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Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3

Portability
77
Imaging
44
Features
36
Overall
40
Olympus E-420 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 front
Portability
90
Imaging
48
Features
48
Overall
48

Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 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
  • Introduced June 2008
  • Previous Model is Olympus E-410
Panasonic GF3
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 160 - 6400
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 264g - 108 x 67 x 32mm
  • Revealed August 2011
  • Old Model is Panasonic GF2
  • Replacement is Panasonic GF5
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Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 Overview

Let's take a closer look at the Olympus E-420 and Panasonic GF3, former is a Entry-Level DSLR while the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the E-420 (10MP) and the GF3 (12MP) is relatively close and both cameras boast the identical sensor size (Four Thirds).

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The E-420 was unveiled 4 years earlier than the GF3 which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-420 being a Compact SLR camera and the Panasonic GF3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving straight to a full comparison, here is a simple highlight of how the E-420 scores vs the GF3 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-420 over the Panasonic GF3

 E-420 GF3 

Reasons to pick Panasonic GF3 over the Olympus E-420

 GF3 E-420 
RevealedAugust 2011June 2008More modern by 38 months
Screen size3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kClearer screen (+230k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-420 and Panasonic GF3

 E-420 GF3 
Manual focus More precise focus
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither includes selfie screen

Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 Physical Comparison

For those who are aiming to carry around your camera, you're going to have to take into account its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-420 features outer measurements of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") accompanied by a weight of 426 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Panasonic GF3 has proportions of 108mm x 67mm x 32mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.3") with a weight of 264 grams (0.58 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-420 and Panasonic GF3 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you are working with at that moment. Following is a front view dimension comparison of the E-420 against the GF3.

Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability score of the E-420 and GF3 is 77 and 90 respectively.

Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 Sensor Comparison

Usually, it is hard to visualise the gap in sensor sizes purely by viewing specs. The image underneath will help offer you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-420 and GF3.

As you can plainly see, the 2 cameras feature the identical sensor size albeit not the same resolution. You can count on the Panasonic GF3 to provide you with extra detail having an extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop photographs way more aggressively. The more aged E-420 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-420 Portrait photography features
Panasonic GF3 Portrait photography features
56
focusing manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
megapixel count low (10 megapixels)
55
you can focus manually
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
features face detection autofocus
exports RAW files
cannot use external flash
megapixel count low (12MP)
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-420 as a Street photography camera
Panasonic GF3 as a Street photography camera
64
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
lighter than competition in class (426 grams)
screen is fixed
lack of image stabilization
70
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
has touch focus
screen is fixed
does not have image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-420 Sports photography features
Panasonic GF3 Sports photography features
38
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
sensor has phase detect auto focus
continuous shooting slow (4.0 frames per second)
lack of image stabilization
megapixel count low (10MP)
low battery life (500 CIPA)
38
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
features tracking autofocus
max fps very slow (3.0 fps)
does not have image stabilization
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
low battery power (300 per charge)
has no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-420 Travel photography information
Panasonic GF3 Travel photography information
52
lighter than competition in class (426 grams)
flash built-in
doesn't have Time Lapse function
low battery life (500 shots)
megapixel count low (10MP)
display is not selfie friendly
58
has touch focus
flash built-in
missing Time Lapse recording
low battery power (300 per charge)
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
Photography Glossary

Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-420 Landscape photography factors
Panasonic GF3 Landscape photography factors
47
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
screen is somewhat small (2.7")
lack of image stabilization
megapixel count low (10 megapixels)
low battery life (500 per charge)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
55
you can focus manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is decent (3")
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
does not have image stabilization
megapixel count low (12MP)
low battery power (300 per charge)
missing Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-420
Vlogging with Panasonic GF3
9
lack of video recording
32
built-in touchscreen
features face detection autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
does not have image stabilization
missing external mic jack
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Olympus E-420 vs Panasonic GF3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-420 and Panasonic GF3
 Olympus E-420Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus E-420 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3
Class Entry-Level DSLR Entry-Level Mirrorless
Introduced 2008-06-23 2011-08-11
Body design Compact SLR Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic III Venus Engine FHD
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Four Thirds
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 10 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 3648 x 2736 4000 x 3000
Max native ISO 1600 6400
Minimum native ISO 100 160
RAW files
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 3 23
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds Micro Four Thirds
Amount of lenses 45 107
Crop factor 2.1 2.1
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 2.7 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 230 thousand dot 460 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen technology - TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 60s
Highest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Continuous shooting speed 4.0fps 3.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 6.30 m
Flash settings Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/180s 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720p (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Max video resolution None 1920x1080
Video data format - AVCHD, Motion JPEG
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 426 gr (0.94 lb) 264 gr (0.58 lb)
Physical dimensions 130 x 91 x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") 108 x 67 x 32mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 56 50
DXO Color Depth score 21.5 20.6
DXO Dynamic range score 10.4 10.1
DXO Low light score 527 459
Other
Battery life 500 photographs 300 photographs
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images))
Time lapse recording
Storage media Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots Single Single
Price at launch $999 $360