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Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II

Portability
82
Imaging
53
Features
73
Overall
61
Olympus OM-D E-M10 front
 
Pentax K-3 II front
Portability
59
Imaging
66
Features
84
Overall
73

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II Key Specs

Olympus E-M10
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 396g - 119 x 82 x 46mm
  • Launched March 2014
  • Successor is Olympus E-M10 II
Pentax K-3 II
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3.2" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 800g - 131 x 100 x 77mm
  • Launched April 2015
  • Older Model is Pentax K-3
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Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II Overview

Here is a in depth overview of the Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a huge gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-M10 (16MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the E-M10 (Four Thirds) and K-3 II (APS-C) come with totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-M10 was released 13 months earlier than the K-3 II which makes the cameras a generation apart from one another. The two cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-M10 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-3 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before we go straight into a more detailed comparison, below is a simple introduction of how the E-M10 grades versus the K-3 II when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M10 over the Pentax K-3 II

 E-M10 K-3 II 
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax K-3 II over the Olympus E-M10

 K-3 II E-M10 
LaunchedApril 2015March 2014Fresher by 13 months
Screen dimension3.2"3"Bigger screen (+0.2")

Common features in the Olympus E-M10 and Pentax K-3 II

 E-M10 K-3 II 
Focus manually More exact focusing
Screen resolution1037k1037kThe same screen resolution
Selfie screen Neither contains selfie screen

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II Physical Comparison

If you are planning to carry your camera frequently, you are going to need to think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-M10 has got physical dimensions of 119mm x 82mm x 46mm (4.7" x 3.2" x 1.8") accompanied by a weight of 396 grams (0.87 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-3 II has specifications of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") along with a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you have at that moment. Underneath is the front view physical size comparison of the E-M10 vs the K-3 II.

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-M10 and K-3 II is 82 and 59 respectively.

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, it is very hard to envision the gap between sensor sizing simply by checking specs. The graphic here will provide you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-M10 and K-3 II.

As you can plainly see, the two cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The E-M10 due to its tinier sensor will make getting shallower DOF more difficult and the Pentax K-3 II will resolve more detail as a result of its extra 8MP. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop photographs much more aggressively. The older E-M10 is going to be behind with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Portrait photography camera
Pentax K-3 II as a Portrait photography camera
71
manual focus
good MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
features face detection focusing
delivers RAW formats
79
you can focus manually
good megapixels (24MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
comes with face detect focus
supports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Street photography camera
Pentax K-3 II as a Street photography camera
77
screen tilts
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
boasts focus via touch
great high ISO (25,600)
heavier than competition in class (396 grams)
69
image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW formats
environment sealing
great high ISO (51,200)
no articulating screen
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Sports photography factors
Pentax K-3 II Sports photography factors
66
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
features tracking autofocus
lack of phase detect AF
76
great max shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good megapixels (24MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
comes with tracking focus
environment sealing
comes with phase detect auto focus
bad battery pack (720 CIPA)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Travel photography features
Pentax K-3 II Travel photography features
67
boasts focus via touch
good MP (16 megapixels)
built-in flash
heavier than competition in class (396 grams)
does not posses selfie friendly display
56
environment sealing
good megapixels (24 megapixels)
bad battery pack (720 shots)
does not have a selfie friendly display
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-M10
Landscape photography with Pentax K-3 II
79
manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a good size (3 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
great high ISO (25,600)
delivers RAW formats
78
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
screen is a good size (3.2 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good megapixels (24MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
does not have anti aliasing filter
great high ISO (51,200)
supports RAW formats
environment sealing
2 card slots
bad battery pack (720 per charge)
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Vlogging info
Pentax K-3 II Vlogging info
33
screen is touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
features face detection focusing
good video quality (1920 x 1080 pixels)
does not posses selfie friendly display
lack of external mic support
heavier than competition in class (396g)
34
image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detect focus
high res video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
does have microphone support
does not have a selfie friendly display
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Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax K-3 II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M10 and Pentax K-3 II
 Olympus OM-D E-M10Pentax K-3 II
General Information
Make Olympus Pentax
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M10 Pentax K-3 II
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Advanced DSLR
Launched 2014-03-18 2015-04-23
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic VII Prime III
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 24MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2
Max resolution 4608 x 3456 6016 x 4000
Max native ISO 25600 51200
Minimum native ISO 200 100
RAW images
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points 81 27
Cross type focus points - 25
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds Pentax KAF2
Available lenses 107 151
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1.5
Screen
Display type Tilting Fixed Type
Display sizing 3 inches 3.2 inches
Display resolution 1,037 thousand dots 1,037 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Display tech TFT LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder resolution 1,440 thousand dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100% 100%
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x 0.64x
Features
Min shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/8000 seconds
Continuous shutter rate 8.0 frames/s 8.3 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 5.80 m (ISO100) no built-in flash
Flash options Flash Auto, Redeye, Fill-in, Flash Off, Red-eye Slow sync.(1st curtain), Slow sync.(1st curtain), Slow sync.(2nd curtain), Manual(1/1(FULL)~1/64) Auto Flash Discharge, Auto Flash + Red-eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash On + Red-eye Reduction, Slow-speed Sync, Slow-speed Sync + Red-eye, P-TTL, Trailing Curtain Sync, Contrast-control-sync, High-speed sync, Wireless sync (available with dedicated external flash)
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Max flash synchronize 1/250 seconds 1/180 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60i, 50i, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video format H.264, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Optional
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec)
GPS Optional BuiltIn
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 396g (0.87 lbs) 800g (1.76 lbs)
Dimensions 119 x 82 x 46mm (4.7" x 3.2" x 1.8") 131 x 100 x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 72 80
DXO Color Depth rating 22.8 23.6
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.3 13.6
DXO Low light rating 884 1106
Other
Battery life 320 shots 720 shots
Battery style Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLS-5 D-LI90
Self timer Yes (12 sec., 2 sec.,custom (Waiting time 1-30sec.,Shooting interval 0.5/1/2/3sec.,Number of shots 1-10)) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots One 2
Retail cost $600 $829