Olympus E-510 vs Panasonic S1

Below, we will be contrasting the Olympus E-510 versus Panasonic S1, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the E-510 (10MP) and the S1 (12MP) is pretty well matched but the E-510 (Four Thirds) and S1 (1/2.3") enjoy totally different sensor size.

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The E-510 was unveiled 4 years earlier than the S1 and that is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-510 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Panasonic S1 being a Compact camera.

Before we go in to a step-by-step comparison, below is a quick synopsis of how the E-510 scores vs the S1 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus E-510 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-S1. The full galleries are available at Olympus E-510 Gallery & Panasonic S1 Gallery.

If you're aiming to lug around your camera often, you'll need to consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-510 has got outside dimensions of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") accompanied by a weight of 490 grams (1.08 lbs) and the Panasonic S1 has dimensions of 99mm x 59mm x 21mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.8") along with a weight of 117 grams (0.26 lbs).

See the Olympus E-510 versus Panasonic S1 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are employing at the time. Underneath is the front view proportions comparison of the E-510 compared to the S1.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-510 and S1 is 69 and 96 respectively.

Normally, it's difficult to envision the gap between sensor measurements simply by looking at a spec sheet. The photograph below may offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-510 and S1.

As you can see, both of those cameras have got different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-510 with its bigger sensor will make getting bokeh easier and the Panasonic S1 will give greater detail having an extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures much more aggressively. The older E-510 is going to be behind in sensor technology.