Olympus SZ-31MR iHS vs Sony A560

Lets look more closely at the Olympus SZ-31MR iHS vs Sony A560, former is a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the SZ-31MR iHS (16MP) and the A560 (14MP) is very close but the SZ-31MR iHS (1/2.3") and A560 (APS-C) have totally different sensor dimensions.

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The SZ-31MR iHS was announced 18 months after the A560 making them a generation away from each other. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus SZ-31MR iHS being a Compact camera and the Sony A560 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a concise summary of how the SZ-31MR iHS scores against the A560 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

The following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus SZ-31MR iHS & Sony Alpha DSLR-A560. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus SZ-31MR iHS Gallery & Sony A560 Gallery.

For anyone who is intending to travel with your camera regularly, you are going to need to consider its weight and volume. The Olympus SZ-31MR iHS enjoys exterior dimensions of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs) whilst the Sony A560 has sizing of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") along with a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus SZ-31MR iHS vs Sony A560 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are working with at the time. Below is a front view size comparison of the SZ-31MR iHS compared to the A560.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability rating of the SZ-31MR iHS and A560 is 89 and 64 respectively.

In many cases, it is hard to see the gap in sensor dimensions only by looking through a spec sheet. The pic below will offer you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the SZ-31MR iHS and A560.

Clearly, both of these cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The SZ-31MR iHS using its smaller sensor will make getting shallow DOF more challenging and the Olympus SZ-31MR iHS will render more detail with its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also allow you to crop images a bit more aggressively. The more recent SZ-31MR iHS is going to have a benefit when it comes to sensor technology.