Olympus TG-860 vs Sony A33

Let's look more closely at the Olympus TG-860 versus Sony A33, former being a Waterproof while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Olympus and Sony. The image resolution of the TG-860 (16MP) and the A33 (14MP) is pretty well matched but the TG-860 (1/2.3") and A33 (APS-C) boast totally different sensor measurements.

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The TG-860 was revealed 4 years later than the A33 and that is quite a serious difference as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus TG-860 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony A33 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before getting right into a detailed comparison, here is a concise synopsis of how the TG-860 scores against the A33 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Below is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus Stylus Tough TG-860 & Sony SLT-A33. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus TG-860 Gallery & Sony A33 Gallery.

For anyone who is looking to carry your camera often, you will want to factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus TG-860 comes with outer measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 28mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.1") and a weight of 224 grams (0.49 lbs) while the Sony A33 has measurements of 124mm x 92mm x 85mm (4.9" x 3.6" x 3.3") and a weight of 500 grams (1.10 lbs).

See the Olympus TG-860 versus Sony A33 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you have at the time. Underneath is a front view sizing comparison of the TG-860 vs the A33.

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the TG-860 and A33 is 91 and 67 respectively.

In many cases, it is hard to envision the difference between sensor sizing simply by checking specs. The photograph below should give you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the TG-860 and A33.

All in all, both of the cameras have different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The TG-860 having a tinier sensor will make getting shallow depth of field trickier and the Olympus TG-860 will give extra detail because of its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The more recent TG-860 is going to have an advantage with regard to sensor tech.