Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony A100

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Olympus SZ-12 and Sony A100, one is a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There exists a big gap among the sensor resolutions of the SZ-12 (14MP) and A100 (10MP) and the SZ-12 (1/2.3") and A100 (APS-C) provide different sensor dimensions.

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The SZ-12 was unveiled 5 years after the A100 which is a fairly big gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera and the Sony A100 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving right into a in depth comparison, here is a quick overview of how the SZ-12 matches up versus the A100 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus SZ-12 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A100. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus SZ-12 Gallery and Sony A100 Gallery.

In case you're intending to travel with your camera regularly, you need to consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus SZ-12 has 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) whilst the Sony A100 has dimensions of 133mm x 95mm x 71mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 2.8") and a weight of 638 grams (1.41 lbs).

Compare the Olympus SZ-12 and Sony A100 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you are using at that moment. Underneath is a front view sizing comparison of the SZ-12 compared to the A100.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SZ-12 and A100 is 89 and 64 respectively.

Normally, its difficult to picture the gap in sensor dimensions just by viewing a spec sheet. The pic underneath will help provide you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the SZ-12 and A100.

Clearly, each of these cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The SZ-12 having a smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field tougher and the Olympus SZ-12 will result in greater detail having an extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop pictures way more aggressively. The newer SZ-12 should have an edge in sensor tech.