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Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30

Portability
96
Imaging
37
Features
24
Overall
31
Olympus VG-120 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-QX30 front
Portability
91
Imaging
45
Features
37
Overall
41

Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 Key Specs

Olympus VG-120
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 26-130mm (F2.8-6.5) lens
  • 120g - 96 x 57 x 19mm
  • Revealed January 2011
Sony QX30
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • " Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 24-720mm (F3.5-6.3) lens
  • 193g - 68 x 65 x 58mm
  • Announced September 2014
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Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 Overview

Let's look much closer at the Olympus VG-120 and Sony QX30, former being a Ultracompact while the latter is a Lens-style by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There exists a sizable gap between the sensor resolutions of the VG-120 (14MP) and QX30 (20MP) but they possess the exact same sensor measurements (1/2.3").

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The VG-120 was released 4 years before the QX30 and that is quite a significant difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus VG-120 being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony QX30 being a Lens-style camera.

Before delving straight into a step-by-step comparison, below is a simple highlight of how the VG-120 matches up against the QX30 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus VG-120 over the Sony QX30

 VG-120 QX30 
Screen dimension3""Bigger screen (+3")
Screen resolution230k0kCrisper screen (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony QX30 over the Olympus VG-120

 QX30 VG-120 
AnnouncedSeptember 2014January 2011Fresher by 44 months
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus VG-120 and Sony QX30

 VG-120 QX30 
Manually focus No manual focusing
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen

Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 Physical Comparison

In case you're aiming to carry your camera, you're going to have to think about its weight and size. The Olympus VG-120 offers outside dimensions of 96mm x 57mm x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") along with a weight of 120 grams (0.26 lbs) whilst the Sony QX30 has specifications of 68mm x 65mm x 58mm (2.7" x 2.6" x 2.3") and a weight of 193 grams (0.43 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus VG-120 and Sony QX30 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are working with during that time. Here is the front view sizing comparison of the VG-120 against the QX30.

Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the VG-120 and QX30 is 96 and 91 respectively.

Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 top view buttons comparison

Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 Sensor Comparison

Normally, it is hard to visualize the gap between sensor sizing only by reading through specs. The graphic below will help provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the VG-120 and QX30.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras have got the exact same sensor measurements albeit different MP. You can expect the Sony QX30 to give you more detail as a result of its extra 6MP. Higher resolution will enable you to crop photographs much more aggressively. The older VG-120 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 sensor size comparison

Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus VG-120 Portrait photography advice
Sony QX30 Portrait photography advice
33
megapixel count good (14MP)
supports face detection focusing
lack of manual focus
no manual control
cannot use external flash
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
38
resolution is good (20MP)
comes with face detect autofocus
no manual focus
manual mode not possible
can't use external flash
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus VG-120 Street photography details
Sony QX30 Street photography details
48
no moving screen
lack of image stabilization
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
62
has image stabilization (Optical)
comes with touch focus
no articulating screen
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus VG-120 Sports photography features
Sony QX30 Sports photography features
26
megapixel count good (14MP)
no shutter priority
lack of image stabilization
small sensor (1/2.3")
low battery (160 per charge)
does not have phase detect AF
47
excellent zoom range (24-720mm 30.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (20 megapixels)
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
bad battery power (200 CIPA)
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus VG-120 as a Travel photography camera
Sony QX30 as a Travel photography camera
62
megapixel count good (14 megapixels)
has built in flash
fairly wide (26mm)
no Time Lapse mode
low battery (160 CIPA)
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
65
comes with touch focus
resolution is good (20MP)
decently wide (24mm)
very long zoom (720mm)
missing Time Lapse function
bad battery power (200 CIPA)
display isn't selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus VG-120 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony QX30 as a Landscape photography camera
36
fairly wide (26mm)
good sized screen (3 inches)
megapixel count good (14MP)
lack of manual focus
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
no manual control
lack of image stabilization
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
low battery (160 CIPA)
no Time Lapse mode
39
decently wide (24mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (20MP)
no manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
screen is small ( inches)
manual mode not possible
tiny sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
bad battery power (200 per charge)
missing Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus VG-120 as a Vlogging camera
Sony QX30 as a Vlogging camera
28
fairly wide (26mm)
supports face detection focusing
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
lack of image stabilization
low video resolution (1280 x 720 resolution)
no external mic socket
35
decently wide (24mm)
built-in touchscreen
has image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detect autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
display isn't selfie friendly
missing mic support
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Olympus VG-120 vs Sony QX30 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus VG-120 and Sony QX30
 Olympus VG-120Sony Cyber-shot DSC-QX30
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model Olympus VG-120 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-QX30
Category Ultracompact Lens-style
Revealed 2011-01-06 2014-09-03
Physical type Ultracompact Lens-style
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic III Bionz X
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 14MP 20MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4288 x 3216 5184 x 3888
Max native ISO 1600 3200
Lowest native ISO 80 80
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
AF continuous
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Lens
Lens mount fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 26-130mm (5.0x) 24-720mm (30.0x)
Maximum aperture f/2.8-6.5 f/3.5-6.3
Macro focus range 7cm -
Focal length multiplier 5.8 5.8
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3 inch -
Resolution of display 230k dots 0k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display technology TFT Color LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 4 seconds 4 seconds
Highest shutter speed 1/2000 seconds 1/1600 seconds
Continuous shooting rate - 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Change WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 4.40 m no built-in flash
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in None
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30, 15fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15fps) 1920 x 1080 (60p, 30p)
Max video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 120g (0.26 pounds) 193g (0.43 pounds)
Dimensions 96 x 57 x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") 68 x 65 x 58mm (2.7" x 2.6" x 2.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around 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 160 pictures 200 pictures
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model LI-70B NP-BN,
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2, 10 secs)
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC, Memory Stick Micro
Card slots One One
Cost at launch $190 $348