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Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500

Portability
91
Imaging
40
Features
44
Overall
41
Olympus Stylus Tough TG-850 iHS front
 
Pentax Optio RS1500 front
Portability
93
Imaging
37
Features
30
Overall
34

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 Key Specs

Olympus TG-850 iHS
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 21-105mm (F3.5-5.7) lens
  • 218g - 110 x 64 x 28mm
  • Revealed January 2014
Pentax RS1500
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-110mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 157g - 114 x 58 x 28mm
  • Launched March 2011
Photography Glossary

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 Overview

Lets look more in depth at the Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500, former is a Waterproof while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. The sensor resolution of the TG-850 iHS (16MP) and the RS1500 (14MP) is fairly comparable and both cameras have the identical sensor sizing (1/2.3").

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The TG-850 iHS was revealed 2 years after the RS1500 which is a fairly large difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras feature the same body design (Compact).

Before getting into a step-by-step comparison, here is a concise overview of how the TG-850 iHS matches up against the RS1500 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus TG-850 iHS over the Pentax RS1500

 TG-850 iHS RS1500 
LaunchedJanuary 2014March 2011More modern by 35 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display size3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution460k230kSharper display (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Pentax RS1500 over the Olympus TG-850 iHS

 RS1500 TG-850 iHS 
Manual focus More accurate focus

Common features in the Olympus TG-850 iHS and Pentax RS1500

 TG-850 iHS RS1500 
Selfie screen Neither offers selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither offers Touch friendly display

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is going to carry around your camera, you will need to factor its weight and measurements. The Olympus TG-850 iHS offers outside measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 28mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.1") along with a weight of 218 grams (0.48 lbs) whilst the Pentax RS1500 has proportions of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") accompanied by a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs).

Check the Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are working with at that time. Below is a front view dimensions comparison of the TG-850 iHS versus the RS1500.

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the TG-850 iHS and RS1500 is 91 and 93 respectively.

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 top view buttons comparison

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 Sensor Comparison

Generally, its difficult to imagine the difference in sensor sizes merely by checking out a spec sheet. The picture here may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the TG-850 iHS and RS1500.

As you can see, each of these cameras feature the identical sensor size but different megapixels. You can anticipate the Olympus TG-850 iHS to show more detail because of its extra 2MP. Greater resolution will enable you to crop pics way more aggressively. The younger TG-850 iHS provides a benefit with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 sensor size comparison

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus TG-850 iHS Portrait photography highlights
Pentax RS1500 Portrait photography highlights
35
good resolution (16 megapixels)
has face detection focusing
manual focus not available
lack of manual mode
cannot use external flash
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
35
manual focus
decent sensor resolution (14MP)
manual exposure not available
external flash not possible
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus TG-850 iHS Street photography factors
Pentax RS1500 Street photography factors
69
screen tilts up and down
image stabilization (Optical)
environment proofing
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
54
weather proof
fixed screen
no image stabilization
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus TG-850 iHS as a Sports photography camera
Pentax RS1500 as a Sports photography camera
51
image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (16MP)
has tracking autofocus
environment proofing
great battery pack (330 per charge)
lack of shutter priority mode
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
37
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
includes tracking autofocus
weather proof
max fps low (1.0 fps)
no shutter priority
no image stabilization
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus TG-850 iHS Travel photography advice
Pentax RS1500 Travel photography advice
72
great battery pack (330 per charge)
environment proofing
good resolution (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
relatively wide (21mm)
display is not selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
67
weather proof
decent sensor resolution (14 megapixels)
built-in flash
reasonably wide (28mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
screen isn't selfie friendly
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus TG-850 iHS Landscape photography information
Pentax RS1500 Landscape photography information
50
relatively wide (21mm)
screen size is good (3")
image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (16MP)
environment proofing
great battery pack (330 shots)
manual focus not available
can't change lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
lack of manual mode
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
40
manual focus
reasonably wide (28mm)
decent sensor resolution (14MP)
weather proof
cannot swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
small screen (2.7 inch)
manual exposure not available
no image stabilization
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW files
doesn't have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus TG-850 iHS
Vlogging with Pentax RS1500
33
relatively wide (21mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
has face detection focusing
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 resolution)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
display is not selfie friendly
does not have external mic socket
25
reasonably wide (28mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen isn't selfie friendly
no image stabilization
low res video (1280 x 720 resolution)
doesn't have external mic support
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Olympus TG-850 iHS vs Pentax RS1500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus TG-850 iHS and Pentax RS1500
 Olympus Stylus Tough TG-850 iHSPentax Optio RS1500
General Information
Make Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus Stylus Tough TG-850 iHS Pentax Optio RS1500
Category Waterproof Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2014-01-29 2011-03-16
Physical type Compact Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic VII -
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CCD
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 14 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio - 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4616 x 3464 4288 x 3216
Highest native ISO 6400 6400
Min native ISO 125 80
RAW photos
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points - 9
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 21-105mm (5.0x) 28-110mm (3.9x)
Largest aperture f/3.5-5.7 f/3.5-5.5
Macro focus distance - 1cm
Crop factor 5.8 5.8
Screen
Screen type Tilting Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 3" 2.7"
Screen resolution 460 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen technology TFT LCD TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 1/2 secs 4 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/1500 secs
Continuous shooting rate 7.0 frames per second 1.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range - 3.90 m
Flash settings - Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60p, 30p), 1280 x 720 (60p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video data format H.264, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Yes None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 218 grams (0.48 pounds) 157 grams (0.35 pounds)
Physical dimensions 110 x 64 x 28mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.1") 114 x 58 x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life 330 photos 260 photos
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model LI-50B D-LI92
Self timer Yes (2 sec, 12 sec, Custom Self-Timer (1-30 sec start timer, 1-10 pictures, 1-3 sec interval)) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD, SDHC, SDXC, Internal Memory SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots 1 1
Pricing at launch $250 $150