Olympus E-400 vs Panasonic LX5

Below, we are looking at the Olympus E-400 versus Panasonic LX5, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by companies Olympus and Panasonic. The image resolution of the E-400 (10MP) and the LX5 (10MP) is very similar but the E-400 (Four Thirds) and LX5 (1/1.63") use totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-400 was announced 6 years prior to the LX5 and that is quite a serious difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-400 being a Compact SLR camera and the Panasonic LX5 being a Compact camera.

Before going in to a detailed comparison, below is a simple introduction of how the E-400 matches up against the LX5 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-400 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-400 Gallery & Panasonic LX5 Gallery.

For those who are aiming to lug around your camera often, you are going to need to factor its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-400 enjoys exterior dimensions of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") with a weight of 435 grams (0.96 lbs) whilst the Panasonic LX5 has dimensions of 110mm x 65mm x 43mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.7") having a weight of 271 grams (0.60 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-400 versus Panasonic LX5 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you choose at that moment. Here is the front view over all size comparison of the E-400 and the LX5.

Considering size and weight, the portability score of the E-400 and LX5 is 77 and 88 respectively.

Generally, it is very difficult to see the difference between sensor measurements simply by going over specs. The visual below will give you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-400 and LX5.

As you can plainly see, both of the cameras posses the exact same resolution but not the same sensor measurements. The E-400 features the larger sensor which is going to make obtaining shallower DOF less difficult. The older E-400 is going to be behind in sensor technology.