Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100

Here, we will be looking at the Olympus SZ-12 and Sony RX100, one is a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Large Sensor Compact by companies Olympus and Sony. There is a crucial difference between the sensor resolutions of the SZ-12 (14MP) and RX100 (20MP) and the SZ-12 (1/2.3") and RX100 (1") provide different sensor size.

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The SZ-12 was announced 7 months earlier than the RX100 and they are of a similar generation. Both of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus SZ-12 being a Compact camera and the Sony RX100 being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before getting into a full comparison, here is a concise view of how the SZ-12 grades against the RX100 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus SZ-12 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus SZ-12 Gallery and Sony RX100 Gallery.

When you are planning to carry around your camera regularly, you have to take into account its weight and size. The Olympus SZ-12 offers outer dimensions 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 RX100 has specifications of 102mm x 58mm x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") and a weight of 240 grams (0.53 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus SZ-12 and Sony RX100 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you have at that moment. Following is a front view scale comparison of the SZ-12 against the RX100.

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the SZ-12 and RX100 is 89 and 91 respectively.

In many cases, it is very hard to imagine the gap between sensor sizes purely by looking at specifications. The image underneath should offer you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the SZ-12 and RX100.

Plainly, both the cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The SZ-12 using its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field more challenging and the Sony RX100 will resolve more detail with its extra 6MP. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop photographs way more aggressively. The more aged SZ-12 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.