Clicky

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70

Portability
90
Imaging
40
Features
46
Overall
42
Olympus Tough TG-3 front
 
Pentax Optio P70 front
Portability
95
Imaging
34
Features
20
Overall
28

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 Key Specs

Olympus TG-3
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-100mm (F2.0-4.9) lens
  • 247g - 112 x 66 x 31mm
  • Announced March 2014
  • Renewed by Olympus TG-4
Pentax P70
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 64 - 6400
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-110mm (F2.8-5.0) lens
  • 155g - 97 x 54 x 22mm
  • Launched March 2009
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 Overview

Following is a comprehensive review of the Olympus TG-3 and Pentax P70, former is a Waterproof while the other is a Ultracompact by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a sizable gap between the resolutions of the TG-3 (16MP) and P70 (12MP) but both cameras boast the same sensor sizes (1/2.3").

Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

The TG-3 was introduced 5 years after the P70 which is quite a significant difference as far as technology is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus TG-3 being a Compact camera and the Pentax P70 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before diving into a more detailed comparison, here is a concise highlight of how the TG-3 matches up vs the P70 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

        

Reasons to pick Olympus TG-3 over the Pentax P70

 TG-3 P70 
LaunchedMarch 2014March 2009More modern by 62 months
Display dimensions3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution460k230kCrisper display (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Pentax P70 over the Olympus TG-3

 P70 TG-3 
Manual focus Very exact focus

Common features in the Olympus TG-3 and Pentax P70

 TG-3 P70 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen Neither offers selfie screen
Touch display Neither offers Touch display

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 Physical Comparison

In case you're looking to carry around your camera regularly, you are going to need to think about its weight and size. The Olympus TG-3 offers external measurements of 112mm x 66mm x 31mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.2") having a weight of 247 grams (0.54 lbs) while the Pentax P70 has specifications of 97mm x 54mm x 22mm (3.8" x 2.1" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 155 grams (0.34 lbs).

Check out the Olympus TG-3 and Pentax P70 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have chosen during that time. Here is a front view dimensions comparison of the TG-3 versus the P70.

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the TG-3 and P70 is 90 and 95 respectively.

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 top view buttons comparison

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it is very hard to visualize the difference between sensor sizes purely by reading specifications. The picture here will help provide you a greater sense of the sensor sizing in the TG-3 and P70.

Plainly, both cameras provide the same sensor dimensions but different megapixels. You can expect to see the Olympus TG-3 to offer more detail using its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also enable you to crop photos more aggressively. The more recent TG-3 provides an edge in sensor innovation.

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 sensor size comparison

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus TG-3 Portrait photography details
Pentax P70 Portrait photography details
37
megapixel count good (16MP)
offers face detection focus
manual focus not available
cannot use external flash
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
27
has manual focus
manual exposure not available
can't use external flash
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
President Biden pushes bill mandating TikTok sale or ban

Street Comparison

Olympus TG-3 Street photography details
Pentax P70 Street photography details
59
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
weather proof
screen does not articulate
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
heavier than others (247 grams)
47
screen is fixed
does not have image stabilization
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
heavier than competitors (155 grams)
Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month

Sports Comparison

Olympus TG-3 Sports photography features
Pentax P70 Sports photography features
47
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
offers tracking autofocus
weather proof
better than average battery life (330 shots)
low fps (5.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
has no phase detect auto focus
17
low maximum shutter speed (1/1,000s)
no shutter priority
does not have image stabilization
sensor resolution low (12MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images

Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus TG-3
Travel photography with Pentax P70
74
better than average battery life (330 CIPA)
weather proof
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
built-in flash
relatively wide (25mm)
good maximum aperture (f2.0)
heavier than others (247g)
does not feature selfie friendly display
56
built-in flash
decently wide (28mm)
does not have Time Lapse function
heavier than competitors (155 grams)
sensor resolution low (12MP)
does not have selfie friendly display
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.8)
Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

Landscape Comparison

Olympus TG-3 as a Landscape photography camera
Pentax P70 as a Landscape photography camera
56
relatively wide (25mm)
good maximum aperture (f2.0)
good sized screen (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
megapixel count good (16MP)
weather proof
better than average battery life (330 shots)
manual focus not available
cannot switch lens (fixed lens mount)
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
32
has manual focus
decently wide (28mm)
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.8)
tiny screen (2.7 inches)
manual exposure not available
does not have image stabilization
sensor resolution low (12MP)
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
does not have Time Lapse function
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus TG-3 Vlogging advice
Pentax P70 Vlogging advice
34
relatively wide (25mm)
good maximum aperture (f2.0)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers face detection focus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does not feature selfie friendly display
does not have external mic jack
heavier than others (247g)
25
decently wide (28mm)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.8)
does not have selfie friendly display
does not have image stabilization
low res video (1280 x 720 resolution)
does not have mic port
heavier than competitors (155g)
Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

Olympus TG-3 vs Pentax P70 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus TG-3 and Pentax P70
 Olympus Tough TG-3Pentax Optio P70
General Information
Brand Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus Tough TG-3 Pentax Optio P70
Class Waterproof Ultracompact
Announced 2014-03-31 2009-03-02
Body design Compact Ultracompact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip 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 12 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 -
Max resolution 4608 x 3456 4000 x 3000
Max native ISO 6400 6400
Min native ISO 100 64
RAW data
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points - 9
Lens
Lens mount fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 25-100mm (4.0x) 28-110mm (3.9x)
Highest aperture f/2.0-4.9 f/2.8-5.0
Macro focus distance 1cm 10cm
Crop factor 5.8 5.8
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display size 3 inches 2.7 inches
Resolution of display 460 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Display technology TFT-LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Minimum shutter speed 4 secs 4 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/1000 secs
Continuous shutter speed 5.0 frames per second -
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range - 4.60 m
Flash settings Auto, redeye reduction, fill-in, off, LED -
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (15 fps), 848 x 480 (15 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video data format H.264, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS BuiltIn None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 247 grams (0.54 lb) 155 grams (0.34 lb)
Physical dimensions 112 x 66 x 31mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.2") 97 x 54 x 22mm (3.8" x 2.1" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO Overall 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 photographs -
Type of battery Battery Pack -
Battery model LI-92B -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD, SDHC, SDXC, Internal Memory SD/SDHC, Internal
Storage slots Single Single
Pricing at release $350 $200