. The older SZ-12 will be behind in sensor technology.