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Olympus TG-6 vs Sony W380

Portability
90
Imaging
39
Features
54
Overall
45
Olympus Tough TG-6 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W380 front
Portability
96
Imaging
36
Features
25
Overall
31

Olympus TG-6 vs Sony W380 Key Specs

Olympus TG-6
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 12800
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 25-100mm (F2.0-4.9) lens
  • 253g - 113 x 66 x 32mm
  • Announced May 2019
  • Old Model is Olympus TG-5
Sony W380
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 24-120mm (F2.4-5.9) lens
  • 117g - 91 x 52 x 20mm
  • Introduced January 2010
Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

Olympus TG-6 vs Sony W380: A Deep Dive Into Compact Camera Choices for Enthusiasts and Professionals

Choosing a compact camera - especially when options span diverse categories such as rugged waterproof models and ultracompact everyday shooters - can be perplexing. Over my 15+ years evaluating cameras ranging from high-end mirrorless systems to point-and-shoot compacts, I’ve found that knowing your exact needs and understanding each camera’s strengths and limitations are the reliable ways to pick wisely. Today, I’ll walk you through a detailed comparison of two very different offerings: the Olympus Tough TG-6, a rugged waterproof compact designed for adventure, and the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W380, an older but still notable ultracompact camera mostly suited for casual, budget-conscious shooters.

Throughout this comparison, I will draw on my extensive hands-on testing experiences, analyzing both from technical and practical perspectives. We’ll touch on imaging quality, handling, autofocus performance, and usability across popular photography genres - so whether you’re a hobbyist, traveler, or professional looking for a specialized backup, you’ll find insights tailored just for you.

First Impressions and Ergonomics: Built for Adventures vs. Pocket Friendly

Olympus TG-6 vs Sony W380 size comparison

Right off the bat, the physical distinction between the Olympus TG-6 and Sony W380 is evident. The TG-6 is a chunkier, ruggedized camera (113 × 66 × 32 mm, weighing 253g), built to take abuse in the harshest conditions - meaning waterproof to 15m, freezeproof, crushproof, and shockproof. Olympus’s focus here is clear: reliability and durability for outdoors enthusiasts who want a camera that performs without worry in risky environments.

In contrast, the Sony W380 is ultracompact (91 × 52 × 20 mm) and very lightweight at just 117g, designed for maximal portability and easy everyday carry. You can slip it into a pocket effortlessly, making it highly discreet for street photography or casual use. However, it lacks any weather sealing and won’t survive rough treatment.

From an ergonomics standpoint, the TG-6’s chunky rubberized grips and clearly labeled buttons give far better manual control and handling confidence, especially with gloves or wet hands. Sony’s minimalist W380, while sleek, offers fewer physical controls, relying more on automation and simplicity.

If you prioritize ruggedness and physical reliability during wilderness hikes or diving, Olympus wins here. But if compactness and discretion in the city or social situations appeal more, Sony’s ultracompact dimensions are a major plus.

Design and Controls: Intuitive Operation When It Counts

Olympus TG-6 vs Sony W380 top view buttons comparison

Looking from above, the TG-6’s design language screams “professional-grade compact,” with clearly positioned dials and buttons to access aperture priority mode, quick zoom, and even custom white balance. Physically dedicated video record buttons and exposure compensation shortcuts make it far more flexible for creative shooting on the fly.

The Sony W380 has a much simpler top layout, fitting its consumer-focused design strategy. The zoom lever and shutter button dominate, with most advanced functions buried in menus. This is perfect for beginners or casual snapshots, but it’ll feel constraining for users who want full creative control or faster operation - a notable downside if you shoot sports or wildlife where timing matters.

In short, TG-6 offers a more tactile, responsive interface for those who prefer manual aperture control and quick mode switching, while the W380 emphasizes straightforward point-and-shoot ease.

Sensor Technology and Image Quality: Modern CMOS Versus Older CCD

Olympus TG-6 vs Sony W380 sensor size comparison

Both cameras share the same sensor size - a 1/2.3-inch sensor measuring 6.17 x 4.55 mm, but the technology and resolution differ significantly. The Olympus TG-6 employs a modern 12-megapixel BSI-CMOS sensor paired with the TruePic VIII image processor, promising improved light sensitivity, noise control, and faster readout speeds. This sensor design is optimized for better low-light performance and dynamic range, vital across many photography genres.

