Olympus SZ-30MR vs Sony A350

Let's examine more in depth at the Olympus SZ-30MR and Sony A350, one is a Small Sensor Superzoom and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Olympus and Sony. The image resolution of the SZ-30MR (16MP) and the A350 (14MP) is fairly comparable but the SZ-30MR (1/2.3") and A350 (APS-C) feature different sensor measurements.

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The SZ-30MR was manufactured 2 years after the A350 which is a fairly serious gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus SZ-30MR being a Compact camera and the Sony A350 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before we go through a more detailed comparison, below is a brief summary of how the SZ-30MR matches up vs the A350 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus SZ-30MR and Sony Alpha DSLR-A350. The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus SZ-30MR Gallery and Sony A350 Gallery.

In case you're intending to carry around your camera frequently, you'll have to factor in its weight and volume. The Olympus SZ-30MR enjoys external dimensions of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") and a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs) while the Sony A350 has sizing of 131mm x 99mm x 75mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 674 grams (1.49 lbs).

See the Olympus SZ-30MR and Sony A350 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are using at that moment. Following is the front view proportions comparison of the SZ-30MR versus the A350.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SZ-30MR and A350 is 89 and 62 respectively.

More often than not, it's difficult to picture the difference in sensor sizes only by seeing specifications. The pic below might offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the SZ-30MR and A350.

To sum up, each of these cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The SZ-30MR because of its smaller sensor is going to make getting shallow depth of field more difficult and the Olympus SZ-30MR will show extra detail due to its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop images much more aggressively. The more recent SZ-30MR provides a benefit with regard to sensor tech.