Olympus E-5 vs Sony RX10 II

Let's take a closer look at the Olympus E-5 and Sony RX10 II, one is a Advanced DSLR and the latter is a Large Sensor Superzoom by brands Olympus and Sony. There exists a crucial gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-5 (12MP) and RX10 II (20MP) and the E-5 (Four Thirds) and RX10 II (1") feature different sensor sizing.

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The E-5 was announced 5 years prior to the RX10 II which is a fairly serious gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-5 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony RX10 II being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before we go through a comprehensive comparison, below is a quick synopsis of how the E-5 matches up versus the RX10 II in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Here is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus E-5 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 II. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-5 Gallery and Sony RX10 II Gallery.

When you are aiming to travel with your camera, you're going to have to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-5 offers physical dimensions of 143mm x 117mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") with a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs) and the Sony RX10 II has dimensions of 129mm x 88mm x 102mm (5.1" x 3.5" x 4.0") with a weight of 813 grams (1.79 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-5 and Sony RX10 II in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you select at the time. Underneath is the front view sizing comparison of the E-5 compared to the RX10 II.

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-5 and RX10 II is 58 and 58 respectively.

Quite often, it can be difficult to visualize the gap in sensor dimensions simply by going through technical specs. The image below should offer you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-5 and RX10 II.

As you have seen, the two cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The E-5 using its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF less difficult and the Sony RX10 II will show extra detail with its extra 8 Megapixels. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop photographs somewhat more aggressively. The more aged E-5 will be behind with regard to sensor tech.