Olympus SZ-15 vs Sony RX100 VA

Let's look a little more closely at the Olympus SZ-15 and Sony RX100 VA, one is a Small Sensor Superzoom and the other is a Large Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Sony. The sensor resolution of the SZ-15 (16MP) and the RX100 VA (20MP) is fairly similar but the SZ-15 (1/2.3") and RX100 VA (1") have totally different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The SZ-15 was brought out 6 years before the RX100 VA which is quite a significant gap as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Olympus SZ-15 being a Compact camera and the Sony RX100 VA being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before diving into a comprehensive comparison, here is a short view of how the SZ-15 matches up versus the RX100 VA when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus SZ-15 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 V(A). The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus SZ-15 Gallery and Sony RX100 VA Gallery.

For anyone who is looking to travel with your camera often, you're going to have to factor its weight and size. The Olympus SZ-15 features outside dimensions of 108mm x 70mm x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") having a weight of 250 grams (0.55 lbs) whilst the Sony RX100 VA has specifications of 102mm x 58mm x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6") with a weight of 299 grams (0.66 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus SZ-15 and Sony RX100 VA in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you have attached at that moment. Underneath is a front view scale comparison of the SZ-15 compared to the RX100 VA.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the SZ-15 and RX100 VA is 88 and 89 respectively.

Normally, it can be hard to envision the gap between sensor dimensions just by reviewing a spec sheet. The picture here should give you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the SZ-15 and RX100 VA.

As you can see, each of these cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The SZ-15 due to its tinier sensor will make getting shallow DOF tougher and the Sony RX100 VA will offer you extra detail having its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop photos more aggressively. The more aged SZ-15 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.