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Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850

Portability
82
Imaging
53
Features
73
Overall
61
Olympus OM-D E-M10 front
 
Sony Alpha DSLR-A850 front
Portability
54
Imaging
68
Features
60
Overall
64

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 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
  • Introduced March 2014
  • Replacement is Olympus E-M10 II
Sony A850
(Full Review)
  • 25MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 200 - 3200 (Bump to 6400)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 895g - 156 x 117 x 82mm
  • Revealed April 2010
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Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 Overview

Lets take a more detailed look at the Olympus E-M10 and Sony A850, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There exists a significant gap between the image resolutions of the E-M10 (16MP) and A850 (25MP) and the E-M10 (Four Thirds) and A850 (Full frame) feature totally different sensor size.

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The E-M10 was manufactured 3 years after the A850 which is quite a sizable gap as far as technology is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-M10 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A850 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before we go straight into a thorough comparison, below is a quick highlight of how the E-M10 grades vs the A850 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M10 over the Sony A850

 E-M10 A850 
RevealedMarch 2014April 2010More modern by 48 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1037k922kSharper screen (+115k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony A850 over the Olympus E-M10

 A850 E-M10 

Common features in the Olympus E-M10 and Sony A850

 E-M10 A850 
Manually focus Dial exact focusing
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen size
Selfie screen Neither contains selfie screen

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 Physical Comparison

For those who are aiming to carry around your camera, you will need to consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-M10 has got external dimensions of 119mm x 82mm x 46mm (4.7" x 3.2" x 1.8") and a weight of 396 grams (0.87 lbs) whilst the Sony A850 has dimensions of 156mm x 117mm x 82mm (6.1" x 4.6" x 3.2") accompanied by a weight of 895 grams (1.97 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-M10 and Sony A850 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you have attached at the time. Below is the front view dimensions comparison of the E-M10 and the A850.

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-M10 and A850 is 82 and 54 respectively.

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it's tough to visualise the difference between sensor sizes purely by looking at specs. The pic here will offer you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-M10 and A850.

All in all, both of those cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-M10 because of its tinier sensor will make shooting bokeh more challenging and the Sony A850 will give you greater detail due to its extra 9MP. Higher resolution will let you crop shots much more aggressively. The more modern E-M10 is going to have an advantage with regard to sensor tech.

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony A850 as a Portrait photography camera
71
focusing manually
MP count good (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
features face detect focus
exports RAW files
72
manual focus
resolution is fantastic (25 megapixels)
large sensor size (Full frame)
exports RAW files
doesn't have liveview
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Street photography advice
Sony A850 Street photography advice
77
screen tilts up and down
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
provides touch to focus
great ISO range (25,600)
more heavy than competition in class (396 grams)
66
image stabilization (Sensor based)
large sensor size (Full frame)
exports RAW files
environment proof
fixed screen
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-M10
Sports photography with Sony A850
66
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count good (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
features tracking focus
lack of phase detect auto focus
71
great max shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
resolution is fantastic (25MP)
large sensor size (Full frame)
environment proof
supports phase detect AF
doesn't have liveview
very slow continuous shooting (3.0 fps)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Travel photography camera
Sony A850 as a Travel photography camera
67
provides touch to focus
MP count good (16MP)
flash built-in
more heavy than competition in class (396 grams)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
55
environment proof
resolution is fantastic (25MP)
does not have Time Lapse mode
display isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Landscape photography information
Sony A850 Landscape photography information
79
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sized screen (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count good (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
great ISO range (25,600)
exports RAW files
73
manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
screen is a good size (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
resolution is fantastic (25 megapixels)
large sensor size (Full frame)
exports RAW files
environment proof
2 card slots
doesn't have liveview
does not have Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Vlogging info
Sony A850 Vlogging info
33
touchscreen enabled
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
features face detect focus
great video quality (1920 x 1080 pixels)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
no microphone support
more heavy than competition in class (396g)
9
lack of video recording
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony A850 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M10 and Sony A850
 Olympus OM-D E-M10Sony Alpha DSLR-A850
General Information
Brand Olympus Sony
Model Olympus OM-D E-M10 Sony Alpha DSLR-A850
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Advanced DSLR
Introduced 2014-03-18 2010-04-15
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic VII Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Full frame
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 35.9 x 24mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 861.6mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 25 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4608 x 3456 6048 x 4032
Max native ISO 25600 3200
Max boosted ISO - 6400
Min native ISO 200 200
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Continuous autofocus
Autofocus single
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Center weighted autofocus
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Number of focus points 81 9
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds Sony/Minolta Alpha
Amount of lenses 107 143
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1
Screen
Type of display Tilting Fixed Type
Display sizing 3 inches 3 inches
Display resolution 1,037k dots 922k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display technology TFT LCD TFT Xtra Fine color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder resolution 1,440k dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 98 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x 0.74x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/8000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 8.0 frames/s 3.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 5.80 m (ISO100) no built-in flash
Flash settings 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, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/250 secs 1/250 secs
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) -
Max video resolution 1920x1080 None
Video file format H.264, Motion JPEG -
Mic support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS Optional None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 396 grams (0.87 lbs) 895 grams (1.97 lbs)
Dimensions 119 x 82 x 46mm (4.7" x 3.2" x 1.8") 156 x 117 x 82mm (6.1" x 4.6" x 3.2")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 72 79
DXO Color Depth score 22.8 23.8
DXO Dynamic range score 12.3 12.2
DXO Low light score 884 1415
Other
Battery life 320 images 880 images
Battery style Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-5 NP-FM500H
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 shooting
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC Compact Flash (Type I or II), UDMA, Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo
Card slots Single 2
Pricing at launch $600 $0