Olympus E-30 vs Pentax ist DS2

Below is a complete review of the Olympus E-30 versus Pentax ist DS2, both Advanced DSLR digital cameras by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a substantial gap between the resolutions of the E-30 (12MP) and ist DS2 (6MP) and the E-30 (Four Thirds) and ist DS2 (APS-C) have different sensor measurements.

Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

The E-30 was unveiled 3 years later than the ist DS2 and that is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Both of the cameras feature the same body design (Mid-size SLR).

Before getting straight to a in depth comparison, here is a concise summation of how the E-30 scores versus the ist DS2 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-30 & Pentax ist DS2. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-30 Gallery & Pentax ist DS2 Gallery.

In case you're aiming to lug around your camera regularly, you will have to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-30 has external dimensions of 142mm x 108mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.3" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 695 grams (1.53 lbs) and the Pentax ist DS2 has proportions of 125mm x 93mm x 66mm (4.9" x 3.7" x 2.6") having a weight of 605 grams (1.33 lbs).

See the Olympus E-30 versus Pentax ist DS2 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are utilising during that time. Below is a front view dimensions comparison of the E-30 against the ist DS2.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-30 and ist DS2 is 60 and 68 respectively.

Normally, its difficult to picture the contrast between sensor measurements merely by going over a spec sheet. The graphic below should give you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-30 and ist DS2.

As you can see, each of the cameras come with different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-30 using its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF harder and the Olympus E-30 will deliver greater detail having an extra 6 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop photos a good deal more aggressively. The more recent E-30 should have an edge in sensor technology.