Olympus E-1 vs Sony NEX-3

Below, we are evaluating the Olympus E-1 vs Sony NEX-3, former being a Pro DSLR while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by companies Olympus and Sony. There is a substantial difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-1 (5MP) and NEX-3 (14MP) and the E-1 (Four Thirds) and NEX-3 (APS-C) use totally different sensor size.

Photography Glossary

The E-1 was announced 7 years earlier than the NEX-3 and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-1 being a Large SLR camera and the Sony NEX-3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight into a more detailed comparison, below is a quick synopsis of how the E-1 matches up versus the NEX-3 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus E-1 & Sony Alpha NEX-3. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-1 Gallery & Sony NEX-3 Gallery.

If you are looking to lug around your camera often, you have to factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-1 features physical measurements of 141mm x 104mm x 81mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.2") and a weight of 735 grams (1.62 lbs) whilst the Sony NEX-3 has measurements of 117mm x 62mm x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3") with a weight of 297 grams (0.65 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-1 vs Sony NEX-3 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are using at that moment. The following is the front view size comparison of the E-1 compared to the NEX-3.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability rating of the E-1 and NEX-3 is 59 and 89 respectively.

Generally, it's hard to envision the gap in sensor measurements purely by viewing a spec sheet. The photograph underneath may offer you a far better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-1 and NEX-3.

As you can see, both the cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-1 having a smaller sensor will make getting shallow DOF more challenging and the Sony NEX-3 will provide you with extra detail with its extra 9 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also let you crop photos somewhat more aggressively. The older E-1 will be behind in sensor innovation.