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Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3

Portability
95
Imaging
36
Features
34
Overall
35
Olympus VH-515 front
 
Sony Alpha NEX-3 front
Portability
89
Imaging
54
Features
55
Overall
54

Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 Key Specs

Olympus VH-515
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 26-130mm (F2.8-6.5) lens
  • 152g - 102 x 60 x 21mm
  • Launched August 2012
Sony NEX-3
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 297g - 117 x 62 x 33mm
  • Revealed June 2010
  • Replacement is Sony NEX-C3
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Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 Overview

Let's look a bit more closely at the Olympus VH-515 and Sony NEX-3, one being a Small Sensor Compact and the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by brands Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the VH-515 (12MP) and the NEX-3 (14MP) is pretty similar but the VH-515 (1/2.3") and NEX-3 (APS-C) feature totally different sensor dimensions.

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The VH-515 was released 2 years later than the NEX-3 and that is quite a big gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus VH-515 being a Compact camera and the Sony NEX-3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going in to a thorough comparison, below is a concise view of how the VH-515 matches up vs the NEX-3 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus VH-515 over the Sony NEX-3

 VH-515 NEX-3 
RevealedAugust 2012June 2010Fresher by 27 months
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony NEX-3 over the Olympus VH-515

 NEX-3 VH-515 
Focus manually Dial accurate focusing
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution920k460kSharper screen (+460k dot)

Common features in the Olympus VH-515 and Sony NEX-3

 VH-515 NEX-3 
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen sizing
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen

Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 Physical Comparison

If you are looking to carry your camera often, you will have to consider its weight and size. The Olympus VH-515 has outer measurements of 102mm x 60mm x 21mm (4.0" x 2.4" x 0.8") accompanied by a weight of 152 grams (0.34 lbs) while the Sony NEX-3 has specifications of 117mm x 62mm x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3") with a weight of 297 grams (0.65 lbs).

See the Olympus VH-515 and Sony NEX-3 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you have attached at that time. Following is the front view size comparison of the VH-515 versus the NEX-3.

Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability rating of the VH-515 and NEX-3 is 95 and 89 respectively.

Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 top view buttons comparison

Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 Sensor Comparison

Generally, it can be difficult to visualise the gap between sensor sizing purely by reading specs. The photograph here will help offer you a greater sense of the sensor sizing in the VH-515 and NEX-3.

All in all, both of those cameras have got different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The VH-515 featuring a tinier sensor will make getting shallow DOF trickier and the Sony NEX-3 will offer greater detail as a result of its extra 2MP. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop photographs much more aggressively. The more recent VH-515 will have an advantage with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 sensor size comparison

Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus VH-515
Portrait photography with Sony NEX-3
27
has face detection autofocus
manual focus not available
manual exposure not available
can't use external flash
resolution not great (12MP)
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
72
focusing manually
good megapixels (14 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports face detect autofocus
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus VH-515 as a Street photography camera
Sony NEX-3 as a Street photography camera
62
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers focus by touch
screen does not articulate
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
76
tilting screen
decent sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
no image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Olympus VH-515 Sports photography details
Sony NEX-3 Sports photography details
32
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
has tracking autofocus
painfully slow continuous shooting (2.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
resolution not great (12 megapixels)
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no phase detect autofocus
52
good megapixels (14MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
no image stabilization
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus VH-515 as a Travel photography camera
Sony NEX-3 as a Travel photography camera
62
offers focus by touch
flash built-in
quite wide (26mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
resolution not great (12 megapixels)
does not posses selfie friendly display
slow max aperture (f2.8)
59
good megapixels (14MP)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
display isn't selfie friendly
Photography Glossary

Landscape Comparison

Olympus VH-515 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony NEX-3 as a Landscape photography camera
37
quite wide (26mm)
good sized screen (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
manual focus not available
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
manual exposure not available
resolution not great (12 megapixels)
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
68
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Sony E mount)
screen is a good size (3 inch)
good megapixels (14 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
no image stabilization
doesn't have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus VH-515 Vlogging features
Sony NEX-3 Vlogging features
35
quite wide (26mm)
screen is touchscreen
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
has face detection autofocus
great video quality (1920 x 1080 pxls)
slow max aperture (f2.8)
does not posses selfie friendly display
doesn't have external mic support
27
supports face detect autofocus
display isn't selfie friendly
no image stabilization
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pxls)
doesn't have mic port
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Olympus VH-515 vs Sony NEX-3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus VH-515 and Sony NEX-3
 Olympus VH-515Sony Alpha NEX-3
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model Olympus VH-515 Sony Alpha NEX-3
Type Small Sensor Compact Entry-Level Mirrorless
Launched 2012-08-21 2010-06-07
Body design Compact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic III+ Bionz
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 23.4 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 365.0mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 14MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 4608 x 3456 4592 x 3056
Maximum native ISO 1600 12800
Lowest native ISO 100 200
RAW photos
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points - 25
Lens
Lens mount fixed lens Sony E
Lens focal range 26-130mm (5.0x) -
Highest aperture f/2.8-6.5 -
Macro focus distance 5cm -
Available lenses - 121
Crop factor 5.8 1.5
Screen
Range of display Fixed Type Tilting
Display diagonal 3" 3"
Display resolution 460k dot 920k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display technology TFT Color LCD TFT Xtra Fine LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 4 secs 30 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shooting speed 2.0fps 7.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 4.70 m 12.00 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync - 1/160 secs
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30,15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 180 (30,15 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 152 grams (0.34 lb) 297 grams (0.65 lb)
Dimensions 102 x 60 x 21mm (4.0" x 2.4" x 0.8") 117 x 62 x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 68
DXO Color Depth score not tested 22.1
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 12.0
DXO Low light score not tested 830
Other
Battery life - 330 photos
Battery form - Battery Pack
Battery model LI-50B NPFW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10sec (3 images))
Time lapse shooting
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots Single Single
Price at launch $648 $0