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Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N

Portability
85
Imaging
37
Features
67
Overall
49
Olympus XZ-2 iHS front
 
Sony Alpha NEX-3N front
Portability
89
Imaging
58
Features
52
Overall
55

Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N Key Specs

Olympus XZ-2 iHS
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/1.7" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 12800
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-112mm (F1.8-2.5) lens
  • 346g - 113 x 65 x 48mm
  • Launched December 2012
Sony NEX-3N
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 16000
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 269g - 110 x 62 x 35mm
  • Revealed February 2013
  • Succeeded the Sony NEX-F3
  • Successor is Sony a5000
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Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N Overview

Below is a extensive analysis of the Olympus XZ-2 iHS versus Sony NEX-3N, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by companies Olympus and Sony. There exists a large gap between the sensor resolutions of the XZ-2 iHS (12MP) and NEX-3N (16MP) and the XZ-2 iHS (1/1.7") and NEX-3N (APS-C) offer different sensor measurements.

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The XZ-2 iHS was unveiled 2 months prior to the NEX-3N so they are both of a similar age. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus XZ-2 iHS being a Compact camera and the Sony NEX-3N being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going into a complete comparison, here is a quick introduction of how the XZ-2 iHS matches up versus the NEX-3N when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus XZ-2 iHS over the Sony NEX-3N

 XZ-2 iHS NEX-3N 
Display resolution920k460kCrisper display (+460k dot)
Touch display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Sony NEX-3N over the Olympus XZ-2 iHS

 NEX-3N XZ-2 iHS 

Common features in the Olympus XZ-2 iHS and Sony NEX-3N

 XZ-2 iHS NEX-3N 
RevealedDecember 2012February 2013Similar age
Manual focus Dial accurate focus
Display typeTiltingTiltingTilting display
Display size3"3"Same display measurements
Selfie screen Lack of selfie screen

Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N Physical Comparison

For anyone who is going to lug around your camera often, you have to factor its weight and dimensions. The Olympus XZ-2 iHS comes with exterior dimensions of 113mm x 65mm x 48mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.9") accompanied by a weight of 346 grams (0.76 lbs) and the Sony NEX-3N has dimensions of 110mm x 62mm x 35mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.4") along with a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs).

Look at the Olympus XZ-2 iHS versus Sony NEX-3N in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are working with at that moment. Below is a front view dimension comparison of the XZ-2 iHS versus the NEX-3N.

Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the XZ-2 iHS and NEX-3N is 85 and 89 respectively.

Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N top view buttons comparison

Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N Sensor Comparison

More often than not, it is very hard to visualize the difference between sensor measurements simply by reviewing technical specs. The visual here might provide you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the XZ-2 iHS and NEX-3N.

As you have seen, each of these cameras come with different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The XZ-2 iHS with its tinier sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF more challenging and the Sony NEX-3N will offer you more detail having an extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop photos a good deal more aggressively.

Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N sensor size comparison

Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus XZ-2 iHS Portrait photography details
Sony NEX-3N Portrait photography details
46
has manual focus
offers face detection focus
supports RAW files
low MP (12MP)
tiny sensor (1/1.7")
66
has manual focus
decent megapixels (16MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
no external flash support
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus XZ-2 iHS
Street photography with Sony NEX-3N
66
has a tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
supports RAW files
tiny sensor (1/1.7")
heavier than others (346 grams)
77
tilting screen
sensor size is good (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
no image stabilization
Photography Glossary

Sports Comparison

Olympus XZ-2 iHS Sports photography factors
Sony NEX-3N Sports photography factors
43
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers tracking autofocus
great battery pack (340 CIPA)
low MP (12 megapixels)
tiny sensor (1/1.7")
no phase detect auto focus
54
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
better than average battery life (480 per charge)
slow fps (4.0 fps)
no image stabilization
doesn't have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus XZ-2 iHS Travel photography features
Sony NEX-3N Travel photography features
61
great battery pack (340 per charge)
flash built-in
relatively wide (28mm)
great max aperture (f1.8)
missing Time Lapse recording
heavier than others (346 grams)
low MP (12MP)
does not have a selfie friendly display
71
better than average battery life (480 CIPA)
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
missing Timelapse recording
does not have selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus XZ-2 iHS
Landscape photography with Sony NEX-3N
55
has manual focus
relatively wide (28mm)
great max aperture (f1.8)
screen size is good (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
supports RAW files
great battery pack (340 shots)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
low MP (12MP)
tiny sensor (1/1.7")
missing Time Lapse recording
70
has manual focus
change lenses (Sony E mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
better than average battery life (480 per charge)
no image stabilization
missing Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus XZ-2 iHS
Vlogging with Sony NEX-3N
36
relatively wide (28mm)
great max aperture (f1.8)
touch screen
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers face detection focus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
includes external mic support
does not have a selfie friendly display
heavier than others (346g)
28
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does not have selfie friendly screen
no image stabilization
missing microphone port
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Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony NEX-3N Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus XZ-2 iHS and Sony NEX-3N
 Olympus XZ-2 iHSSony Alpha NEX-3N
General Information
Make Olympus Sony
Model Olympus XZ-2 iHS Sony Alpha NEX-3N
Category Small Sensor Compact Entry-Level Mirrorless
Launched 2012-12-18 2013-02-25
Body design Compact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/1.7" APS-C
Sensor measurements 7.44 x 5.58mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 41.5mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 3968 x 2976 4912 x 3264
Highest native ISO 12800 16000
Minimum native ISO 100 200
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points 35 25
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens Sony E
Lens focal range 28-112mm (4.0x) -
Max aperture f/1.8-2.5 -
Macro focus distance 1cm -
Total lenses - 121
Crop factor 4.8 1.5
Screen
Range of screen Tilting Tilting
Screen size 3 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 920k dot 460k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) None
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 30s
Fastest shutter speed 1/2000s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter speed - 4.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 8.60 m (ISO 800) -
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Wireless -
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Fastest flash sync - 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video file format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
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 346g (0.76 pounds) 269g (0.59 pounds)
Physical dimensions 113 x 65 x 48mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.9") 110 x 62 x 35mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 49 74
DXO Color Depth score 20.4 22.8
DXO Dynamic range score 11.3 12.5
DXO Low light score 216 1067
Other
Battery life 340 shots 480 shots
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model Li-90B NPFW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) -
Time lapse recording
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Launch pricing $450 $399