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Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9

Portability
88
Imaging
40
Features
50
Overall
44
Olympus SZ-15 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DC-GX9 front
Portability
82
Imaging
60
Features
80
Overall
68

Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 Key Specs

Olympus SZ-15
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 23-483mm (F2.8-5.9) lens
  • 250g - 108 x 70 x 40mm
  • Introduced June 2013
Panasonic GX9
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 407g - 124 x 72 x 47mm
  • Revealed February 2018
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Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 Overview

Below is a complete overview of the Olympus SZ-15 versus Panasonic GX9, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the SZ-15 (16MP) and the GX9 (20MP) is pretty close but the SZ-15 (1/2.3") and GX9 (Four Thirds) use different sensor measurements.

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The SZ-15 was released 5 years prior to the GX9 and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus SZ-15 being a Compact camera and the Panasonic GX9 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving through a thorough comparison, below is a brief summary of how the SZ-15 grades versus the GX9 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-15 over the Panasonic GX9

 SZ-15 GX9 

Reasons to pick Panasonic GX9 over the Olympus SZ-15

 GX9 SZ-15 
RevealedFebruary 2018June 2013More recent by 56 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1240k460kSharper screen (+780k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus SZ-15 and Panasonic GX9

 SZ-15 GX9 
Focus manually More accurate focusing
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen measurements
Selfie screen Neither features selfie screen

Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 Physical Comparison

If you are going to lug around your camera regularly, you have to take into account its weight and volume. The Olympus SZ-15 enjoys external dimensions of 108mm x 70mm x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") with a weight of 250 grams (0.55 lbs) while the Panasonic GX9 has sizing of 124mm x 72mm x 47mm (4.9" x 2.8" x 1.9") along with a weight of 407 grams (0.90 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus SZ-15 versus Panasonic GX9 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you choose at that moment. Below is the front view physical size comparison of the SZ-15 vs the GX9.

Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability score of the SZ-15 and GX9 is 88 and 82 respectively.

Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 Sensor Comparison

Generally, it can be tough to visualize the contrast in sensor measurements just by researching technical specs. The graphic underneath may give you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the SZ-15 and GX9.

As you have seen, each of the cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The SZ-15 because of its smaller sensor is going to make shooting bokeh more challenging and the Panasonic GX9 will provide you with more detail as a result of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also let you crop shots somewhat more aggressively. The older SZ-15 will be disadvantaged in sensor tech.

Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 sensor size comparison

Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus SZ-15
Portrait photography with Panasonic GX9
44
focusing manually
good resolution (16MP)
provides face detection focusing
external flash not possible
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
76
you can focus manually
decent sensor resolution (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers face detection focus
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 Street photography factors
Panasonic GX9 Street photography factors
60
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than others (250 grams)
no moving screen
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
84
screen tilts up and down
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
includes touch to focus
great ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 Sports photography details
Panasonic GX9 Sports photography details
53
incredible zoom range (23-483mm 21.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (16MP)
provides tracking autofocus
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect AF
72
silent shutter (1/16,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent sensor resolution (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers tracking autofocus
has phase detect auto focus
bad battery (260 CIPA)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 Travel photography factors
Panasonic GX9 Travel photography factors
68
lighter than others (250 grams)
good resolution (16MP)
built-in flash
quite wide (23mm)
great zoom (483mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
display isn't selfie friendly
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
71
has bluetooth
includes touch to focus
decent sensor resolution (20 megapixels)
has built in flash
bad battery (260 per charge)
screen isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 Landscape photography advice
Panasonic GX9 Landscape photography advice
49
focusing manually
quite wide (23mm)
good sized screen (3")
has image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
doesn't have Time Lapse function
77
you can focus manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice screen size (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent sensor resolution (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
no low pass filter
great ISO range (25,600)
saves RAW files
bad battery (260 shots)
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus SZ-15
Vlogging with Panasonic GX9
34
quite wide (23mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
provides face detection focusing
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
lighter than others (250g)
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
display isn't selfie friendly
doesn't have external mic socket
35
touchscreen capability
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
offers face detection focus
high video quality (3840 x 2160 pxls)
screen isn't selfie friendly
does not have external mic support
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Olympus SZ-15 vs Panasonic GX9 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SZ-15 and Panasonic GX9
 Olympus SZ-15Panasonic Lumix DC-GX9
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus SZ-15 Panasonic Lumix DC-GX9
Category Small Sensor Superzoom Advanced Mirrorless
Introduced 2013-06-21 2018-02-13
Physical type Compact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Chip - Venus Engine
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" Four Thirds
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 20MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4608 x 3456 5184 x 3888
Max native ISO 3200 25600
Min native ISO 100 200
RAW files
Min boosted ISO - 100
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points - 49
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mount fixed lens Micro Four Thirds
Lens focal range 23-483mm (21.0x) -
Highest aperture f/2.8-5.9 -
Macro focus distance 5cm -
Amount of lenses - 107
Focal length multiplier 5.8 2.1
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Tilting
Screen diagonal 3 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 460k dots 1,240k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen technology LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,760k dots
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 8 secs 60 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/4000 secs
Maximum silent shutter speed - 1/16000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 10.0fps 9.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 3.50 m 6.00 m (at ISO 200)
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync Auto, auto w/redeye reduction, forced on, forced on w/redeye reduction, slow sync, slow sync w/redeye reduction, forced off
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 480fps (176 x 128), 240fps (384 x 288) -
Max video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video data format AVI MPEG4, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) Yes
GPS BuiltIn None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 250 grams (0.55 pounds) 407 grams (0.90 pounds)
Dimensions 108 x 70 x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") 124 x 72 x 47mm (4.9" x 2.8" x 1.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life - 260 shots
Battery style - Battery Pack
Battery model SLB-10A -
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, Double) Yes (2 or 10 secs, 3 photos over 10 secs)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC card (UHS-I supported)
Card slots 1 1
Launch pricing $200 $1,000