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Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500

Portability
91
Imaging
41
Features
42
Overall
41
Olympus Stylus Tough TG-860 front
 
Sony Alpha a6500 front
Portability
81
Imaging
67
Features
85
Overall
74

Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 Key Specs

Olympus TG-860
(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
  • 224g - 110 x 64 x 28mm
  • Released February 2015
  • Successor is Olympus TG-870
Sony A6500
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 100 - 25600 (Boost to 51200)
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 453g - 120 x 67 x 53mm
  • Released October 2016
  • Older Model is Sony A6300
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Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 Overview

Below, we are reviewing the Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500, former being a Waterproof while the other is a Advanced Mirrorless by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There is a large difference between the resolutions of the TG-860 (16MP) and A6500 (24MP) and the TG-860 (1/2.3") and A6500 (APS-C) possess different sensor size.

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The TG-860 was introduced 20 months prior to the A6500 making the cameras a generation apart from each other. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus TG-860 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony A6500 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before delving straight into a more detailed comparison, below is a quick view of how the TG-860 grades against the A6500 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus TG-860 over the Sony A6500

 TG-860 A6500 

Reasons to pick Sony A6500 over the Olympus TG-860

 A6500 TG-860 
ReleasedOctober 2016February 2015Fresher by 20 months
Manually focus Very accurate focus
Display resolution922k460kClearer display (+462k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Common features in the Olympus TG-860 and Sony A6500

 TG-860 A6500 
Display typeTiltingTiltingTilting display
Display dimension3"3"Identical display size
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen

Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 Physical Comparison

For those who are going to carry your camera regularly, you're going to have to factor in its weight and size. The Olympus TG-860 has external measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 28mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.1") accompanied by a weight of 224 grams (0.49 lbs) while the Sony A6500 has specifications of 120mm x 67mm x 53mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 2.1") and a weight of 453 grams (1.00 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have attached at that time. Following is the front view dimension comparison of the TG-860 compared to the A6500.

Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the TG-860 and A6500 is 91 and 81 respectively.

Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 top view buttons comparison

Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 Sensor Comparison

Often, it is very difficult to visualize the contrast between sensor sizing merely by checking a spec sheet. The graphic below will help give you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the TG-860 and A6500.

As you can see, both cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The TG-860 with its tinier sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field harder and the Sony A6500 will give you more detail using its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The older TG-860 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 sensor size comparison

Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus TG-860 Portrait photography advice
Sony A6500 Portrait photography advice
36
megapixel count decent (16 megapixels)
offers face detection autofocus
lack of manual focus
manual exposure not available
external flash not possible
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
no RAW files
80
you can focus manually
MP count decent (24MP)
good sensor size (APS-C)
features face detect focus
delivers RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus TG-860
Street photography with Sony A6500
69
has a tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Optical)
weather proof
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
no RAW files
85
tilting screen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
includes focus by touch
environment proof
very good ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus TG-860 Sports photography highlights
Sony A6500 Sports photography highlights
49
built in image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count decent (16MP)
offers tracking autofocus
weather proof
no shutter priority mode
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
no phase detect autofocus
77
silent shooting (1/32,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
MP count decent (24 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
features tracking focus
environment proof
has phase detect auto focus
not so great battery life (350 shots)
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus TG-860
Travel photography with Sony A6500
71
weather proof
megapixel count decent (16 megapixels)
built-in flash
reasonably wide (21mm)
screen is not selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
74
environment proof
has bluetooth
includes focus by touch
MP count decent (24MP)
has built in flash
not so great battery life (350 shots)
does not have selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus TG-860 Landscape photography information
Sony A6500 Landscape photography information
48
reasonably wide (21mm)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count decent (16MP)
weather proof
lack of manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
manual exposure not available
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
no RAW files
79
you can focus manually
swap lenses (Sony E mount)
decent sized screen (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
MP count decent (24MP)
good sensor size (APS-C)
very good ISO range (25,600)
delivers RAW formats
environment proof
not so great battery life (350 per charge)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus TG-860 as a Vlogging camera
Sony A6500 as a Vlogging camera
33
reasonably wide (21mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
offers face detection autofocus
high res video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen is not selfie friendly
missing external mic port
39
touchscreen capability
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
features face detect focus
great video quality (3840 x 2160 pxls)
has microphone port
does not have selfie friendly screen
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Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A6500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus TG-860 and Sony A6500
 Olympus Stylus Tough TG-860Sony Alpha a6500
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus Stylus Tough TG-860 Sony Alpha a6500
Type Waterproof Advanced Mirrorless
Released 2015-02-06 2016-10-06
Body design Ultracompact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic VII Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 24 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4608 x 3456 6000 x 4000
Maximum native ISO 6400 25600
Maximum enhanced ISO - 51200
Minimum native ISO 125 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points - 425
Lens
Lens support fixed lens Sony E
Lens zoom range 21-105mm (5.0x) -
Highest aperture f/3.5-5.7 -
Macro focusing range 1cm -
Available lenses - 121
Focal length multiplier 5.8 1.5
Screen
Screen type Tilting Tilting
Screen sizing 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 460k dot 922k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359k dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 4 secs 30 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/4000 secs
Fastest silent shutter speed - 1/32000 secs
Continuous shutter speed 7.0fps 11.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 4.00 m (at ISO 1600) 6.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash options Auto, redeye reduction, fill flash, off, LED illuminator Flash off, Autoflash, Fill-flash, Rear Sync., Slow Sync., Red-eye reduction (On/Off selectable), Hi-speed sync, Wireless
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync - 1/160 secs
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60p), 1280 x 720 (60p), 640 x 480 (60p) 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video format H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS Yes None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 224g (0.49 lbs) 453g (1.00 lbs)
Dimensions 110 x 64 x 28mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.1") 120 x 67 x 53mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 2.1")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested 85
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 24.5
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 13.7
DXO Low light rating not tested 1405
Other
Battery life 300 photos 350 photos
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID Li-50B NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, custom) Yes
Time lapse recording With downloadable app
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal SD/SDHC/SDXC + Memory Stick Pro Duo
Storage slots One One
Pricing at release $279 $1,298