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Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20

Portability
80
Imaging
55
Features
75
Overall
63
Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20 front
Portability
92
Imaging
37
Features
46
Overall
40

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 Key Specs

Olympus E-M10 III
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 410g - 122 x 84 x 50mm
  • Revealed August 2017
  • Earlier Model is Olympus E-M10 II
  • Successor is Olympus E-M10 IV
Panasonic ZS20
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 24-480mm (F3.3-6.4) lens
  • 206g - 105 x 59 x 28mm
  • Launched April 2012
  • Also Known as Lumix DMC-TZ30
  • Succeeded the Panasonic ZS15
  • Renewed by Panasonic ZS25
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Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 Overview

Its time to look a bit more in depth at the Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. The resolution of the E-M10 III (16MP) and the ZS20 (14MP) is relatively close but the E-M10 III (Four Thirds) and ZS20 (1/2.3") provide totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-M10 III was released 5 years later than the ZS20 and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-M10 III being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic ZS20 being a Compact camera.

Before delving straight to a thorough comparison, here is a quick summation of how the E-M10 III matches up against the ZS20 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M10 III over the Panasonic ZS20

 E-M10 III ZS20 
LaunchedAugust 2017April 2012More recent by 66 months
Manually focus More precise focusing
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1040k460kCrisper screen (+580k dot)

Reasons to pick Panasonic ZS20 over the Olympus E-M10 III

 ZS20 E-M10 III 

Common features in the Olympus E-M10 III and Panasonic ZS20

 E-M10 III ZS20 
Screen size3"3"Same screen dimensions
Selfie screen No selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 Physical Comparison

When you are looking to lug around your camera, you will need to factor its weight and volume. The Olympus E-M10 III provides outer measurements of 122mm x 84mm x 50mm (4.8" x 3.3" x 2.0") and a weight of 410 grams (0.90 lbs) while the Panasonic ZS20 has sizing of 105mm x 59mm x 28mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.1") having a weight of 206 grams (0.45 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you choose at that moment. The following is a front view dimensions comparison of the E-M10 III compared to the ZS20.

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-M10 III and ZS20 is 80 and 92 respectively.

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, its tough to envision the difference in sensor measurements simply by looking through specs. The visual here might offer you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M10 III and ZS20.

As you can plainly see, the 2 cameras come with different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-M10 III because of its bigger sensor will make getting bokeh less difficult and the Olympus E-M10 III will provide you with more detail as a result of its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will help you crop pictures a good deal more aggressively. The more recent E-M10 III will have a benefit with regard to sensor tech.

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Portrait photography details
Panasonic ZS20 Portrait photography details
73
manual focus
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with face detection focusing
exports RAW formats
30
sensor resolution is decent (14MP)
no manual focus
no external flash support
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Street photography details
Panasonic ZS20 Street photography details
77
has a tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
supports touch focus
very good high ISO (25,600)
heavier than competition in class (410g)
65
built in image stabilization (Optical)
has touch focus
lighter than competitors in class (206 grams)
screen is fixed
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-M10 III
Sports photography with Panasonic ZS20
69
silent mode (1/16,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking autofocus
has no phase detect AF
47
excellent zoom range (24-480mm 20.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (14 megapixels)
comes with tracking focus
very small sensor (1/2.3")
not so great battery life (260 shots)
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Travel photography information
Panasonic ZS20 Travel photography information
67
supports touch focus
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
flash built-in
heavier than competition in class (410g)
doesn't have selfie friendly screen
68
lighter than competitors in class (206g)
has touch focus
sensor resolution is decent (14 megapixels)
flash built-in
reasonably wide (24mm)
long reach (480mm)
no Time Lapse function
not so great battery life (260 per charge)
does not offer selfie friendly screen
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III as a Landscape photography camera
Panasonic ZS20 as a Landscape photography camera
80
manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
very good high ISO (25,600)
exports RAW formats
42
reasonably wide (24mm)
screen size is decent (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (14 megapixels)
no manual focus
can't change lenses (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.3)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
not so great battery life (260 CIPA)
no Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Vlogging factors
Panasonic ZS20 Vlogging factors
32
touchscreen capability
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
comes with face detection focusing
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pixels)
doesn't have selfie friendly screen
no external mic port
heavier than competition in class (410 grams)
34
reasonably wide (24mm)
built-in touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Optical)
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
lighter than competitors in class (206 grams)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.3)
does not offer selfie friendly screen
no mic socket
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-M10 III vs Panasonic ZS20 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M10 III and Panasonic ZS20
 Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IIIPanasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20
General Information
Brand Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS20
Alternative name - Lumix DMC-TZ30
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Revealed 2017-08-31 2012-04-26
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic VIII -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.4 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 226.2mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 14MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4608 x 3456 4320 x 3240
Maximum native ISO 25600 6400
Minimum native ISO 200 100
RAW format
Minimum enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 121 23
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 24-480mm (20.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.3-6.4
Macro focusing range - 3cm
Available lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.9
Screen
Type of screen Tilting Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3" 3"
Resolution of screen 1,040 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 2,360 thousand dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.62x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 seconds 15 seconds
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Fastest silent shutter speed 1/16000 seconds -
Continuous shutter rate 8.6 frames/s 10.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 5.80 m (at ISO 100) 6.40 m
Flash options Auto, redeye, slow sync, 2nd-curtain slow sync, redeye slow sync, fill-in, manual, off Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize 1/250 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 102 Mbps, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (220 fps)
Maximum video resolution 3840x2160 1920x1080
Video format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 410g (0.90 lb) 206g (0.45 lb)
Physical dimensions 122 x 84 x 50mm (4.8" x 3.3" x 2.0") 105 x 59 x 28mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth rating not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested not tested
DXO Low light rating not tested not tested
Other
Battery life 330 pictures 260 pictures
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLS-50 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 secs, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I/II supported) SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots 1 1
Price at release $650 $349