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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100

Portability
89
Imaging
37
Features
36
Overall
36
Olympus SZ-12 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 front
Portability
91
Imaging
50
Features
68
Overall
57

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 Key Specs

Olympus SZ-12
(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
  • Released January 2012
Sony RX100
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-100mm (F1.8-4.9) lens
  • 240g - 102 x 58 x 36mm
  • Launched August 2012
  • Refreshed by Sony RX100 II
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 Overview

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.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-12 over the Sony RX100

 SZ-12 RX100 

Reasons to pick Sony RX100 over the Olympus SZ-12

 RX100 SZ-12 
LaunchedAugust 2012January 2012More modern by 7 months
Manual focus Very exact focus
Screen resolution1229k460kSharper screen (+769k dot)

Common features in the Olympus SZ-12 and Sony RX100

 SZ-12 RX100 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen size3"3"Same screen size
Selfie screen Neither offers selfie screen
Touch screen Lacking Touch screen

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 Physical Comparison

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. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

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.

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 size comparison

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

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 Sensor Comparison

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.

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 sensor size comparison

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony RX100 as a Portrait photography camera
33
resolution is good (14 megapixels)
comes with face detect focusing
focusing manually not possible
no manual exposure
no external flash support
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
64
you can focus manually
flash sync is higher than normal (1/2,000 seconds)
good megapixels (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
offers face detect focus
saves RAW formats
external flash not possible
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Street Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 Street photography advice
Sony RX100 Street photography advice
60
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than competition (226 grams)
no articulating screen
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
79
has image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor size (1")
saves RAW formats
lighter than others (240g)
above average ISO range (25,600)
no articulating screen
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus SZ-12
Sports photography with Sony RX100
40
excellent zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
resolution is good (14 megapixels)
comes with tracking focus
continuous shooting slow (1.0 fps)
no shutter priority mode
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
terrible battery pack (220 per charge)
does not have phase detect AF
65
has image stabilization (Optical)
good megapixels (20MP)
decent sensor size (1")
offers tracking focus
no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 as a Travel photography camera
Sony RX100 as a Travel photography camera
65
lighter than competition (226 grams)
resolution is good (14MP)
has built in flash
decently wide (25mm)
long zoom (600mm)
lack of Timelapse recording
terrible battery pack (220 per charge)
does not posses selfie friendly display
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
79
lighter than others (240g)
good megapixels (20 megapixels)
has built in flash
fairly wide (28mm)
fast max aperture (f1.8)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
Photography Glossary

Landscape Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony RX100 as a Landscape photography camera
40
decently wide (25mm)
nice screen size (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
resolution is good (14MP)
focusing manually not possible
cannot swap lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
no manual exposure
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
terrible battery pack (220 shots)
lack of Timelapse recording
74
you can focus manually
fairly wide (28mm)
fast max aperture (f1.8)
screen size is good (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Optical)
good megapixels (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
above average ISO range (25,600)
saves RAW formats
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SZ-12 as a Vlogging camera
Sony RX100 as a Vlogging camera
31
decently wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
comes with face detect focusing
lighter than competition (226 grams)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
does not posses selfie friendly display
low video resolution (1280 x 720 resolution)
lack of microphone support
38
fairly wide (28mm)
fast max aperture (f1.8)
has image stabilization (Optical)
offers face detect focus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
lighter than others (240 grams)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
lack of mic socket
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Olympus SZ-12 vs Sony RX100 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SZ-12 and Sony RX100
 Olympus SZ-12Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100
General Information
Brand Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus SZ-12 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100
Type Small Sensor Superzoom Large Sensor Compact
Released 2012-01-10 2012-08-28
Physical type Compact Large Sensor Compact
Sensor Information
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1"
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 14 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio - 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4288 x 3216 5472 x 3648
Max native ISO 1600 25600
Minimum native ISO 80 100
RAW files
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Live view autofocus
Face detect autofocus
Contract detect autofocus
Phase detect autofocus
Total focus points - 25
Cross type focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens zoom range 25-600mm (24.0x) 28-100mm (3.6x)
Maximum aperture f/3.0-6.9 f/1.8-4.9
Macro focusing range - 5cm
Crop factor 5.8 2.7
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display sizing 3 inch 3 inch
Display resolution 460k dots 1,229k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Display technology TFT Color LCD WhiteMagic TFT LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 4 secs 30 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/1700 secs 1/2000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 1.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize - 1/2000 secs
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 180 (30fps) 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video file format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 226 gr (0.50 lbs) 240 gr (0.53 lbs)
Physical dimensions 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") 102 x 58 x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 66
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 22.6
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 12.4
DXO Low light rating not tested 390
Other
Battery life 220 images 330 images
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID LI-50B NP-BX1
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, pet auto shutter) Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2)
Time lapse recording With downloadable app
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Card slots 1 1
Retail pricing $350 $448