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Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3

Portability
88
Imaging
40
Features
50
Overall
44
Olympus SZ-15 front
 
Ricoh CX3 front
Portability
92
Imaging
33
Features
35
Overall
33

Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 Key Specs

Olympus SZ-15
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 23-483mm (F2.8-5.9) lens
  • 250g - 108 x 70 x 40mm
  • Released June 2013
Ricoh CX3
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-300mm (F3.5-5.6) lens
  • 206g - 102 x 58 x 29mm
  • Released June 2010
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Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 Overview

Below, we will be analyzing the Olympus SZ-15 and Ricoh CX3, both Small Sensor Superzoom digital cameras by companies Olympus and Ricoh. There exists a sizeable gap between the sensor resolutions of the SZ-15 (16MP) and CX3 (10MP) but they enjoy the exact same sensor dimensions (1/2.3").

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The SZ-15 was manufactured 3 years later than the CX3 and that is quite a large gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before we go through a detailed comparison, below is a simple highlight of how the SZ-15 matches up vs the CX3 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-15 over the Ricoh CX3

 SZ-15 CX3 
ReleasedJune 2013June 2010Fresher by 37 months

Reasons to pick Ricoh CX3 over the Olympus SZ-15

 CX3 SZ-15 
Screen resolution920k460kClearer screen (+460k dot)

Common features in the Olympus SZ-15 and Ricoh CX3

 SZ-15 CX3 
Focus manually Dial exact focusing
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen sizing
Selfie screen Neither contains selfie screen
Touch screen No Touch screen

Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is looking to carry your camera frequently, you have to think about its weight and dimensions. The Olympus SZ-15 has got outer dimensions of 108mm x 70mm x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") having a weight of 250 grams (0.55 lbs) while the Ricoh CX3 has dimensions of 102mm x 58mm x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1") along with a weight of 206 grams (0.45 lbs).

Check out the Olympus SZ-15 and Ricoh CX3 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you are using at that moment. Underneath is the front view proportions comparison of the SZ-15 vs the CX3.

Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the SZ-15 and CX3 is 88 and 92 respectively.

Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 Sensor Comparison

Normally, it's hard to picture the contrast between sensor sizing simply by going over technical specs. The graphic here might offer you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the SZ-15 and CX3.

As you can tell, each of the cameras have got the exact same sensor measurements albeit different MP. You should expect the Olympus SZ-15 to deliver more detail due to its extra 6MP. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop shots much more aggressively. The younger SZ-15 should have a benefit when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 sensor size comparison

Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 as a Portrait photography camera
Ricoh CX3 as a Portrait photography camera
44
has manual focus
good MP (16 megapixels)
features face detection focus
can't use external flash
small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
26
focusing manually
lack of manual mode
can't use external flash
low MP (10MP)
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 as a Street photography camera
Ricoh CX3 as a Street photography camera
60
image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competitors (250g)
screen does not articulate
small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
60
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than others (206 grams)
fixed screen
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 Sports photography features
Ricoh CX3 Sports photography features
53
great zoom range (23-483mm 21.0 x zoom)
image stabilization (Optical)
good MP (16MP)
features tracking autofocus
small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
26
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lack of shutter priority mode
low MP (10MP)
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 Travel photography features
Ricoh CX3 Travel photography features
68
lighter than competitors (250 grams)
good MP (16MP)
built-in flash
fairly wide (23mm)
very long zoom (483mm)
does not have Time Lapse mode
does not posses selfie friendly display
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
66
lighter than others (206 grams)
has built in flash
fairly wide (28mm)
great zoom (300mm)
low MP (10 megapixels)
doesn't have selfie friendly display
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 Landscape photography details
Ricoh CX3 Landscape photography details
49
has manual focus
fairly wide (23mm)
good sized screen (3")
image stabilization (Optical)
good MP (16MP)
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
does not have Time Lapse mode
42
focusing manually
fairly wide (28mm)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
lack of manual mode
low MP (10 megapixels)
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SZ-15 Vlogging information
Ricoh CX3 Vlogging information
34
fairly wide (23mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
features face detection focus
high res video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
lighter than competitors (250g)
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
does not posses selfie friendly display
does not have external mic socket
30
fairly wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than others (206 grams)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
doesn't have selfie friendly display
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
no mic jack
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Olympus SZ-15 vs Ricoh CX3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SZ-15 and Ricoh CX3
 Olympus SZ-15Ricoh CX3
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Ricoh
Model Olympus SZ-15 Ricoh CX3
Category Small Sensor Superzoom Small Sensor Superzoom
Released 2013-06-21 2010-06-16
Body design Compact Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - Smooth Imaging Engine IV
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 10MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3 and 3:2
Maximum resolution 4608 x 3456 3648 x 2736
Maximum native ISO 3200 3200
Minimum native ISO 100 80
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
AF continuous
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 23-483mm (21.0x) 28-300mm (10.7x)
Maximal aperture f/2.8-5.9 f/3.5-5.6
Macro focus range 5cm 1cm
Focal length multiplier 5.8 5.8
Screen
Range of display Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3" 3"
Display resolution 460k dot 920k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Display technology LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 8 seconds 8 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 10.0fps -
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 3.50 m 4.00 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
AEB
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
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) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video file format AVI MPEG4, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS BuiltIn None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 250 gr (0.55 pounds) 206 gr (0.45 pounds)
Dimensions 108 x 70 x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") 102 x 58 x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1")
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 model SLB-10A DB-100
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, Double) Yes (2, 10 or Custom)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC card, Internal
Storage slots Single Single
Price at launch $200 $329