Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9
89 Imaging
37 Features
36 Overall
36
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65 Imaging
73 Features
93 Overall
81
Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 3" Fixed Display
- ISO 80 - 1600
- Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
- 1280 x 720 video
- 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
- 226g - 106 x 69 x 40mm
- Announced January 2012
(Full Review)
- 24MP - Full frame Sensor
- 3" Tilting Screen
- ISO 100 - 51200 (Increase to 204800)
- Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
- 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
- 3840 x 2160 video
- Sony E Mount
- 673g - 127 x 96 x 63mm
- Introduced April 2017
- Replacement is Sony A9 II
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9 Overview
Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Pro Mirrorless by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There is a substantial difference between the resolutions of the SZ-12 (14MP) and A9 (24MP) and the SZ-12 (1/2.3") and A9 (Full frame) possess totally different sensor dimensions.
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The SZ-12 was revealed 6 years prior to the A9 and that is quite a big difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras offer different body type with the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera and the Sony A9 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.
Before we go straight into a in depth comparison, below is a concise summation of how the SZ-12 matches up versus the A9 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9 Gallery
Here is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus SZ-12 & Sony Alpha A9. The full galleries are provided at Olympus SZ-12 Gallery & Sony A9 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-12 over the Sony A9
SZ-12 | A9 |
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Reasons to pick Sony A9 over the Olympus SZ-12
A9 | SZ-12 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Introduced | April 2017 | ![]() | January 2012 | More recent by 64 months |
Manually focus | ![]() | Very accurate focus | ||
Screen type | Tilting | ![]() | Fixed | Tilting screen |
Screen resolution | 1440k | ![]() | 460k | Clearer screen (+980k dot) |
Touch screen | ![]() | Quickly navigate |
Common features in the Olympus SZ-12 and Sony A9
SZ-12 | A9 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Screen sizing | 3" | ![]() | 3" | Equivalent screen sizing |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Lacking selfie screen |
Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9 Physical Comparison
When you are intending to lug around your camera frequently, you are going to need to consider its weight and measurements. The Olympus SZ-12 comes with 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) and the Sony A9 has proportions of 127mm x 96mm x 63mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.5") with a weight of 673 grams (1.48 lbs).
Check out the Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are using during that time. Following is the front view measurement comparison of the SZ-12 vs the A9.
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Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability score of the SZ-12 and A9 is 89 and 65 respectively.
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9 Sensor Comparison
Often, it can be difficult to see the difference between sensor measurements merely by reading through technical specs. The photograph below will give you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the SZ-12 and A9.
As you have seen, each of these cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The SZ-12 having a tinier sensor will make shooting shallow DOF tougher and the Sony A9 will give extra detail because of its extra 10 Megapixels. Higher resolution will enable you to crop photographs a little more aggressively. The older SZ-12 is going to be behind in sensor innovation.
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9 Screen and ViewFinder
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Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison
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Street Comparison
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Sports Comparison
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Travel Comparison
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Landscape Comparison
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Vlogging Comparison
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A9 Specifications
Olympus SZ-12 | Sony Alpha A9 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Brand | Olympus | Sony |
Model type | Olympus SZ-12 | Sony Alpha A9 |
Category | Small Sensor Superzoom | Pro Mirrorless |
Announced | 2012-01-10 | 2017-04-19 |
Physical type | Compact | SLR-style mirrorless |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor | - | BIONZ X |
Sensor type | CCD | BSI-CMOS |
Sensor size | 1/2.3" | Full frame |
Sensor measurements | 6.17 x 4.55mm | 35.6 x 23.8mm |
Sensor area | 28.1mm² | 847.3mm² |
Sensor resolution | 14MP | 24MP |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | - | 3:2 and 16:9 |
Peak resolution | 4288 x 3216 | 6000 x 4000 |
Highest native ISO | 1600 | 51200 |
Highest enhanced ISO | - | 204800 |
Min native ISO | 80 | 100 |
RAW support | ||
Min enhanced ISO | - | 50 |
Autofocusing | ||
Focus manually | ||
AF touch | ||
Continuous AF | ||
Single AF | ||
AF tracking | ||
Selective AF | ||
AF center weighted | ||
AF multi area | ||
AF live view | ||
Face detect focusing | ||
Contract detect focusing | ||
Phase detect focusing | ||
Total focus points | - | 693 |
Cross type focus points | - | - |
Lens | ||
Lens mount type | fixed lens | Sony E |
Lens zoom range | 25-600mm (24.0x) | - |
Maximal aperture | f/3.0-6.9 | - |
Available lenses | - | 121 |
Focal length multiplier | 5.8 | 1 |
Screen | ||
Display type | Fixed Type | Tilting |
Display sizing | 3 inch | 3 inch |
Resolution of display | 460k dots | 1,440k dots |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch functionality | ||
Display tech | TFT Color LCD | - |
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder | None | Electronic |
Viewfinder resolution | - | 3,686k dots |
Viewfinder coverage | - | 100 percent |
Viewfinder magnification | - | 0.78x |
Features | ||
Min shutter speed | 4 secs | 30 secs |
Max shutter speed | 1/1700 secs | 1/8000 secs |
Max quiet shutter speed | - | 1/32000 secs |
Continuous shutter rate | 1.0 frames/s | 20.0 frames/s |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manual mode | ||
Exposure compensation | - | Yes |
Custom WB | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash distance | - | no built-in flash |
Flash settings | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in | Flash off, Autoflash, Fill-flash, Slow Sync., Rear Sync., Red-eye reduction, Wireless, Hi-speed sync |
External flash | ||
AE bracketing | ||
White balance bracketing | ||
Exposure | ||
Multisegment | ||
Average | ||
Spot | ||
Partial | ||
AF area | ||
Center weighted | ||
Video features | ||
Video resolutions | 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 180 (30fps) | - |
Highest video resolution | 1280x720 | 3840x2160 |
Video file format | MPEG-4, H.264 | MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264 |
Microphone port | ||
Headphone port | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | Built-In |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | None |
Physical | ||
Environmental sealing | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 226 grams (0.50 lbs) | 673 grams (1.48 lbs) |
Dimensions | 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") | 127 x 96 x 63mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.5") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO Overall rating | not tested | 92 |
DXO Color Depth rating | not tested | 24.9 |
DXO Dynamic range rating | not tested | 13.3 |
DXO Low light rating | not tested | 3517 |
Other | ||
Battery life | 220 pictures | 650 pictures |
Battery type | Battery Pack | Battery Pack |
Battery ID | LI-50B | NP-FZ100 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec, pet auto shutter) | Yes (2, 5, 10 secs + continuous) |
Time lapse shooting | ||
Type of storage | SD/SDHC/SDXC | Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC slots (UHS-II compatible) |
Card slots | One | Dual |
Retail pricing | $350 | $4,498 |