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Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20

Portability
88
Imaging
35
Features
51
Overall
41
Olympus XZ-1 front
 
Pentax Optio VS20 front
Portability
90
Imaging
39
Features
35
Overall
37

Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 Key Specs

Olympus XZ-1
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/1.63" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-112mm (F1.8-2.5) lens
  • 275g - 111 x 65 x 42mm
  • Released January 2011
Pentax VS20
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-560mm (F3.1-4.8) lens
  • 235g - 111 x 61 x 38mm
  • Launched January 2012
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Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 Overview

Below, we will be evaluating the Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by competitors Olympus and Pentax. There is a considerable difference between the resolutions of the XZ-1 (10MP) and VS20 (16MP) and the XZ-1 (1/1.63") and VS20 (1/2.3") come with different sensor measurements.

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The XZ-1 was announced 12 months prior to the VS20 and they are both of a similar age. Both of the cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before we go through a detailed comparison, below is a quick overview of how the XZ-1 matches up vs the VS20 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus XZ-1 over the Pentax VS20

 XZ-1 VS20 
Screen resolution614k460kSharper screen (+154k dot)

Reasons to pick Pentax VS20 over the Olympus XZ-1

 VS20 XZ-1 
LaunchedJanuary 2012January 2011More recent by 12 months

Common features in the Olympus XZ-1 and Pentax VS20

 XZ-1 VS20 
Focus manually Very accurate focus
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen measurements
Selfie screen Neither comes with selfie screen
Touch screen Lack of Touch screen

Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is planning to lug around your camera often, you are going to need to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus XZ-1 comes with external measurements of 111mm x 65mm x 42mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.7") with a weight of 275 grams (0.61 lbs) and the Pentax VS20 has measurements of 111mm x 61mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.4" x 1.5") having a weight of 235 grams (0.52 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you are utilizing at that time. Below is the front view scale comparison of the XZ-1 against the VS20.

Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability grade of the XZ-1 and VS20 is 88 and 90 respectively.

Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 top view buttons comparison

Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 Sensor Comparison

Usually, it can be tough to visualize the difference between sensor measurements purely by going over technical specs. The visual underneath should give you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the XZ-1 and VS20.

As you can tell, both of these cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The XZ-1 having a bigger sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF simpler and the Pentax VS20 will deliver extra detail with its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The older XZ-1 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor technology.

Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 sensor size comparison

Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus XZ-1 Portrait photography details
Pentax VS20 Portrait photography details
45
focusing manually
includes face detection autofocus
exports RAW formats
low resolution (10MP)
small sensor size (1/1.63")
36
focusing manually
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
manual exposure not possible
cannot use external flash
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
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Street Comparison

Olympus XZ-1 Street photography factors
Pentax VS20 Street photography factors
59
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
exports RAW formats
screen does not articulate
small sensor size (1/1.63")
more heavy than others in class (275 grams)
61
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than others in class (235 grams)
screen is fixed
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Olympus XZ-1 Sports photography advice
Pentax VS20 Sports photography advice
38
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
includes tracking autofocus
good battery power (320 CIPA)
painfully slow continuous shooting (2.0 fps)
low resolution (10 megapixels)
small sensor size (1/1.63")
lack of phase detect autofocus
44
amazing zoom range (28-560mm 20.0 x zoom)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent sensor resolution (16MP)
includes tracking autofocus
low frames per second (1.0 frames/s)
lack of shutter priority mode
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus XZ-1 Travel photography factors
Pentax VS20 Travel photography factors
62
good battery power (320 CIPA)
flash built-in
relatively wide (28mm)
good max aperture (f1.8)
no Timelapse function
more heavy than others in class (275g)
low resolution (10MP)
display is not selfie friendly
68
lighter than others in class (235 grams)
decent sensor resolution (16MP)
has built in flash
pretty wide (28mm)
great zoom (560mm)
lack of Time Lapse mode
screen isn't selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.1)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus XZ-1 Landscape photography info
Pentax VS20 Landscape photography info
54
focusing manually
relatively wide (28mm)
good max aperture (f1.8)
good sized screen (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
exports RAW formats
good battery power (320 CIPA)
can't swap lens (fixed lens mount)
low resolution (10 megapixels)
small sensor size (1/1.63")
no Timelapse function
47
focusing manually
pretty wide (28mm)
nice screen size (3")
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.1)
manual exposure not possible
very small sensor (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
lack of Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus XZ-1
Vlogging with Pentax VS20
31
relatively wide (28mm)
good max aperture (f1.8)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
includes face detection autofocus
display is not selfie friendly
low res video (1280 x 720 resolution)
no external microphone jack
more heavy than others in class (275 grams)
30
pretty wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than others in class (235g)
slow max aperture (f3.1)
screen isn't selfie friendly
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pxls)
lack of external mic socket
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Olympus XZ-1 vs Pentax VS20 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus XZ-1 and Pentax VS20
 Olympus XZ-1Pentax Optio VS20
General Information
Company Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus XZ-1 Pentax Optio VS20
Category Small Sensor Compact Small Sensor Superzoom
Released 2011-01-26 2012-01-25
Physical type Compact Compact
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic V -
Sensor type CCD CCD
Sensor size 1/1.63" 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 8.07 x 5.56mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor area 44.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 10 megapixels 16 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 3664 x 2752 4608 x 3456
Maximum native ISO 6400 6400
Lowest native ISO 100 100
RAW files
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
AF continuous
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 11 3
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens fixed lens
Lens focal range 28-112mm (4.0x) 28-560mm (20.0x)
Maximum aperture f/1.8-2.5 f/3.1-4.8
Macro focus distance 1cm 3cm
Crop factor 4.5 5.9
Screen
Type of screen Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 614k dots 460k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen technology OLED TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 seconds 4 seconds
Highest shutter speed 1/2000 seconds 1/2500 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 2.0 frames/s 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 8.60 m (ISO 800) 2.80 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
Hot shoe
AEB
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 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1280x720
Video format Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 275 gr (0.61 lb) 235 gr (0.52 lb)
Dimensions 111 x 65 x 42mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.7") 111 x 61 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.4" x 1.5")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 34 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 18.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 10.4 not tested
DXO Low light score 117 not tested
Other
Battery life 320 photographs -
Form of battery Battery Pack -
Battery model Li-50B D-LI122
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots One One
Cost at launch $567 $106