Olympus XZ-10 vs Pentax K-3 II

Lets look more closely at the Olympus XZ-10 and Pentax K-3 II, one is a Small Sensor Compact and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by competitors Olympus and Pentax. There exists a big gap between the sensor resolutions of the XZ-10 (12MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the XZ-10 (1/2.3") and K-3 II (APS-C) provide totally different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The XZ-10 was introduced 3 years earlier than the K-3 II which is quite a big gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus XZ-10 being a Compact camera and the Pentax K-3 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before delving into a detailed comparison, here is a short summary of how the XZ-10 scores against the K-3 II for portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus Stylus XZ-10 and Pentax K-3 II. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus XZ-10 Gallery and Pentax K-3 II Gallery.

When you are looking to carry around your camera regularly, you will have to take into account its weight and volume. The Olympus XZ-10 has external measurements of 102mm x 61mm x 34mm (4.0" x 2.4" x 1.3") having a weight of 221 grams (0.49 lbs) while the Pentax K-3 II has sizing of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") with a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus XZ-10 and Pentax K-3 II in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ based on the lens you are using at that moment. Here is a front view dimensions comparison of the XZ-10 versus the K-3 II.

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the XZ-10 and K-3 II is 91 and 59 respectively.

Sometimes, it can be difficult to visualise the difference between sensor sizes purely by reviewing technical specs. The picture underneath should provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the XZ-10 and K-3 II.

As you can tell, each of the cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The XZ-10 using its tinier sensor will make getting shallow depth of field trickier and the Pentax K-3 II will offer more detail using its extra 12 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop pictures way more aggressively. The more aged XZ-10 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.