Olympus E-420 vs Olympus 5010

In this write-up, we are matching up the Olympus E-420 and Olympus 5010, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Ultracompact and both of them are manufactured by Olympus. There exists a substantial gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-420 (10MP) and 5010 (14MP) and the E-420 (Four Thirds) and 5010 (1/2.3") possess different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The E-420 was brought out 18 months before the 5010 making the cameras a generation apart from one another. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-420 being a Compact SLR camera and the Olympus 5010 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before getting through a in depth comparison, below is a concise view of how the E-420 scores against the 5010 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-420 & Olympus Stylus 5010. The entire galleries are available at Olympus E-420 Gallery & Olympus 5010 Gallery.

If you're planning to lug around your camera regularly, you will want to factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-420 enjoys physical dimensions of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") and a weight of 426 grams (0.94 lbs) while the Olympus 5010 has measurements of 95mm x 56mm x 20mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.8") having a weight of 126 grams (0.28 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-420 and Olympus 5010 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are utilizing at the time. Here is the front view dimension comparison of the E-420 vs the 5010.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-420 and 5010 is 77 and 96 respectively.

Quite often, it is difficult to visualize the gap between sensor measurements just by going over specifications. The visual below might offer you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-420 and 5010.

To sum up, both of the cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-420 featuring a larger sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field easier and the Olympus 5010 will offer more detail having its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop images a little more aggressively. The older E-420 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor technology.