Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic FX48

Below, we are contrasting the Olympus E-420 and Panasonic FX48, one being a Entry-Level DSLR and the other is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. The image resolution of the E-420 (10MP) and the FX48 (12MP) is fairly close but the E-420 (Four Thirds) and FX48 (1/2.3") possess different sensor size.

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The E-420 was launched 7 months prior to the FX48 so they are both of a similar generation. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-420 being a Compact SLR camera and the Panasonic FX48 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight into a thorough comparison, below is a concise overview of how the E-420 matches up versus the FX48 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus E-420 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX48. The complete galleries are available at Olympus E-420 Gallery and Panasonic FX48 Gallery.

If you are intending to carry your camera regularly, you should think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-420 offers outer measurements of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") along with a weight of 426 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Panasonic FX48 has proportions of 95mm x 53mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.1" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 150 grams (0.33 lbs).

See the Olympus E-420 and Panasonic FX48 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are employing during that time. The following is the front view scale comparison of the E-420 vs the FX48.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-420 and FX48 is 77 and 95 respectively.

Normally, it is very difficult to visualize the difference in sensor sizing simply by looking through technical specs. The graphic below might give you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the E-420 and FX48.

As you have seen, the two cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-420 because of its larger sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF simpler and the Panasonic FX48 will result in more detail utilizing its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The older E-420 will be disadvantaged in sensor technology.