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Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5

Portability
77
Imaging
45
Features
36
Overall
41
Olympus E-420 front
 
Olympus PEN E-PL5 front
Portability
88
Imaging
52
Features
72
Overall
60

Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 Key Specs

Olympus E-420
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 426g - 130 x 91 x 53mm
  • Launched June 2008
  • Old Model is Olympus E-410
Olympus E-PL5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 325g - 111 x 64 x 38mm
  • Released September 2012
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Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 Overview

Its time to look a bit more closely at the Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5, one is a Entry-Level DSLR and the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and they are both sold by Olympus. There is a huge difference between the sensor resolutions of the E-420 (10MP) and E-PL5 (16MP) but they enjoy the exact same sensor measurements (Four Thirds).

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The E-420 was manufactured 5 years before the E-PL5 which is quite a significant gap as far as tech is concerned. Both cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-420 being a Compact SLR camera and the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before we go through a in depth comparison, below is a simple highlight of how the E-420 matches up against the E-PL5 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-420 over the Olympus E-PL5

 E-420 E-PL5 

Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL5 over the Olympus E-420

 E-PL5 E-420 
ReleasedSeptember 2012June 2008More modern by 51 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen dimension3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kCrisper screen (+230k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-420 and Olympus E-PL5

 E-420 E-PL5 
Manual focus Dial precise focusing

Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 Physical Comparison

For those who are intending to carry around your camera regularly, you're going to have to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-420 comes with external dimensions of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") accompanied by a weight of 426 grams (0.94 lbs) while the Olympus E-PL5 has measurements of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") accompanied by a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are utilizing at that time. The following is the front view size comparison of the E-420 against the E-PL5.

Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the E-420 and E-PL5 is 77 and 88 respectively.

Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 Sensor Comparison

Generally, its difficult to picture the difference between sensor sizes only by checking technical specs. The image below will give you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-420 and E-PL5.

As you have seen, the 2 cameras posses the exact same sensor measurements albeit different resolution. You should expect the Olympus E-PL5 to give greater detail due to its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The more aged E-420 is going to be behind in sensor technology.

Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-420
Portrait photography with Olympus E-PL5
57
manual focus
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
MP count low (10MP)
71
focusing manually
decent megapixels (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports face detect focus
supports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-420 Street photography details
Olympus E-PL5 Street photography details
64
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
lighter than average in class (426 grams)
no moving screen
lack of image stabilization
85
tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
includes focus by touch
great ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-420 as a Sports photography camera
Olympus E-PL5 as a Sports photography camera
39
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports phase detect AF
slow continuous shooting (4.0 fps)
lack of image stabilization
MP count low (10MP)
bad battery (500 shots)
66
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent megapixels (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports tracking focus
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-420 as a Travel photography camera
Olympus E-PL5 as a Travel photography camera
53
lighter than average in class (426 grams)
built-in flash
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
bad battery (500 per charge)
MP count low (10MP)
screen is not selfie friendly
75
includes focus by touch
decent megapixels (16MP)
selfie friendly display
no Timelapse function
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-420 Landscape photography features
Olympus E-PL5 Landscape photography features
47
manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
screen is small (2.7")
lack of image stabilization
MP count low (10MP)
bad battery (500 per charge)
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
74
focusing manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
decent sized screen (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent megapixels (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
great ISO range (25,600)
supports RAW files
no Timelapse function
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-420 Vlogging details
Olympus E-PL5 Vlogging details
9
no video recording
78
selfie friendly display
touchscreen capability
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
supports face detect focus
high res video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
no microphone support
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Olympus E-420 vs Olympus E-PL5 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-420 and Olympus E-PL5
 Olympus E-420Olympus PEN E-PL5
General Information
Company Olympus Olympus
Model Olympus E-420 Olympus PEN E-PL5
Type Entry-Level DSLR Entry-Level Mirrorless
Launched 2008-06-23 2012-09-17
Physical type Compact SLR Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic III -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Four Thirds
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 10 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3
Peak resolution 3648 x 2736 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 1600 25600
Min native ISO 100 200
RAW data
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points 3 35
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 sizing 2.7" 3"
Resolution of screen 230 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) Electronic (optional)
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x -
Features
Min shutter speed 60s 60s
Max shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter rate 4.0fps 8.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 7.00 m (bundled FL-LM1)
Flash modes Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels)
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Max flash synchronize 1/180s 1/250s
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 - MPEG-4, H.264, Motion JPEG
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 426 grams (0.94 lbs) 325 grams (0.72 lbs)
Dimensions 130 x 91 x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") 111 x 64 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 56 72
DXO Color Depth score 21.5 22.8
DXO Dynamic range score 10.4 12.3
DXO Low light score 527 889
Other
Battery life 500 images 360 images
Battery style Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - BLS-5
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 12 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots One One
Launch pricing $999 $400