Olympus E-1 vs Ricoh WG-20

Following is a extended analysis of the Olympus E-1 and Ricoh WG-20, former is a Pro DSLR while the other is a Waterproof by rivals Olympus and Ricoh. There exists a substantial gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-1 (5MP) and WG-20 (14MP) and the E-1 (Four Thirds) and WG-20 (1/2.3") feature totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-1 was revealed 11 years earlier than the WG-20 which is a fairly big difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-1 being a Large SLR camera and the Ricoh WG-20 being a Compact camera.

Before going straight into a detailed comparison, below is a brief highlight of how the E-1 grades versus the WG-20 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus E-1 & Ricoh WG-20. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-1 Gallery & Ricoh WG-20 Gallery.

For anyone who is planning to carry around your camera often, you'll need to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-1 enjoys outer measurements of 141mm x 104mm x 81mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.2") with a weight of 735 grams (1.62 lbs) whilst the Ricoh WG-20 has dimensions of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") having a weight of 164 grams (0.36 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-1 and Ricoh WG-20 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have chosen at that time. The following is the front view dimension comparison of the E-1 compared to the WG-20.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-1 and WG-20 is 59 and 93 respectively.

Sometimes, its difficult to envision the difference in sensor sizes simply by viewing specifications. The picture here will help offer you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-1 and WG-20.

To sum up, both of the cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-1 using its larger sensor will make shooting shallow DOF easier and the Ricoh WG-20 will provide you with greater detail because of its extra 9 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also help you crop images somewhat more aggressively. The more aged E-1 will be disadvantaged in sensor technology.