Olympus E-1 vs Sony A290

Let's look a bit more closely at the Olympus E-1 versus Sony A290, one is a Pro DSLR and the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by competitors Olympus and Sony. There is a crucial difference between the resolutions of the E-1 (5MP) and A290 (14MP) and the E-1 (Four Thirds) and A290 (APS-C) use totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-1 was manufactured 7 years earlier than the A290 which is quite a serious gap as far as tech is concerned. Both cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-1 being a Large SLR camera and the Sony A290 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a concise highlight of how the E-1 scores vs the A290 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus E-1 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A290. The entire galleries are provided at Olympus E-1 Gallery and Sony A290 Gallery.

For those who are planning to carry around your camera frequently, you will have to take into account its weight and volume. The Olympus E-1 provides external dimensions of 141mm x 104mm x 81mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.2") and a weight of 735 grams (1.62 lbs) and the Sony A290 has sizing of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") along with a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-1 versus Sony A290 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you are utilising during that time. Following is the front view measurements comparison of the E-1 vs the A290.

Looking at size and weight, the portability score of the E-1 and A290 is 59 and 66 respectively.

Usually, its hard to visualise the contrast between sensor sizes simply by reading through a spec sheet. The pic below will offer you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-1 and A290.

Clearly, each of the cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-1 due to its tinier sensor will make shooting shallow depth of field more challenging and the Sony A290 will resolve more detail due to its extra 9MP. Higher resolution will also let you crop pictures a little more aggressively. The more aged E-1 is going to be behind in sensor tech.