Olympus E-M10 vs Panasonic FX78: A Hands-On Comparison to Find Your Perfect Camera Match

When diving into the treasure trove of cameras available to photography enthusiasts today, it’s essential to understand what each tool will bring to your creative palette. I’ve spent many hours testing both the Olympus OM-D E-M10 - a 2014 entry-level mirrorless system camera - and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX78, a compact point-and-shoot from 2011. While these cameras come from very different categories, their overlap in the needs of casual shooters and beginner photographers makes this a fascinating comparative review.

In this deep dive, we'll explore every nook and cranny - from sensor performance to autofocus accuracy, build quality to image stabilization - to help you decide which one deserves space in your camera bag and heart.

What’s in Your Hands? Size and Ergonomics Matter

The first and most immediate impression always comes from how a camera feels in your hands. The Olympus OM-D E-M10 is an SLR-style mirrorless camera, featuring a more robust build and a classic photographer’s grip. Meanwhile, the Panasonic FX78 is a slim, pocket-sized compact designed for ultimate portability.

Holding the E-M10, you instantly notice the confidence-inducing weight (about 396 grams) and the thoughtfully sculpted grip, which is perfect for extended shooting sessions without fatigue. The body dimensions (119x82x46mm) give you room for tactile controls - a big plus when shooting in fast-paced environments.

In contrast, the FX78's compactness (100x55x21mm) and feather-light 142-gram frame make it an ideal grab-and-go camera. It’s unobtrusive and fits easily in a jacket pocket or purse, but this small size translates into trade-offs: fewer physical controls, a less intuitive grip, and a generally less substantial feel.

If your photography routine involves lots of walking, travelling light, or spontaneous street shooting, the Panasonic's compact charisma wins. But for anyone craving a sense of control and comfort - especially on longer shoots - the Olympus’s form factor invites a more hands-on experience.

Design and Control Layout: Where Discovery and Usability Meet

Look down at the top plate of each camera, and the operational philosophy becomes clear. The Olympus E-M10 caters to photographers wanting control and customization, while the Panasonic FX78 emphasizes simplicity.

The Olympus features a thoughtfully arranged top deck, with dedicated dials for shutter speed and exposure compensation, a top LCD panel interface, and easy access buttons for drive modes and flash settings. The user can program several customizable buttons, a requirement I always seek in cameras intended for learning and evolving styles. The tilting 3-inch touchscreen enhances menu navigation and framing flexibility - something I found indispensable during my landscape shoots at various awkward angles.

Compare that to the Panasonic FX78, where the command layout is minimalistic. The fixed lens nature means you won’t fiddle with aperture rings or lens rings, but the fewer physical controls translate to being a couple of menu taps away from changing settings. A fixed 3.5-inch screen offers a brighter yet lower-resolution viewing experience, but it doesn’t articulate for creative framing.

For photographers who demand granular control and quicker access to settings, the Olympus E-M10 proves a clear winner in user interface design. But the FX78’s simplicity shines if you want straightforward, almost point-and-shoot usability without the intimidation of complex menus.

The Heart of Image Quality: Sensor Size, Resolution, and Performance

Sensor technology is the backbone of any camera’s image quality, so let's talk about the guts.

Here, the Olympus OM-D E-M10 boasts a much larger Four Thirds sensor, measuring 17.3x13mm, which is significantly bigger than the FX78's 1/2.3-inch 6.08x4.56mm sensor. This translates to a sensor area of roughly 225 mm² vs. about 28 mm² - a nearly 8-fold difference. This size advantage is pivotal, especially in low light and achieving higher overall image fidelity.

The E-M10 features a 16-megapixel resolution, which strikes a balance between detail and manageable file size. It supports RAW capture - vital for professional workflows - allowing full control over post-processing. Olympus’s TruePic VII image processor delivers respectable color accuracy and noise control, handling ISOs up to 25600 (though real-world usable ISO tops out much lower).

