Olympus FE-4030 vs Olympus E-PL5

Let's look much closer at the Olympus FE-4030 versus Olympus E-PL5, former is a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and they are both produced by Olympus. The sensor resolution of the FE-4030 (14MP) and the E-PL5 (16MP) is fairly well matched but the FE-4030 (1/2.3") and E-PL5 (Four Thirds) boast totally different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The FE-4030 was introduced 3 years prior to the E-PL5 which is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. The two cameras feature different body design with the Olympus FE-4030 being a Compact camera and the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting into a in-depth comparison, here is a brief overview of how the FE-4030 grades versus the E-PL5 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus FE-4030 & Olympus PEN E-PL5. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus FE-4030 Gallery & Olympus E-PL5 Gallery.

In case you're looking to travel with your camera regularly, you'll need to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus FE-4030 has 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) while the Olympus E-PL5 has measurements of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") along with a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs).

See the Olympus FE-4030 versus Olympus E-PL5 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you are employing at that time. Following is a front view over all size comparison of the FE-4030 vs the E-PL5.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the FE-4030 and E-PL5 is 95 and 88 respectively.

Sometimes, it is very tough to envision the gap between sensor dimensions purely by checking a spec sheet. The picture below should provide you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the FE-4030 and E-PL5.

As you can see, both of these cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The FE-4030 having a tinier sensor will make achieving shallow DOF tougher and the Olympus E-PL5 will resolve extra detail using its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will allow you to crop images way more aggressively. The more aged FE-4030 is going to be behind in sensor innovation.