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Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1

Portability
67
Imaging
41
Features
31
Overall
37
Olympus E-300 front
 
Olympus OM-D E-M1 front
Portability
71
Imaging
53
Features
85
Overall
65

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 Key Specs

Olympus E-300
(Full Review)
  • 8MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 1.8" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 400 (Bump to 1600)
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 624g - 147 x 85 x 64mm
  • Revealed January 2005
  • Also referred to as EVOLT E-300
  • Renewed by Olympus E-330
Olympus E-M1
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 497g - 130 x 94 x 63mm
  • Revealed October 2013
  • Later Model is Olympus E-M1 II
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Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 Overview

Its time to look a little more in depth at the Olympus E-300 versus Olympus E-M1, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Pro Mirrorless and they are both offered by Olympus. There is a noticeable difference among the resolutions of the E-300 (8MP) and E-M1 (16MP) but both cameras have the same sensor dimensions (Four Thirds).

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The E-300 was released 9 years prior to the E-M1 and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-300 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus E-M1 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight to a in depth comparison, here is a brief summary of how the E-300 matches up vs the E-M1 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-300 over the Olympus E-M1

 E-300 E-M1 

Reasons to pick Olympus E-M1 over the Olympus E-300

 E-M1 E-300 
RevealedOctober 2013January 2005Fresher by 107 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display dimensions3"1.8"Larger display (+1.2")
Display resolution1037k134kClearer display (+903k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-300 and Olympus E-M1

 E-300 E-M1 
Focus manually Very accurate focusing
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 Physical Comparison

If you're looking to carry your camera regularly, you will have to take into account its weight and size. The Olympus E-300 has external dimensions of 147mm x 85mm x 64mm (5.8" x 3.3" x 2.5") with a weight of 624 grams (1.38 lbs) while the Olympus E-M1 has specifications of 130mm x 94mm x 63mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.5") accompanied by a weight of 497 grams (1.10 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-300 versus Olympus E-M1 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you have attached during that time. Underneath is a front view size comparison of the E-300 vs the E-M1.

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability rating of the E-300 and E-M1 is 67 and 71 respectively.

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 Sensor Comparison

Usually, its difficult to visualize the contrast in sensor sizing just by researching a spec sheet. The visual here should offer you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the E-300 and E-M1.

Clearly, the two cameras provide the same sensor dimensions but different megapixels. You can expect to see the Olympus E-M1 to render extra detail as a result of its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also enable you to crop pics more aggressively. The older E-300 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-300 Portrait photography highlights
Olympus E-M1 Portrait photography highlights
48
manual focus
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
no liveview
low MP (8MP)
71
focusing manually
great flash sync speed (1/320 seconds)
decent megapixels (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
has face detect focus
delivers RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-300 as a Street photography camera
Olympus E-M1 as a Street photography camera
51
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
no moving screen
does not have image stabilization
low max ISO (400)
78
tilting screen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
boasts focus by touch
weather proofing
lighter than competition in class (497 grams)
very good ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-300
Sports photography with Olympus E-M1
37
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
has phase detect autofocus
no liveview
slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames per second)
does not have image stabilization
low MP (8 megapixels)
70
max shutter speed is good (1/8,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
has tracking focus
weather proofing
sensor has phase detect auto focus
bad battery life (350 per charge)
Photography Glossary

Travel Comparison

Olympus E-300 Travel photography highlights
Olympus E-M1 Travel photography highlights
45
built-in flash
lack of Timelapse mode
low MP (8MP)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
65
lighter than competition in class (497g)
weather proofing
boasts focus by touch
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
bad battery life (350 CIPA)
screen isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-300 Landscape photography factors
Olympus E-M1 Landscape photography factors
43
manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
screen is small (1.8 inch)
no liveview
does not have image stabilization
low MP (8 megapixels)
low max ISO (400)
lack of Timelapse mode
73
focusing manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent megapixels (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
very good ISO range (25,600)
delivers RAW files
weather proofing
bad battery life (350 shots)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-300 Vlogging factors
Olympus E-M1 Vlogging factors
9
lack of video recording
36
has touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
has face detect focus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
includes mic port
lighter than competition in class (497 grams)
screen isn't selfie friendly
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Olympus E-300 vs Olympus E-M1 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-300 and Olympus E-M1
 Olympus E-300Olympus OM-D E-M1
General Information
Make Olympus Olympus
Model Olympus E-300 Olympus OM-D E-M1
Also referred to as EVOLT E-300 -
Category Advanced DSLR Pro Mirrorless
Revealed 2005-01-10 2013-10-28
Body design Mid-size SLR SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor - TruePIC VII
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Four Thirds
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 8MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 3264 x 2448 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 400 25600
Highest enhanced ISO 1600 -
Lowest native ISO 100 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Number of focus points 3 81
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds Micro Four Thirds
Available lenses 45 107
Crop factor 2.1 2.1
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Tilting
Screen diagonal 1.8 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 134 thousand dot 1,037 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,360 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.74x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 secs 60 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/8000 secs
Continuous shutter speed 3.0 frames per sec 10.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range - no built-in flash
Flash options Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Flash Auto, Redeye, Fill-in, Flash Off, Red-eye Slow sync (1st curtain), Slow sync (1st curtain), Slow sync (2nd curtain), Manual
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/180 secs 1/320 secs
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution None 1920x1080
Video file format - H.264, Motion JPEG
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 1.0 (1.5 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 624 grams (1.38 lb) 497 grams (1.10 lb)
Physical dimensions 147 x 85 x 64mm (5.8" x 3.3" x 2.5") 130 x 94 x 63mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.5")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested 73
DXO Color Depth score not tested 23.0
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 12.7
DXO Low light score not tested 757
Other
Battery life - 350 photographs
Type of battery - Battery Pack
Battery model - BLN-1
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 12 secs, custom)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II) SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots 1 1
Launch price $800 $799