On the other hand, Sony's W380 sports an older 14-megapixel CCD sensor, which generally produces less sharp images in dimly lit conditions and struggles with noise above ISO 400. While the CCD delivers magical color rendition in daylight, its limited dynamic range and slow readout often hamper performance for action or low light shooting. Additionally, the W380 maxes out at ISO 3200 but with significant grain, whereas the TG-6 can push to ISO 12800 with relatively cleaner results thanks to sensor-shift stabilization and modern processing.

In practice, this means the Olympus will deliver more consistent image quality across diverse lighting, offering users greater confidence in challenging conditions such as indoor portraits, twilight landscapes, or underwater scenes.

Rear Screen and Interface: Sharpness and Usability

Olympus TG-6 vs Sony W380 Screen and Viewfinder comparison

The rear screen is the primary touchpoint for photographers, and it’s easy to spot a huge leap from Sony’s W380 to Olympus’s TG-6 here. The TG-6 features a 3-inch fixed LCD with a 1040k-dot resolution, making it crisp and bright enough for outdoor visibility, especially underwater or in bright sunlight. Despite lacking touchscreen controls, the interface is thoughtfully designed with easy navigation menus and customizable buttons - a boon for outdoor use where quick setting changes matter.

Conversely, Sony’s W380 has a smaller 2.7-inch display at a low 230k-dot resolution, which feels dated and limiting by today’s standards. It’s harder to see fine detail in bright conditions, and menu navigation can be sluggish. The W380's focus on simplicity over functionality leaves power users wanting.

For anyone who relies heavily on live view for composing or reviewing shots - especially macro or landscape photographers - the TG-6’s superior screen technology significantly improves user experience.

Speed and Focus: Tracking Action in Real Time

When it comes to autofocus speed and burst shooting, the TG-6 outperforms the W380 by a wide margin. Olympus manages 20 frames per second shooting with continuous autofocus tracking across 25 focus points and face detection capabilities. This makes it an unexpectedly robust choice for wildlife and sports enthusiasts needing to capture fleeting moments in sharp focus.

Sony's W380, meanwhile, offers just a two frames per second continuous shooting rate and employs only nine focus points with no continuous AF tracking or face detection - meaning it’s more suited to static subjects and casual use.

Although neither camera would replace a professional-level sports camera, the TG-6’s superior autofocus performance is a pleasant surprise in its class. If you’re capturing fast-moving subjects outdoors or in unpredictable situations, it’s the clear winner here.

Macro and Close-up Prowess: Extreme Detail and Proximity

Both cameras provide macro capabilities, but Olympus stands head and shoulders above Sony in this area. The TG-6’s lens allows focusing as close as 1 cm with a fast F2.0 aperture at the wide end. It also supports focus bracketing and stacking - features you rarely find in compact cameras - enabling impressive depth of field control, perfect for close-up flowers, insect photography, or small product shots.

The W380 claims a 5 cm minimum focusing distance, which is relatively standard and limits fine-detail capture for macro enthusiasts. Plus, the lack of manual or semi-manual control options makes precision focusing tougher.

For photographers drawn to macro work, the TG-6 is unquestionably the better tool to take seriously.

Image Stabilization and Video: Steady Footage in Rough Conditions

Olympus equips the TG-6 with sensor-shift image stabilization, crucial both for handheld shooting in low light and smooth video recording. The TG-6 records 4K UHD video at 30p with a respectable 102 Mbps bitrate and H.264 compression - quite advanced for a rugged compact camera. Although it lacks a microphone input or headphone jack, its built-in stabilization and crisp video give it a definite edge over older compacts.

Sony’s W380 offers optical image stabilization, which helps reduce blur for stills but is less effective for video. Video maxes out at 1280×720p HD at 30 fps with Motion JPEG compression, which is significantly outdated by today’s standards. Consequently, video quality is softer with more rolling shutter artifacts.

