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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III

Portability
89
Imaging
37
Features
36
Overall
36
Olympus SZ-12 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III front
Portability
53
Imaging
52
Features
77
Overall
62

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III Key Specs

Olympus SZ-12
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 226g - 106 x 69 x 40mm
  • Launched January 2012
Sony RX10 III
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1051g - 133 x 94 x 127mm
  • Announced March 2016
  • Earlier Model is Sony RX10 II
  • Successor is Sony RX10 IV
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III Overview

Below is a complete overview of the Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Large Sensor Superzoom by companies Olympus and Sony. There exists a noticeable gap between the sensor resolutions of the SZ-12 (14MP) and RX10 III (20MP) and the SZ-12 (1/2.3") and RX10 III (1") posses different sensor dimensions.

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The SZ-12 was launched 5 years before the RX10 III and that is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera and the Sony RX10 III being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before diving into a detailed comparison, here is a quick introduction of how the SZ-12 scores versus the RX10 III with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-12 over the Sony RX10 III

 SZ-12 RX10 III 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 III over the Olympus SZ-12

 RX10 III SZ-12 
AnnouncedMarch 2016January 2012More recent by 51 months
Manual focus More accurate focusing
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1229k460kSharper screen (+769k dot)

Common features in the Olympus SZ-12 and Sony RX10 III

 SZ-12 RX10 III 
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen sizing
Selfie screen Missing selfie screen
Touch screen Neither offers Touch screen

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III Physical Comparison

For anybody who is intending to lug around your camera often, you should think about its weight and volume. The Olympus SZ-12 offers outer measurements of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs) whilst the Sony RX10 III has sizing of 133mm x 94mm x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0") with a weight of 1051 grams (2.32 lbs).

Check out the Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you are utilising at that time. Here is a front view proportions comparison of the SZ-12 versus the RX10 III.

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SZ-12 and RX10 III is 89 and 53 respectively.

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III top view buttons comparison

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III Sensor Comparison

Normally, it's hard to visualize the gap between sensor measurements just by checking technical specs. The graphic below may offer you a far better sense of the sensor sizing in the SZ-12 and RX10 III.

As you have seen, both of the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The SZ-12 because of its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field more challenging and the Sony RX10 III will give you more detail utilizing its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will help you crop shots a bit more aggressively. The older SZ-12 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III sensor size comparison

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony RX10 III as a Portrait photography camera
33
decent MP (14 megapixels)
offers face detect focusing
focusing manually not possible
manual exposure not available
cannot use external flash
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
71
has manual focus
MP count decent (20MP)
sensor size is good (1")
has face detect focusing
supports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Street photography details
Sony RX10 III Street photography details
60
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than competition in class (226g)
screen does not articulate
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
64
screen tilts up and down
has image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is good (1")
supports RAW files
environment proofing
more heavy than competition in class (1,051 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Sports photography info
Sony RX10 III Sports photography info
40
incredible zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent MP (14MP)
offers tracking focus
slow frames per second (1.0 frames per second)
lack of shutter priority mode
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
low battery power (220 per charge)
doesn't have phase detect AF
70
long zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
silent mode (1/32,000 seconds)
has image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (20 megapixels)
sensor size is good (1")
has tracking focus
environment proofing
better than average battery pack (420 shots)
no phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Travel photography advice
Sony RX10 III Travel photography advice
65
lighter than competition in class (226 grams)
decent MP (14 megapixels)
built-in flash
pretty wide (25mm)
long zoom (600mm)
does not have Time Lapse mode
low battery power (220 per charge)
screen isn't selfie friendly
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.0)
55
better than average battery pack (420 per charge)
environment proofing
MP count decent (20MP)
flash built-in
rather wide (24mm)
very long zoom (600mm)
no Timelapse function
more heavy than competition in class (1,051g)
screen isn't selfie friendly
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.4)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Landscape photography information
Sony RX10 III Landscape photography information
40
pretty wide (25mm)
pretty good screen size (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent MP (14 megapixels)
focusing manually not possible
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.0)
manual exposure not available
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
low battery power (220 shots)
does not have Time Lapse mode
63
has manual focus
rather wide (24mm)
pretty good screen size (3")
has image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (20 megapixels)
sensor size is good (1")
supports RAW files
environment proofing
better than average battery pack (420 CIPA)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.4)
no Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Vlogging information
Sony RX10 III Vlogging information
31
pretty wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers face detect focusing
lighter than competition in class (226 grams)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.0)
screen isn't selfie friendly
low res video (1280 x 720 pixels)
does not have mic socket
28
rather wide (24mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
has face detect focusing
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pixels)
does have microphone port
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.4)
screen isn't selfie friendly
more heavy than competition in class (1,051 grams)
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX10 III Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SZ-12 and Sony RX10 III
 Olympus SZ-12Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model Olympus SZ-12 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
Type Small Sensor Superzoom Large Sensor Superzoom
Launched 2012-01-10 2016-03-29
Body design Compact SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - Bionz X
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1"
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 14 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio - 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4288 x 3216 5472 x 3648
Highest native ISO 1600 12800
Highest enhanced ISO - 25600
Min native ISO 80 125
RAW files
Min enhanced ISO - 64
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Autofocus continuous
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Number of focus points - 25
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 25-600mm (24.0x) 24-600mm (25.0x)
Maximal aperture f/3.0-6.9 f/2.4-4.0
Macro focus range - 3cm
Focal length multiplier 5.8 2.7
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Tilting
Screen sizing 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 460k dot 1,229k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen tech TFT Color LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359k dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Min shutter speed 4 seconds 30 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/1700 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Max silent shutter speed - 1/32000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 1.0 frames/s 14.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range - 10.80 m (at Auto ISO)
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 180 (30fps) 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Highest video resolution 1280x720 3840x2160
Video file format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
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 seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 226 gr (0.50 pounds) 1051 gr (2.32 pounds)
Physical dimensions 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") 133 x 94 x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested 70
DXO Color Depth score not tested 23.1
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 12.6
DXO Low light score not tested 472
Other
Battery life 220 photographs 420 photographs
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model LI-50B NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, pet auto shutter) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse recording
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots Single Single
Launch cost $350 $1,398