By contrast, the Panasonic FX78's sensor houses only 12 megapixels and, crucially, lacks RAW support. It relies on a CCD sensor - increasingly rare - which usually means slower readout speeds and less effective noise control at higher ISOs. The maximum native ISO is 6400, but practical high-ISO results fade quickly due to noise.

In my testing, the Oly’s larger sensor consistently delivered cleaner images with richer tonal gradations and better dynamic range - important for recovering details in shadows and highlights, especially in landscape and portrait photography.

Visual Feedback and Framing Tools: Viewfinder and LCD Screen

Intuitive composition depends on clean viewing tools, and here the E-M10 again flexes its muscle.

The Olympus packs a high-resolution (1,440k dots) electronic viewfinder with 100% coverage and 0.58x magnification. This dual advantage of resolution and coverage ensures that you see nearly everything your sensor captures, in sharp detail, even in bright daylight - an essential factor for precise focus and exposure monitoring outdoors.

Its 3-inch tilting touchscreen LCD lets you switch between EVF and screen quickly, giving creative freedom and ease when shooting at low or high angles. The touchscreen functionality is responsive for focus point selection or menu navigation.

The Panasonic FX78, however, lacks a viewfinder altogether, relying solely on a fixed 3.5-inch touchscreen LCD with just 230k dots of resolution. While a larger screen is helpful, the low pixel density means it’s harder to critically examine sharpness or focus accuracy on the rear display. Plus, fixed positioning reduces framing versatility in challenging angles.

For anyone serious about composition accuracy - particularly under changing lighting conditions - the Olympus wins. But if you want a basic, straightforward screen without the complexity of toggling between viewfinder and LCD, the FX78 remains a functional choice.

Portrait Photography: Skin Tones, Bokeh, and Eye Detection

Portraiture demands color fidelity, pleasant background blur, and reliably sharp focus on eyes. How do these cameras rise to the challenge?

The Olympus OM-D E-M10 supports face detection autofocus and eye-detection AF (though animal eye detection is absent), with 81 contrast-detection AF points that track subjects effectively. Combined with its Micro Four Thirds lenses - many with wide apertures - achieving a creamy bokeh, isolating subjects from backgrounds is straightforward.

When testing the E-M10 for portraits, I appreciated how skin tones rendered naturally, aided by the camera’s color science and flexible custom white balance. The in-body image stabilization allowed shooting in challenging indoor lighting with slower shutter speeds without introducing blur.

Conversely, the Panasonic FX78’s contrast-detection AF system includes 11 focus points and center-weighted focusing but lacks face or eye tracking. Its fixed lens, while versatile with a 24-120mm (35mm equivalent) zoom, has a relatively slow max aperture (f/2.5 at wide angle to f/5.9 at telephoto), limiting shallow depth-of-field effects.

Skin tones on the FX78 can feel a bit less nuanced and somewhat plasticky under incandescent lighting, an artifact of its sensor and processing pipeline. Portraits are workable for casual use, but professionals and enthusiasts seeking flattering bokeh and focus precision will be left wanting.

Landscape Photography: Dynamic Range, Resolution, and Weather Resistance

Landscape photography thrives on rich detail, wide dynamic range, and reliable gear under diverse weather.

The Olympus E-M10’s larger sensor, solid 16MP resolution, and excellent dynamic range (around 12.3 stops measured via DxOMark) shine here. This puts it comfortably above many entry-level systems for extracting detail in skies and shadows - essential when photographing sunrises, sunsets, or forests.

Add to this the wide variety of native Micro Four Thirds lenses optimized for landscapes - including ultra-wide primes and weather-sealed zooms - and you get a system ready for serious outdoor use.

However, the E-M10 itself isn’t weather-sealed, limiting its use in heavy rain or dusty environments without extra protection.

The Panasonic FX78 is, by comparison, notably limited. Its small sensor and lower dynamic range restrict shadow and highlight retention. The fixed lens is versatile but capped at f/5.9 telephoto, and the zoom range maxes out covering ample field of view but with lesser sharpness at the edges. There’s also no weather sealing.

