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Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15

Portability
68
Imaging
45
Features
45
Overall
45
Olympus E-520 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS15 front
Portability
95
Imaging
34
Features
17
Overall
27

Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 Key Specs

Olympus E-520
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 552g - 136 x 92 x 68mm
  • Released August 2008
  • Older Model is Olympus E-510
Panasonic FS15
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 1600 (Increase to 6400)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 29-145mm (F3.3-5.9) lens
  • 136g - 97 x 54 x 22mm
  • Introduced January 2009
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Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 Overview

Below is a detailed overview of the Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the latter is a Ultracompact by brands Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the E-520 (10MP) and the FS15 (12MP) is pretty close but the E-520 (Four Thirds) and FS15 (1/2.3") offer different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The E-520 was manufactured 4 months earlier than the FS15 which means that they are both of a similar age. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-520 being a Compact SLR camera and the Panasonic FS15 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before getting into a in depth comparison, here is a simple overview of how the E-520 scores versus the FS15 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-520 over the Panasonic FS15

 E-520 FS15 
Manual focus Very accurate focusing

Reasons to pick Panasonic FS15 over the Olympus E-520

 FS15 E-520 

Common features in the Olympus E-520 and Panasonic FS15

 E-520 FS15 
IntroducedAugust 2008January 2009Same age
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen dimensions2.7"2.7"Equal screen dimensions
Screen resolution230k230kSame screen resolution
Selfie screen No selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Neither comes with Touch friendly screen

Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 Physical Comparison

When you are aiming to lug around your camera regularly, you need to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-520 comes with outer dimensions of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") and a weight of 552 grams (1.22 lbs) and the Panasonic FS15 has measurements of 97mm x 54mm x 22mm (3.8" x 2.1" x 0.9") having a weight of 136 grams (0.30 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you use during that time. The following is a front view scale comparison of the E-520 against the FS15.

Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-520 and FS15 is 68 and 95 respectively.

Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, its difficult to visualize the contrast in sensor measurements only by looking through specs. The photograph below should give you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-520 and FS15.

As you can plainly see, the two cameras provide different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-520 due to its bigger sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF less difficult and the Panasonic FS15 will render greater detail due to its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop shots more aggressively.

Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-520
Portrait photography with Panasonic FS15
59
has manual focus
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
includes face detection focusing
saves RAW files
MP count low (10 megapixels)
20
focusing manually not possible
manual mode not available
can't use external flash
resolution not great (12MP)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-520
Street photography with Panasonic FS15
65
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
no moving screen
56
has image stabilization (Optical)
no moving screen
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-520
Sports photography with Panasonic FS15
55
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
better than average battery (650 shots)
has phase detect AF
low fps (4.0 fps)
MP count low (10 megapixels)
25
has image stabilization (Optical)
max frames per second low (2.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority mode
resolution not great (12 megapixels)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-520 Travel photography factors
Panasonic FS15 Travel photography factors
52
better than average battery (650 CIPA)
flash built-in
doesn't have Timelapse mode
MP count low (10 megapixels)
display isn't selfie friendly
51
built-in flash
no Timelapse function
resolution not great (12 megapixels)
display is not selfie friendly
wide angle not the best (29mm)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-520 as a Landscape photography camera
Panasonic FS15 as a Landscape photography camera
58
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
better than average battery (650 shots)
small screen (2.7 inches)
MP count low (10MP)
doesn't have Timelapse mode
27
has image stabilization (Optical)
focusing manually not possible
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not the best (29mm)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
tiny screen (2.7 inch)
manual mode not available
resolution not great (12MP)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
no Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-520 Vlogging information
Panasonic FS15 Vlogging information
9
lack of video recording
25
has image stabilization (Optical)
wide angle not the best (29mm)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
display is not selfie friendly
video resolution low (640 x 480 pixels)
no microphone port
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Olympus E-520 vs Panasonic FS15 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-520 and Panasonic FS15
 Olympus E-520Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS15
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus E-520 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS15
Class Entry-Level DSLR Ultracompact
Released 2008-08-20 2009-01-16
Body design Compact SLR Ultracompact
Sensor Information
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 10 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 16:9, 4:3 and 3:2
Highest resolution 3648 x 2736 4000 x 3000
Highest native ISO 1600 1600
Highest boosted ISO - 6400
Minimum native ISO 100 80
RAW images
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
AF continuous
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points 3 11
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 29-145mm (5.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.3-5.9
Macro focusing range - 5cm
Total lenses 45 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.9
Screen
Range of display Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display diagonal 2.7 inch 2.7 inch
Resolution of display 230 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 seconds 60 seconds
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 4.0 frames/s 2.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 12.00 m (at ISO 100) -
Flash options Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, Auto Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Forced Off
Hot shoe
AEB
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/180 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions - 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution None 640x480
Video file format - Motion JPEG
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 552g (1.22 lbs) 136g (0.30 lbs)
Physical dimensions 136 x 92 x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") 97 x 54 x 22mm (3.8" x 2.1" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 55 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.4 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.4 not tested
DXO Low light rating 548 not tested
Other
Battery life 650 photographs -
Battery form Battery Pack -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/MMC/SDHC card, Internal
Storage slots One One
Cost at launch $400 $180