Olympus SH-3 vs Sony RX100 VA

Lets look a little more in depth at the Olympus SH-3 and Sony RX100 VA, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Large Sensor Compact by companies Olympus and Sony. The sensor resolution of the SH-3 (16MP) and the RX100 VA (20MP) is fairly close but the SH-3 (1/2.3") and RX100 VA (1") provide different sensor dimensions.

Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

The SH-3 was unveiled 3 years earlier than the RX100 VA and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Olympus SH-3 being a Compact camera and the Sony RX100 VA being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before diving into a step-by-step comparison, here is a simple introduction of how the SH-3 scores against the RX100 VA in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus Stylus SH-3 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 V(A). The full galleries are available at Olympus SH-3 Gallery & Sony RX100 VA Gallery.

If you are aiming to lug around your camera regularly, you need to consider its weight and volume. The Olympus SH-3 has external dimensions of 109mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.7") along with a weight of 271 grams (0.60 lbs) and the Sony RX100 VA has sizing 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 SH-3 and Sony RX100 VA in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are utilizing at that moment. Here is a front view scale comparison of the SH-3 and the RX100 VA.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SH-3 and RX100 VA is 88 and 89 respectively.

Typically, its hard to imagine the difference in sensor measurements just by viewing specifications. The graphic underneath should give you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the SH-3 and RX100 VA.

To sum up, each of the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The SH-3 with its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF harder and the Sony RX100 VA will provide you with more detail having an extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also allow you to crop photos a bit more aggressively. The older SH-3 will be behind with regard to sensor technology.