If you shoot landscapes with an eye for post-processing latitude and critical sharpness, the E-M10 will impress far more than the FX78. For casual snapshots on holidays, the FX78’s compactness and ease might suffice.

Wildlife and Sports Photography: Autofocus and Burst Rate in Action

When photographing fast-moving subjects - whether birds or athletes - autofocus speed and burst capabilities are non-negotiable.

The Olympus E-M10 handles continuous autofocus tracking and up to 8 frames per second shooting, respectable for entry-level mirrorless. Its 81 focus points and face detection work well for moderately paced subjects, though serious wildlife photographers might seek faster, phase-detection AF found in later models or flagship cameras.

The Panasonic FX78 shoots at 4 frames per second, with 11 contrast-based focus points lacking tracking sophistication. I found it adequate for casual kids’ sports or pets but unsuitable where action is fast or unpredictable.

In both cases, the E-M10’s arsenal of telephoto lenses makes it a better ecosystem to grow into wildlife or sports work, despite some limitations in autofocus fluidity.

Street and Travel Photography: Discreteness, Portability, and Versatility

Street photographers prize discretion and rapid responsiveness; travelers crave light, versatile gear.

The Olympus E-M10, though compact by DSLR standards, is still noticeably larger and heavier than pocketable compacts like the FX78. However, its classic styling actually helps it blend into urban environments better than big black DSLRs or overtly large cameras.

The FX78’s petite stature and silent operation make it nearly invisible, perfect for capturing candid moments without intrusion. Its fixed zoom lens covers a useful focal length range without lens changes that might distract from fast street scenes.

Travel photography benefits from the Olympus’s interchangeable lens versatility and sensor quality - ideal for capturing high-detail landscapes, portraits, night scenes, and more. Yet the extra weight and bulk can be a detractor on long trips.

The Panasonic FX78, with its modest 200-shot battery life and basic features, excels as a simple travel companion for casual shooters - no fuss, no muss.

Macro and Close-Up: Magnification and Focus Precision

Getting up close requires focusing precision and, ideally, optical or sensor-based stabilization.

The Olympus E-M10’s inclusion of sensor-shift stabilization aids macro photography with compatible lenses offering magnification and focusing down to centimeters. Its focus peaking and manual focus aids help nail focus on tricky close subjects like flowers or insects.

The Panasonic FX78 can focus down to about 5 cm, decent for casual macro shots. The optical image stabilization helps reduce blur, but fixed aperture limits and lower sensor resolution reduce detail capture.

For hobbyist macro shooters, the E-M10’s flexibility and stabilization prove a clear advantage.

Night and Astro Photography: ISO Performance and Exposure Control

Long exposures and low-light images separate amateurs from the dedicated.

Olympus’s larger sensor and better high-ISO performance (usable up to ISO 1600-3200 depending on tolerance) make it viable for starry skies and nightscapes. Bulb mode and intervalometer functions enable timelapse sequences and long exposures manually controlled, essential astro features.

The Panasonic FX78’s small sensor struggles with noise beyond ISO 400-800 - limiting night photography options. No interval shooting or advanced exposure modes curtail creative control.

For night or astrophotography, I recommend the E-M10 without hesitation.

Video Capabilities: Recording Specs and Stabilization

Video is an increasingly critical function, even for traditional photographers.

The Olympus E-M10 outputs Full HD 1080p video at 30fps, with sensor-based stabilization lending noticeably smoother handheld footage. The inclusion of various frame rate options and external microphone ports (missing here) is typical of entry-level mirrorless.

The Panasonic FX78 shoots 1080p at 60fps and 720p at multiple framerates, using optical stabilization on the lens. However, the limited codec support and absence of external mic inputs reduce audio and editing flexibility.

While neither camera is a dedicated video powerhouse, the E-M10 gives more creative control and generally better image quality.

Build Quality and Reliability: Weather Resistance and Durability

Neither model is weather-sealed or designed for harsh conditions, so consider your shooting environment carefully.

