Olympus SZ-30MR vs Samsung NX300

Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus SZ-30MR versus Samsung NX300, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by rivals Olympus and Samsung. The sensor resolution of the SZ-30MR (16MP) and the NX300 (20MP) is very comparable but the SZ-30MR (1/2.3") and NX300 (APS-C) feature different sensor sizes.

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The SZ-30MR was manufactured 3 years before the NX300 and that is a fairly serious gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus SZ-30MR being a Compact camera and the Samsung NX300 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight into a more detailed comparison, below is a quick overview of how the SZ-30MR scores versus the NX300 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus SZ-30MR and Samsung NX300. The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus SZ-30MR Gallery and Samsung NX300 Gallery.

For anybody who is intending to carry your camera frequently, you are going to need to consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus SZ-30MR features outer dimensions of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs) and the Samsung NX300 has dimensions of 122mm x 64mm x 41mm (4.8" x 2.5" x 1.6") with a weight of 331 grams (0.73 lbs).

Check the Olympus SZ-30MR versus Samsung NX300 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you select at that moment. Here is the front view scale comparison of the SZ-30MR and the NX300.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the SZ-30MR and NX300 is 89 and 86 respectively.

Sometimes, its hard to visualize the gap in sensor sizing purely by going through a spec sheet. The photograph here will help provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the SZ-30MR and NX300.

Clearly, the 2 cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The SZ-30MR due to its smaller sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field more challenging and the Samsung NX300 will provide more detail due to its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop photos much more aggressively. The older SZ-30MR will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.