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Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515

Portability
56
Imaging
44
Features
56
Overall
48
Olympus E-3 front
 
Olympus VH-515 front
Portability
95
Imaging
36
Features
34
Overall
35

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 Key Specs

Olympus E-3
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.5" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 890g - 142 x 116 x 75mm
  • Introduced February 2008
  • Superseded the Olympus E-1
  • Newer Model is Olympus E-5
Olympus VH-515
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 26-130mm (F2.8-6.5) lens
  • 152g - 102 x 60 x 21mm
  • Released August 2012
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Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 Overview

Let's look much closer at the Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515, former is a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and both of them are built by Olympus. The resolution of the E-3 (10MP) and the VH-515 (12MP) is fairly close but the E-3 (Four Thirds) and VH-515 (1/2.3") come with different sensor sizing.

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The E-3 was released 5 years prior to the VH-515 which is a fairly big difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-3 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus VH-515 being a Compact camera.

Before delving straight into a in-depth comparison, below is a brief summation of how the E-3 scores against the VH-515 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-3 over the Olympus VH-515

 E-3 VH-515 
Manual focus Very accurate focusing
Display typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating display
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Reasons to pick Olympus VH-515 over the Olympus E-3

 VH-515 E-3 
ReleasedAugust 2012February 2008More modern by 54 months
Display dimension3"2.5"Larger display (+0.5")
Display resolution460k230kClearer display (+230k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-3 and Olympus VH-515

 E-3 VH-515 

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 Physical Comparison

If you're aiming to carry around your camera often, you should take into account its weight and size. The Olympus E-3 provides outside dimensions of 142mm x 116mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") and a weight of 890 grams (1.96 lbs) whilst the Olympus VH-515 has specifications of 102mm x 60mm x 21mm (4.0" x 2.4" x 0.8") having a weight of 152 grams (0.34 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you are utilizing at the time. Below is the front view measurements comparison of the E-3 compared to the VH-515.

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability score of the E-3 and VH-515 is 56 and 95 respectively.

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 Sensor Comparison

Often, it is hard to picture the difference in sensor sizes simply by viewing specs. The image underneath will give you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the E-3 and VH-515.

As you can plainly see, both cameras have got different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-3 featuring a larger sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field easier and the Olympus VH-515 will result in more detail as a result of its extra 2MP. Greater resolution can also help you crop images much more aggressively. The more aged E-3 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-3 Portrait photography factors
Olympus VH-515 Portrait photography factors
56
has manual focus
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
sensor resolution not great (10MP)
27
offers face detect focus
manual focus not available
lack of manual mode
external flash not possible
low megapixels (12MP)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-3 Street photography information
Olympus VH-515 Street photography information
69
screen articulates
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
environment proofing
62
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
provides touch to focus
no articulating screen
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-3
Sports photography with Olympus VH-515
57
great max shutter speed (1/8,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
environment proofing
comes with phase detect auto focus
continuous shooting slow (5.0 frames per second)
sensor resolution not great (10MP)
32
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers tracking focus
max fps very slow (2.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority mode
low megapixels (12MP)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-3
Travel photography with Olympus VH-515
55
environment proofing
flash built-in
screen is selfie friendly
missing Time Lapse mode
sensor resolution not great (10MP)
62
provides touch to focus
has built in flash
pretty wide (26mm)
does not have Timelapse function
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
doesn't have a selfie friendly screen
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-3 Landscape photography details
Olympus VH-515 Landscape photography details
56
has manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
environment proofing
small screen (2.5 inches)
sensor resolution not great (10 megapixels)
missing Time Lapse mode
37
pretty wide (26mm)
decent sized screen (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
manual focus not available
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
lack of manual mode
low megapixels (12MP)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW support
does not have Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-3 Vlogging info
Olympus VH-515 Vlogging info
18
can't shoot video
35
pretty wide (26mm)
screen is touchscreen
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers face detect focus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
doesn't have a selfie friendly screen
does not have microphone socket
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Olympus E-3 vs Olympus VH-515 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-3 and Olympus VH-515
 Olympus E-3Olympus VH-515
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Olympus
Model type Olympus E-3 Olympus VH-515
Class Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2008-02-20 2012-08-21
Physical type Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic III TruePic III+
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 10 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 3648 x 2736 4608 x 3456
Maximum native ISO 3200 1600
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW photos
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Total focus points 11 -
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 26-130mm (5.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/2.8-6.5
Macro focusing range - 5cm
Total lenses 45 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Screen type Fully Articulated Fixed Type
Screen sizing 2.5 inches 3 inches
Screen resolution 230k dots 460k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen tech - TFT Color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 secs 4 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/8000 secs 1/2000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 5.0 frames/s 2.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 13.00 m 4.70 m
Flash modes Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/250 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30,15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 180 (30,15 fps)
Maximum video resolution None 1920x1080
Video format - MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 890g (1.96 lb) 152g (0.34 lb)
Dimensions 142 x 116 x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") 102 x 60 x 21mm (4.0" x 2.4" x 0.8")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 56 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.6 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.5 not tested
DXO Low light rating 571 not tested
Other
Battery ID - LI-50B
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 12 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots Single Single
Cost at launch $670 $648