Olympus E-30 vs Pentax E85

On this page, we are contrasting the Olympus E-30 versus Pentax E85, former is a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by companies Olympus and Pentax. The resolution of the E-30 (12MP) and the E85 (12MP) is fairly close but the E-30 (Four Thirds) and E85 (1/2.3") have totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-30 was revealed 5 months prior to the E85 which means that they are of a similar age. The two cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-30 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Pentax E85 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a full comparison, here is a short highlight of how the E-30 grades against the E85 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus E-30 & Pentax Optio E85. The full galleries are available at Olympus E-30 Gallery & Pentax E85 Gallery.

When you are looking to travel with your camera often, you will want to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-30 offers physical measurements of 142mm x 108mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.3" x 3.0") with a weight of 695 grams (1.53 lbs) while the Pentax E85 has measurements of 93mm x 58mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.3" x 0.9") with a weight of 145 grams (0.32 lbs).

See the Olympus E-30 versus Pentax E85 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have chosen at that moment. Underneath is a front view over all size comparison of the E-30 compared to the E85.

Using size and weight, the portability rating of the E-30 and E85 is 60 and 95 respectively.

Usually, it is very hard to envision the contrast in sensor dimensions just by researching specs. The image below may provide you a greater sense of the sensor sizing in the E-30 and E85.

As you can plainly see, each of these cameras provide the same resolution but not the same sensor dimensions. The E-30 comes with the larger sensor which will make getting shallow DOF simpler.