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Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3

Portability
71
Imaging
47
Features
50
Overall
48
Olympus E-620 front
 
Sony Alpha NEX-3 front
Portability
89
Imaging
54
Features
55
Overall
54

Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 Key Specs

Olympus E-620
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 500g - 130 x 94 x 60mm
  • Launched July 2009
Sony NEX-3
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 297g - 117 x 62 x 33mm
  • Revealed June 2010
  • Replacement is Sony NEX-C3
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Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 Overview

On this page, we are reviewing the Olympus E-620 and Sony NEX-3, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by brands Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the E-620 (12MP) and the NEX-3 (14MP) is very well matched but the E-620 (Four Thirds) and NEX-3 (APS-C) offer totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-620 was introduced 11 months prior to the NEX-3 which means that they are both of a similar age. Both cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-620 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony NEX-3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting into a step-by-step comparison, here is a brief overview of how the E-620 grades against the NEX-3 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-620 over the Sony NEX-3

 E-620 NEX-3 
Display typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating display
Selfie screen Take selfies

Reasons to pick Sony NEX-3 over the Olympus E-620

 NEX-3 E-620 
RevealedJune 2010July 2009More recent by 11 months
Display dimensions3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution920k230kClearer display (+690k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-620 and Sony NEX-3

 E-620 NEX-3 
Manual focus Dial precise focus
Touch friendly display Neither comes with Touch friendly display

Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 Physical Comparison

For those who are planning to lug around your camera frequently, you are going to need to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-620 comes with external dimensions of 130mm x 94mm x 60mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.4") and a weight of 500 grams (1.10 lbs) whilst the Sony NEX-3 has measurements of 117mm x 62mm x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3") and a weight of 297 grams (0.65 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-620 and Sony NEX-3 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you have at that moment. Underneath is a front view measurement comparison of the E-620 compared to the NEX-3.

Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-620 and NEX-3 is 71 and 89 respectively.

Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it can be hard to see the gap between sensor measurements purely by looking at specs. The graphic here will offer you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-620 and NEX-3.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras have different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-620 with its tinier sensor will make shooting shallow DOF harder and the Sony NEX-3 will give you more detail using its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also enable you to crop photos a bit more aggressively. The older E-620 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-620
Portrait photography with Sony NEX-3
60
has manual focus
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports face detection autofocus
exports RAW formats
low megapixels (12MP)
72
focusing manually
good megapixels (14MP)
good sensor size (APS-C)
supports face detect autofocus
delivers RAW files
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-620
Street photography with Sony NEX-3
76
screen can move to multiple angles
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
76
screen tilts
good sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
does not have image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-620 Sports photography information
Sony NEX-3 Sports photography information
48
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
comes with phase detect autofocus
slow continuous shooting (4.0 frames/s)
low megapixels (12MP)
bad battery power (500 CIPA)
52
good megapixels (14MP)
good sensor size (APS-C)
does not have image stabilization
lack of phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-620 as a Travel photography camera
Sony NEX-3 as a Travel photography camera
53
has built in flash
selfie friendly display
missing Timelapse function
bad battery power (500 per charge)
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
59
good megapixels (14MP)
does not have Timelapse recording
display isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-620 Landscape photography info
Sony NEX-3 Landscape photography info
53
has manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
screen is small (2.7 inch)
low megapixels (12MP)
bad battery power (500 CIPA)
missing Timelapse function
68
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Sony E mount)
good sized screen (3 inch)
good megapixels (14MP)
good sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
does not have image stabilization
does not have Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-620
Vlogging with Sony NEX-3
18
lack of video recording
27
supports face detect autofocus
display isn't selfie friendly
does not have image stabilization
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pxls)
does not have microphone port
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Olympus E-620 vs Sony NEX-3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-620 and Sony NEX-3
 Olympus E-620Sony Alpha NEX-3
General Information
Brand Olympus Sony
Model Olympus E-620 Sony Alpha NEX-3
Type Entry-Level DSLR Entry-Level Mirrorless
Launched 2009-07-06 2010-06-07
Body design Compact SLR Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic III+ Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 23.4 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 365.0mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 14 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4032 x 3024 4592 x 3056
Max native ISO 3200 12800
Min native ISO 100 200
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points 7 25
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds Sony E
Total lenses 45 121
Crop factor 2.1 1.5
Screen
Range of display Fully Articulated Tilting
Display diagonal 2.7 inches 3 inches
Resolution of display 230 thousand dot 920 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Display tech HyperCrystal LCD TFT Xtra Fine LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.48x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/4000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 4.0 frames per sec 7.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 12.00 m 12.00 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Front curtain, Rear curtain, Fill-in, Manual Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/180 seconds 1/160 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions - 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution None 1280x720
Video format - MPEG-4
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
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 500 gr (1.10 lbs) 297 gr (0.65 lbs)
Physical dimensions 130 x 94 x 60mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.4") 117 x 62 x 33mm (4.6" x 2.4" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 55 68
DXO Color Depth score 21.3 22.1
DXO Dynamic range score 10.3 12.0
DXO Low light score 536 830
Other
Battery life 500 photos 330 photos
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-1 NPFW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10sec (3 images))
Time lapse recording
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Pricing at release $799 $0