Olympus FE-4030 vs Olympus E-M1

Its time to examine more in depth at the Olympus FE-4030 vs Olympus E-M1, former is a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Pro Mirrorless and they are both designed by Olympus. The sensor resolution of the FE-4030 (14MP) and the E-M1 (16MP) is very close but the FE-4030 (1/2.3") and E-M1 (Four Thirds) possess totally different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The FE-4030 was revealed 4 years earlier than the E-M1 which is a fairly large difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus FE-4030 being a Compact camera and the Olympus E-M1 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a short introduction of how the FE-4030 grades against the E-M1 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus FE-4030 & Olympus OM-D E-M1. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus FE-4030 Gallery & Olympus E-M1 Gallery.

For those who are intending to travel with your camera often, you will need to think about its weight and volume. The Olympus FE-4030 comes with outside dimensions of 93mm x 56mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") having a weight of 146 grams (0.32 lbs) and the Olympus E-M1 has sizing of 130mm x 94mm x 63mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.5") with a weight of 497 grams (1.10 lbs).

Look at the Olympus FE-4030 vs Olympus E-M1 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have attached at that time. Underneath is the front view dimension comparison of the FE-4030 vs the E-M1.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the FE-4030 and E-M1 is 95 and 71 respectively.

Oftentimes, it is hard to envision the contrast in sensor dimensions just by viewing technical specs. The pic below might give you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the FE-4030 and E-M1.

As you have seen, each of the cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The FE-4030 with its smaller sensor will make getting shallower depth of field harder and the Olympus E-M1 will render extra detail because of its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The more aged FE-4030 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor tech.