Olympus E-400 vs Panasonic ZS50

Below, we are matching up the Olympus E-400 and Panasonic ZS50, one is a Entry-Level DSLR and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. The image resolution of the E-400 (10MP) and the ZS50 (12MP) is fairly comparable but the E-400 (Four Thirds) and ZS50 (1/2.3") possess different sensor sizes.

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The E-400 was introduced 9 years prior to the ZS50 which is a fairly serious gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-400 being a Compact SLR camera and the Panasonic ZS50 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a short overview of how the E-400 grades vs the ZS50 for portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus E-400 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-400 Gallery and Panasonic ZS50 Gallery.

For those who are planning to carry around your camera often, you will want to think about its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-400 provides outside dimensions of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") accompanied by a weight of 435 grams (0.96 lbs) while the Panasonic ZS50 has dimensions of 111mm x 65mm x 34mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 243 grams (0.54 lbs).

See the Olympus E-400 and Panasonic ZS50 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you have chosen at that moment. Here is the front view measurement comparison of the E-400 against the ZS50.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability rating of the E-400 and ZS50 is 77 and 90 respectively.

Often, it's hard to picture the difference in sensor sizes just by seeing technical specs. The image here might offer you a greater sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-400 and ZS50.

As you can tell, each of the cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-400 with its larger sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field simpler and the Panasonic ZS50 will produce more detail using its extra 2MP. Greater resolution will also let you crop photos much more aggressively. The more aged E-400 will be behind in sensor tech.