Olympus SZ-12 vs Samsung NX300M

Lets take a closer look at the Olympus SZ-12 versus Samsung NX300M, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by competitors Olympus and Samsung. There exists a huge gap among the resolutions of the SZ-12 (14MP) and NX300M (20MP) and the SZ-12 (1/2.3") and NX300M (APS-C) provide totally different sensor dimensions.

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The SZ-12 was brought out 11 months before the NX300M which means that they are both of a similar generation. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera and the Samsung NX300M being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going into a comprehensive comparison, here is a short summary of how the SZ-12 grades versus the NX300M in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus SZ-12 and Samsung NX300M. The entire galleries are available at Olympus SZ-12 Gallery and Samsung NX300M Gallery.

When you are looking to lug around your camera often, you'll need to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus SZ-12 comes with external dimensions of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") along with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs) whilst the Samsung NX300M has proportions of 122mm x 64mm x 41mm (4.8" x 2.5" x 1.6") along with a weight of 331 grams (0.73 lbs).

Check out the Olympus SZ-12 versus Samsung NX300M in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you have chosen at the time. Below is a front view dimension comparison of the SZ-12 vs the NX300M.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability score of the SZ-12 and NX300M is 89 and 86 respectively.

More often than not, it is hard to visualise the gap in sensor measurements simply by looking through technical specs. The visual below will help offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the SZ-12 and NX300M.

As you have seen, the two cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The SZ-12 due to its smaller sensor will make achieving shallow depth of field tougher and the Samsung NX300M will render greater detail having its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also let you crop shots a bit more aggressively. The older SZ-12 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.