Olympus FE-5010 vs Olympus E-PL5

Its time to look a little more closely at the Olympus FE-5010 and Olympus E-PL5, one is a Small Sensor Compact and the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and they are both designed by Olympus. There exists a big gap between the resolutions of the FE-5010 (12MP) and E-PL5 (16MP) and the FE-5010 (1/2.3") and E-PL5 (Four Thirds) provide different sensor size.

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The FE-5010 was revealed 4 years before the E-PL5 which is quite a big gap as far as technology is concerned. The two cameras feature different body design with the Olympus FE-5010 being a Compact camera and the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving into a more detailed comparison, here is a short synopsis of how the FE-5010 grades versus the E-PL5 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus FE-5010 and Olympus PEN E-PL5. The full galleries are available at Olympus FE-5010 Gallery and Olympus E-PL5 Gallery.

If you're looking to carry around your camera regularly, you need to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus FE-5010 comes with outer measurements of 96mm x 57mm x 21mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.8") and a weight of 130 grams (0.29 lbs) whilst the Olympus E-PL5 has proportions of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") with a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus FE-5010 and Olympus E-PL5 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you have attached at the time. Underneath is a front view measurement comparison of the FE-5010 against the E-PL5.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the FE-5010 and E-PL5 is 96 and 88 respectively.

Normally, it's tough to visualize the difference between sensor sizes purely by looking at technical specs. The picture underneath might give you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the FE-5010 and E-PL5.

As you have seen, both of the cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The FE-5010 using its tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field trickier and the Olympus E-PL5 will resolve greater detail because of its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will help you crop photos a good deal more aggressively. The more aged FE-5010 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.