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Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18

Portability
82
Imaging
53
Features
73
Overall
61
Olympus OM-D E-M10 front
 
Pentax Optio RZ18 front
Portability
92
Imaging
39
Features
37
Overall
38

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 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
  • Released March 2014
  • Successor is Olympus E-M10 II
Pentax RZ18
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-450mm (F3.5-5.9) lens
  • 178g - 97 x 61 x 33mm
  • Announced September 2011
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Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 Overview

In this article, we will be evaluating the Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by brands Olympus and Pentax. The sensor resolution of the E-M10 (16MP) and the RZ18 (16MP) is relatively close but the E-M10 (Four Thirds) and RZ18 (1/2.3") come with different sensor measurements.

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The E-M10 was brought out 2 years after the RZ18 which is a fairly big gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-M10 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax RZ18 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight into a detailed comparison, below is a brief highlight of how the E-M10 matches up against the RZ18 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Photography Glossary
	
	

Reasons to pick Olympus E-M10 over the Pentax RZ18

 E-M10 RZ18 
AnnouncedMarch 2014September 2011More modern by 31 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1037k460kCrisper screen (+577k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax RZ18 over the Olympus E-M10

 RZ18 E-M10 

Common features in the Olympus E-M10 and Pentax RZ18

 E-M10 RZ18 
Manually focus Very accurate focusing
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen measurements
Selfie screen No selfie screen

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 Physical Comparison

If you're looking to carry around your camera often, you're going to have to factor its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-M10 provides exterior measurements of 119mm x 82mm x 46mm (4.7" x 3.2" x 1.8") with a weight of 396 grams (0.87 lbs) while the Pentax RZ18 has proportions of 97mm x 61mm x 33mm (3.8" x 2.4" x 1.3") and a weight of 178 grams (0.39 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you choose at the time. Here is the front view measurements comparison of the E-M10 and the RZ18.

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability grade of the E-M10 and RZ18 is 82 and 92 respectively.

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 Sensor Comparison

Usually, it is very hard to visualize the gap in sensor sizes merely by looking through technical specs. The image below may provide you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M10 and RZ18.

As you can tell, the two cameras enjoy the same exact resolution albeit different sensor sizes. The E-M10 contains the bigger sensor which will make getting shallow DOF simpler. The more modern E-M10 provides a benefit when it comes to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Portrait photography factors
Pentax RZ18 Portrait photography factors
71
manual focus
decent MP (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers face detection autofocus
delivers RAW formats
36
you can focus manually
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
no manual mode
external flash not possible
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Street photography advice
Pentax RZ18 Street photography advice
77
has a tilting screen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
comes with touch focus
great high ISO (25,600)
heavier than competitors in class (396g)
65
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
weather proofing
lighter than others (178 grams)
screen is fixed
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Sports photography info
Pentax RZ18 Sports photography info
66
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent MP (16 megapixels)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers tracking autofocus
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
47
incredible zoom range (25-450mm 18.0 x zoom)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
includes tracking focus
weather proofing
very slow continuous shooting (1.0 fps)
no shutter priority mode
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Travel photography camera
Pentax RZ18 as a Travel photography camera
67
comes with touch focus
decent MP (16MP)
flash built-in
heavier than competitors in class (396 grams)
does not have a selfie friendly screen
71
lighter than others (178 grams)
weather proofing
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
flash built-in
quite wide (25mm)
very long zoom (450mm)
lack of Timelapse mode
does not offer selfie friendly display
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Landscape photography features
Pentax RZ18 Landscape photography features
79
manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice screen size (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent MP (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
great high ISO (25,600)
delivers RAW formats
49
you can focus manually
quite wide (25mm)
good sized screen (3")
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
weather proofing
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
no manual mode
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
lack of Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Vlogging camera
Pentax RZ18 as a Vlogging camera
33
has touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does not have a selfie friendly screen
missing external mic support
heavier than competitors in class (396g)
30
quite wide (25mm)
image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than others (178g)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
does not offer selfie friendly display
low res video (1280 x 720 pxls)
lack of microphone socket
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Olympus E-M10 vs Pentax RZ18 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M10 and Pentax RZ18
 Olympus OM-D E-M10Pentax Optio RZ18
General Information
Brand Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus OM-D E-M10 Pentax Optio RZ18
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Released 2014-03-18 2011-09-12
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic VII -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9
Max resolution 4608 x 3456 4608 x 3456
Max native ISO 25600 6400
Min native ISO 200 80
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points 81 9
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-450mm (18.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.5-5.9
Macro focus range - 4cm
Available lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.9
Screen
Type of display Tilting Fixed Type
Display size 3 inches 3 inches
Display resolution 1,037 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Display tech TFT LCD TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 1,440 thousand dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 seconds 4 seconds
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Continuous shutter rate 8.0 frames per second 1.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 5.80 m (ISO100) 2.80 m
Flash modes 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, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize 1/250 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video file format H.264, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS Optional None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 396 gr (0.87 lbs) 178 gr (0.39 lbs)
Dimensions 119 x 82 x 46mm (4.7" x 3.2" x 1.8") 97 x 61 x 33mm (3.8" x 2.4" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 72 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 22.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 12.3 not tested
DXO Low light score 884 not tested
Other
Battery life 320 images -
Form of battery Battery Pack -
Battery model BLS-5 D-LI92
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 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots One One
Cost at release $600 $210