Build-wise, the Olympus E-M10 feels more solid, with magnesium alloy construction in parts, while the Panasonic FX78’s plastic compact body is less forgiving of rough handling.

Battery Life and Storage: Shooting Capacity and Convenience

The Olympus E-M10 offers approximately 320 shots per charge (CIPA standard), enabling a solid shooting day, especially with power-saving middleware.

The Panasonic FX78 comes rated at 200 shots - sufficient for casual outings but needing more frequent recharges for longer shoots.

Both support SD, SDHC, and SDXC cards. However, the E-M10 uses SD cards exclusively in a single slot - something to note if redundancy matters.

Connectivity and Wireless Features

Olympus E-M10 includes built-in Wi-Fi for quick sharing and remote control via smartphone apps - a convenience I found invaluable in the field.

Panasonic FX78, on the other hand, lacks wireless connectivity, meaning transfers require cable or card reader.

Final Evaluation: Which Camera Fits Your Photography Style?

After hours of side-by-side evaluation, here’s what the camera scores tell us - consider them my distilled verdict:

• Olympus E-M10 scores much higher for image quality, autofocus versatility, ergonomics, and creative control.
• Panasonic FX78 excels in ultra-portability, simplicity, and budget-friendliness.

Olympus E M10 front Olympus E M10 screen back Panasonic FX78 front Panasonic FX78 screen back

Performance by Photography Genre

• Portraits: Olympus’s superior bokeh control and eye-detection autofocus make it the go-to.
• Landscapes: Greater dynamic range and lens options tip the scales toward Olympus.
• Wildlife & Sports: Burst rate and AF tracking favor Olympus.
• Street: Panasonic shines for discreet carry; Olympus for creative control.
• Macro: Olympus’s stabilization and focus aids provide an edge.
• Night/Astro: Olympus clearly leads.
• Video: Slight advantage to Olympus with stabilization and features.
• Travel: Panasonic for ultra-light carry, Olympus for all-around quality.
• Professional Work: Raw support and customization favor Olympus.

Who Should Buy the Olympus E-M10?

If you’re a photography enthusiast or budding professional seeking a versatile, future-proof system capable of growing with your ambitions, the Olympus OM-D E-M10 is an outstanding choice. Its larger sensor, extensive lens ecosystem, tactile controls, and solid image quality have stood the test of time. It suits portraitists, landscape artists, macro hobbyists, and even entry-level sports photographers looking for reliable autofocus speed.

Who Should Consider the Panasonic FX78?

For budget-conscious casual shooters who want an ultra-portable, simple camera to capture snapshots without fuss, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX78 remains compelling. It fits well in pockets, delivers easy operation for everyday moments, and pairs a decent lens with optical stabilization for steady shots - though don’t expect pro-level image quality or customization.

Summary: Practical Advice for Your Next Camera Investment

• Prioritize sensor size and image quality if you want longevity and creative control - Olympus wins here hands-down.
• If portability and simplicity are paramount - and price is a key factor - the Panasonic compact is a solid pick.
• Consider your primary uses: do you want interchangeable lenses and RAW files? Go Olympus. Need light, quick snaps? Choose Panasonic.
• Accessory compatibility: Olympus Micro Four Thirds system offers 100+ native lenses; Panasonic has none due to fixed lens.
• Connectivity needs: Olympus’s built-in Wi-Fi and touchscreen give faster sharing and remote options.
• Battery life: Olympus provides a longer shooting window per charge.

Final Thoughts

I’m often asked whether a compact fixed-lens camera can truly rival an entry-level mirrorless system in image quality and versatility. The answer, as these two models illustrate, firmly depends on your photography goals and workflow demands. The Olympus OM-D E-M10, with its hybrid creative power and manageable size, remains a standout option years after release, while the Panasonic FX78 appeals as an uncomplicated, compact snapshot machine.

Picking between them means weighing what’s more important to you: control and quality or ease and portability. Armed with this detailed comparative analysis - much of it based on direct field testing and technical evaluation - you can now make a more confident, personalized decision.

Happy shooting!