For travelers or vloggers wanting cinematic 4K footage under diverse conditions, the Olympus TG-6 provides a more future-proof video platform.

Durability and Environmental Resistance: Built to Survive

Here is where the Olympus TG-6 really shines. It’s full-on weatherproof and ready to dive underwater to 50 feet/15 meters without housing, survive extreme temperatures (down to -10°C), and shrug off 2.1-meter drops. It is dustproof and crushproof as well. These characteristics are a game-changer for adventure photographers or those who need a tough everyday camera that can withstand rigors from hiking, skiing, or scuba diving.

Sony’s W380, a decade older and not geared for rugged use, offers none of these protections. It is vulnerable to moisture, dust, and impacts - a critical factor to consider if you’re rough on your gear.

Thus, for any photographer planning to shoot outdoors in risky environments, the Olympus tough body design is an enormous advantage.

Connectivity, Battery Life, and Storage

The TG-6 includes built-in Wi-Fi and GPS, allowing seamless image transfer to mobile devices and reliable geotagging for travelers - a feature professional landscape shooters especially appreciate to organize shoots. It uses a rechargeable LI-92B battery with a substantial 340-shot life, enough for day-long outings.

The Sony W380 lacks wireless connectivity or GPS and uses an NP-BN1 battery with unclear real-world endurance. It supports multiple storage formats (SD and Memory Stick) but won’t win any prize for modern convenience.

For users who rely on wireless sharing or extended shooting without bulky battery packs, the Olympus is clearly more modern and versatile.

Real-World Photography Performance

Let’s talk image results. Olympus TG-6’s photos demonstrate good sharpness, excellent color accuracy, and manageable noise at higher ISO - it consistently outperforms the Sony in low light or contrast scenes. Bokeh is reasonably pleasing given the fixed zoom lens, aided by a bright f/2 aperture at wide angle, making it fairly capable for portraits. Eye detection autofocus, although not cutting-edge, successfully keeps faces sharp in typical shooting conditions.

The Sony W380, while sharp under perfect daylight, struggles with noise and softer detail beyond ISO 200. Its slower lens and older processor limit bokeh quality and low-light usability, reinforcing its role as a casual snapshot camera. Portraits can look flat, and wildlife or sports shots often blur or miss focus.

In landscape scenarios, the TG-6’s dynamic range and 12MP resolution yield better shadow detail and highlight retention - critical for nature photographers who bring detailed RAW files into post processing (supported by TG-6). Sony’s CCD sensor disappoints in this regard and does not support RAW capture at all.

Performance Breakdown Across Photography Genres

  • Portrait Photography: TG-6 offers better skin tone rendition, aperture priority mode for creative control, and face detect AF. Sony is more automatic with fewer control options, producing decent but less nuanced portraits.
  • Landscape Photography: TG-6’s RAW support, superior dynamic range, and weather resistance benefit outdoor shoots; Sony’s limited resolution and lack of durability hinder suitability.
  • Wildlife Photography: TG-6’s 20 fps burst, advanced AF tracking, and rugged design triumph for spontaneous shoots. Sony’s slow start-up, modest focus points, and low frame rate severely restrict action photography.
  • Sports Photography: TG-6 again bests Sony with faster live view AF, manual aperture, and autofocus continuity, essential for fluid subject tracking.
  • Street Photography: Sony’s compact size and discreet profile edge out TG-6, but TG-6’s size tradeoff delivers weather resilience and manual controls; choose based on your shooting style.
  • Macro Photography: TG-6’s 1cm focusing and optional focus bracketing beats Sony’s 5cm minimum by a large margin.
  • Night & Astro Photography: TG-6 better thanks to higher max ISO, RAW support, and sensor-shift IS; Sony poorly suited.
  • Video: TG-6 wins with 4K video, stabilization, and robust recording; Sony is capped at 720p with dated codec.
  • Travel Photography: Users seeking an all-around versatile device benefit from the TG-6’s battery life, durability, Wi-Fi, and GPS. Sony prioritizes pocketability and is cost-effective.
  • Professional Use: TG-6’s weather sealing, RAW shooting, and manual controls render it a viable rugged backup for some pro workflows. Sony is less suited for professional tasks.

