Olympus VG-160 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS

Its time to look a bit more closely at the Olympus VG-160 and Olympus XZ-2 iHS, both Small Sensor Compact digital cameras and both of them are designed by Olympus. The image resolution of the VG-160 (14MP) and the XZ-2 iHS (12MP) is relatively well matched but the VG-160 (1/2.3") and XZ-2 iHS (1/1.7") possess different sensor measurements.

Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

The VG-160 was launched 11 months before the XZ-2 iHS which means that they are both of a similar age. Both of the cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before delving straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a short synopsis of how the VG-160 matches up vs the XZ-2 iHS in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus VG-160 & Olympus XZ-2 iHS. The complete galleries are available at Olympus VG-160 Gallery & Olympus XZ-2 iHS Gallery.

If you're going to lug around your camera regularly, you'll need to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Olympus VG-160 comes with physical dimensions of 96mm x 57mm x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") accompanied by a weight of 125 grams (0.28 lbs) and the Olympus XZ-2 iHS has dimensions of 113mm x 65mm x 48mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.9") along with a weight of 346 grams (0.76 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus VG-160 and Olympus XZ-2 iHS in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are using during that time. Here is the front view measurement comparison of the VG-160 against the XZ-2 iHS.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the VG-160 and XZ-2 iHS is 96 and 85 respectively.

Typically, it is very tough to imagine the contrast between sensor measurements only by checking specs. The graphic below may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the VG-160 and XZ-2 iHS.

As you can plainly see, each of the cameras have got different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The VG-160 because of its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF harder and the Olympus VG-160 will give greater detail utilizing its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will enable you to crop photographs much more aggressively. The older VG-160 is going to be behind in sensor innovation.