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Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N

Portability
60
Imaging
46
Features
54
Overall
49
Olympus E-30 front
 
Sony Alpha NEX-3N front
Portability
89
Imaging
57
Features
52
Overall
55

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N Key Specs

Olympus E-30
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 695g - 142 x 108 x 75mm
  • Revealed March 2009
Sony NEX-3N
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 16000
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 269g - 110 x 62 x 35mm
  • Revealed February 2013
  • Succeeded the Sony NEX-F3
  • Replacement is Sony a5000
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Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N Overview

On this page, we will be comparing the Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by brands Olympus and Sony. There exists a noticeable gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-30 (12MP) and NEX-3N (16MP) and the E-30 (Four Thirds) and NEX-3N (APS-C) offer totally different sensor measurements.

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The E-30 was introduced 4 years before the NEX-3N and that is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-30 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony NEX-3N being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going into a complete comparison, here is a simple summary of how the E-30 grades versus the NEX-3N in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-30 over the Sony NEX-3N

 E-30 NEX-3N 
Screen typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating screen
Selfie screen Take selfies

Reasons to pick Sony NEX-3N over the Olympus E-30

 NEX-3N E-30 
RevealedFebruary 2013March 2009More recent by 47 months
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kClearer screen (+230k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-30 and Sony NEX-3N

 E-30 NEX-3N 
Manual focus Very exact focus
Touch screen No Touch screen

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N Physical Comparison

For anyone who is planning to lug around your camera frequently, you'll have to consider its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-30 enjoys outside 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 Sony NEX-3N has proportions of 110mm x 62mm x 35mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.4") having a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you are using at the time. Here is a front view overall size comparison of the E-30 vs the NEX-3N.

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-30 and NEX-3N is 60 and 89 respectively.

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N Sensor Comparison

Normally, it is very hard to visualise the gap between sensor measurements only by checking specifications. The photograph underneath may give you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-30 and NEX-3N.

Plainly, both of these cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-30 using its tinier sensor will make getting shallow depth of field more challenging and the Sony NEX-3N will give greater detail using its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The older E-30 is going to be behind in sensor technology.

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N sensor size comparison

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-30 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony NEX-3N as a Portrait photography camera
59
you can focus manually
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with face detect focusing
saves RAW files
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
66
focusing manually
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
can't use external flash
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-30 Street photography info
Sony NEX-3N Street photography info
72
screen articulates
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
77
has a tilting screen
nice sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
no image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-30
Sports photography with Sony NEX-3N
51
high shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
has phase detect AF
painfully slow continuous shooting (5.0 fps)
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
terrible battery (750 per charge)
53
good megapixels (16MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
good battery life (480 shots)
very slow continuous shooting (4.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
no phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-30 Travel photography info
Sony NEX-3N Travel photography info
49
flash built-in
selfie friendly display
doesn't have Timelapse mode
terrible battery (750 per charge)
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
71
good battery life (480 shots)
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
lack of Time Lapse mode
display is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-30 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony NEX-3N as a Landscape photography camera
52
you can focus manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
tiny screen (2.7")
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
terrible battery (750 CIPA)
doesn't have Timelapse mode
70
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Sony E mount)
screen is a good size (3")
good megapixels (16MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
good battery life (480 CIPA)
no image stabilization
lack of Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-30 Vlogging features
Sony NEX-3N Vlogging features
18
can't record video
28
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
display is not selfie friendly
no image stabilization
lack of external mic jack
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-30 vs Sony NEX-3N Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-30 and Sony NEX-3N
 Olympus E-30Sony Alpha NEX-3N
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus E-30 Sony Alpha NEX-3N
Category Advanced DSLR Entry-Level Mirrorless
Revealed 2009-03-24 2013-02-25
Body design Mid-size SLR Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic III+ Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 5:4, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4032 x 3024 4912 x 3264
Maximum native ISO 3200 16000
Minimum native ISO 100 200
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detect autofocus
Contract detect autofocus
Phase detect autofocus
Total focus points 11 25
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds Sony E
Number of lenses 45 121
Crop factor 2.1 1.5
Screen
Range of display Fully Articulated Tilting
Display sizing 2.7 inches 3 inches
Resolution of display 230k dot 460k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Display technology HyperCrystal II LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder coverage 98 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.56x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 30s
Fastest shutter speed 1/8000s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter speed 5.0 frames/s 4.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 13.00 m -
Flash modes Auto, Manual, Fill, Red-eye reduction, Slow sync with red-eye reduction, Slow sync, Slow sync 2nd curtain, Off -
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/250s 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions - 1920 x 1080
Maximum video resolution None 1920x1080
Video data format - MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 695 gr (1.53 pounds) 269 gr (0.59 pounds)
Physical dimensions 142 x 108 x 75mm (5.6" x 4.3" x 3.0") 110 x 62 x 35mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 55 74
DXO Color Depth rating 21.3 22.8
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.4 12.5
DXO Low light rating 530 1067
Other
Battery life 750 photos 480 photos
Battery format Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLM-1 NPFW50
Self timer Yes (12 or 2 sec) -
Time lapse recording
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II) / xD Picture Card SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots Single Single
Pricing at release $1,299 $399