Overall Performance Scores in Context

While neither camera competes with premium mirrorless or DSLR systems, the Olympus TG-6 holds up as an impressively capable rugged compact delivering high scores in autofocus, image quality, versatility, and durability. The Sony W380 scores are modest but respectable for an ultracompact camera with basic features - reflecting its original budget-friendly positioning and age.

Who Should Buy Which?

  • Buy the Olympus TG-6 if:

    • You need a durable, waterproof camera for adventurous outdoor photography.
    • You want manual aperture control, RAW shooting, and 4K video.
    • You shoot wildlife, sports, macro, or landscapes in challenging environments.
    • You appreciate enhanced connectivity and GPS for travel.
    • You want a camera that can serve as your reliable everyday rugged companion.
  • Buy the Sony W380 if:

    • Your priority is ultra-portability and budget-friendly casual photography.
    • You mostly shoot in well-lit, everyday social situations.
    • Manual controls and advanced image quality are not important.
    • You want a simple, no-frills camera that fits a pocket.
    • Your usage is sporadic and demand minimal.

Final Thoughts: Matching Camera Features to Real Needs

Both the Olympus TG-6 and Sony W380 offer unique value in the compact camera realm - but serve very different user profiles. Olympus delivers a technologically modern, rugged, and versatile camera that punches well above its class with advanced AF, macro capabilities, and professional-grade features wrapped in a tough, weather-sealed body. It suits enthusiasts, adventurers, and specific professional roles needing tough reliability without bulky gear.

Sony’s W380, albeit aging, remains a valid ultra-budget choice for casual snapshots and everyday use, prioritizing size and simplicity over cutting-edge performance. However, it falls short in nearly every technical category relative to Olympus.

My personal experience inevitably favors the Olympus TG-6 for most serious users due to its well-rounded, future-ready design and image quality. It’s a compact camera that doesn’t compromise when pushed to extremes - a rarity and highly valuable for active photographers.

I hope this detailed comparison and hands-on insights help guide your buying decision. If you want a camera that excels in tough situations, offers creative flexibility, and captures stunning stills and videos, the Olympus TG-6 is the clear pick. If you simply want an easy-to-use, pocketable budget camera for casual photos, the Sony W380 remains an inexpensive option.

Happy shooting - and may your next camera truly match your photographic adventures!

End of review.

Olympus TG-6 vs Sony W380 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus TG-6 and Sony W380
 Olympus Tough TG-6Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W380
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Sony
Model Olympus Tough TG-6 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W380
Category Waterproof Ultracompact
Announced 2019-05-22 2010-01-07
Physical type Compact Ultracompact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic VIII Bionz
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CCD
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 14 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4000 x 3000 4320 x 3240
Highest native ISO 12800 3200
Minimum native ISO 100 80
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points 25 9
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 25-100mm (4.0x) 24-120mm (5.0x)
Max aperture f/2.0-4.9 f/2.4-5.9
Macro focus range 1cm 5cm
Focal length multiplier 5.8 5.8
Screen
Type of screen Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inch 2.7 inch
Screen resolution 1,040k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Minimum shutter speed 4 secs 2 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shutter rate 20.0 frames per sec 2.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range - 4.80 m
Flash settings Auto, Red Eye Reduction, Slow sync. (1st curtain), Red-eye Slow sync. (1st curtain), Fill- in, Manual, Flash Off Auto, On, Off, Slow syncro
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 102 Mbps, MOV, H.264, Linear PC 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution 3840x2160 1280x720
Video format MPEG-4, H.264 Motion JPEG
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS Built-in None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 253g (0.56 lbs) 117g (0.26 lbs)
Dimensions 113 x 66 x 32mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.3") 91 x 52 x 20mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.8")
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 340 shots -
Battery type Battery Pack -
Battery model LI-92B NP-BN1
Self timer Yes Yes (2 sec or 10 sec, portrait1/portrait2)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC card (UHS-I support) SD/SDHC, Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo / Pro HG-Duo, Internal
Card slots Single Single
Launch cost $449 $44