Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A99 II

Below is a comprehensive overview of the Olympus SZ-12 versus Sony A99 II, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Advanced DSLR by companies Olympus and Sony. There exists a sizable gap among the resolutions of the SZ-12 (14MP) and A99 II (42MP) and the SZ-12 (1/2.3") and A99 II (Full frame) feature different sensor sizing.

Photography Glossary

The SZ-12 was launched 5 years earlier than the A99 II and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera and the Sony A99 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before we go straight into a complete comparison, below is a quick view of how the SZ-12 scores versus the A99 II in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus SZ-12 & Sony Alpha A99 II. The complete galleries are available at Olympus SZ-12 Gallery & Sony A99 II Gallery.

If you are going to lug around your camera regularly, you are going to need to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus SZ-12 features exterior 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 Sony A99 II has dimensions of 143mm x 104mm x 76mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.0") along with a weight of 849 grams (1.87 lbs).

Examine the Olympus SZ-12 versus Sony A99 II in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you use at that time. Following is the front view measurement comparison of the SZ-12 versus the A99 II.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the SZ-12 and A99 II is 89 and 57 respectively.

Normally, it can be hard to picture the difference in sensor measurements purely by researching technical specs. The photograph below might provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the SZ-12 and A99 II.

As you have seen, each of the cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The SZ-12 because of its smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF more challenging and the Sony A99 II will provide you with extra detail utilizing its extra 28 Megapixels. Greater resolution will help you crop images somewhat more aggressively. The older SZ-12 will be behind when it comes to sensor technology.