Olympus XZ-1 vs Samsung MV800

Its time to look much closer at the Olympus XZ-1 and Samsung MV800, both Small Sensor Compact digital cameras by rivals Olympus and Samsung. There exists a significant gap between the sensor resolutions of the XZ-1 (10MP) and MV800 (16MP) and the XZ-1 (1/1.63") and MV800 (1/2.3") possess totally different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The XZ-1 was released 7 months prior to the MV800 so they are of a similar generation. Each of the cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before going through a more detailed comparison, below is a quick summary of how the XZ-1 grades vs the MV800 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus XZ-1 and Samsung MV800. The complete galleries are available at Olympus XZ-1 Gallery and Samsung MV800 Gallery.

For anybody who is going to travel with your camera often, you'll need to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus XZ-1 features physical dimensions of 111mm x 65mm x 42mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.7") along with a weight of 275 grams (0.61 lbs) whilst the Samsung MV800 has measurements of 92mm x 56mm x 10mm (3.6" x 2.2" x 0.4") with a weight of 121 grams (0.27 lbs).

See the Olympus XZ-1 and Samsung MV800 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are utilizing at that moment. Here is the front view physical size comparison of the XZ-1 versus the MV800.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the XZ-1 and MV800 is 88 and 97 respectively.

Sometimes, it can be tough to visualise the difference between sensor dimensions simply by looking at specs. The picture here may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the XZ-1 and MV800.

All in all, both of those cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The XZ-1 due to its bigger sensor will make shooting shallow DOF less difficult and the Samsung MV800 will resolve more detail as a result of its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also let you crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The more aged XZ-1 is going to be behind in sensor innovation.