Olympus E-410 vs Sony NEX-5

The following is a in depth overview of the Olympus E-410 vs Sony NEX-5, former is a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by rivals Olympus and Sony. There exists a noticeable gap between the image resolutions of the E-410 (10MP) and NEX-5 (14MP) and the E-410 (Four Thirds) and NEX-5 (APS-C) provide totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-410 was launched 4 years earlier than the NEX-5 which is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-410 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony NEX-5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before delving straight to a in-depth comparison, here is a concise highlight of how the E-410 scores against the NEX-5 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-410 & Sony Alpha NEX-5. The complete galleries are provided at Olympus E-410 Gallery & Sony NEX-5 Gallery.

For anybody who is intending to travel with your camera, you'll need to factor its weight and size. The Olympus E-410 enjoys external dimensions of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") with a weight of 435 grams (0.96 lbs) and the Sony NEX-5 has specifications of 111mm x 59mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.3" x 1.5") accompanied by a weight of 287 grams (0.63 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-410 vs Sony NEX-5 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are using at the time. The following is a front view measurement comparison of the E-410 and the NEX-5.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-410 and NEX-5 is 77 and 89 respectively.

More often than not, it's hard to visualise the gap between sensor dimensions just by reading technical specs. The image below might provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-410 and NEX-5.

As you have seen, both the cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The E-410 featuring a tinier sensor will make getting shallow depth of field more challenging and the Sony NEX-5 will offer extra detail utilizing its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also enable you to crop images more aggressively. The more aged E-410 is going to be behind in sensor tech.