Clicky

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290

Portability
82
Imaging
53
Features
73
Overall
61
Olympus OM-D E-M10 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290 front
Portability
94
Imaging
35
Features
28
Overall
32

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 Key Specs

Olympus E-M10
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • 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
Sony W290
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.3-5.2) lens
  • 167g - 98 x 57 x 23mm
  • Introduced February 2009
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 Overview

Lets look a little more in depth at the Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There is a sizable difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-M10 (16MP) and W290 (12MP) and the E-M10 (Four Thirds) and W290 (1/2.3") enjoy different sensor sizes.

Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

The E-M10 was unveiled 5 years after the W290 which is a fairly significant difference as far as camera tech is concerned. The two cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-M10 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony W290 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight into a complete comparison, below is a quick synopsis of how the E-M10 scores vs the W290 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month
	
	

Reasons to pick Olympus E-M10 over the Sony W290

 E-M10 W290 
IntroducedMarch 2014February 2009More modern by 62 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display resolution1037k230kCrisper display (+807k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Sony W290 over the Olympus E-M10

 W290 E-M10 

Common features in the Olympus E-M10 and Sony W290

 E-M10 W290 
Focus manually More accurate focus
Display dimension3"3"Identical display dimensions
Selfie screen Neither contains selfie screen

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is going to carry around your camera often, you will want to think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-M10 has got outer 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 Sony W290 has specifications of 98mm x 57mm x 23mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are working with during that time. Following is the front view sizing comparison of the E-M10 against the W290.

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the E-M10 and W290 is 82 and 94 respectively.

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 Sensor Comparison

Generally, it is very hard to visualize the contrast in sensor sizes purely by checking out specs. The picture below should give you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M10 and W290.

All in all, both the cameras have got different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-M10 having a larger sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field less difficult and the Olympus E-M10 will produce greater detail having an extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will let you crop photos much more aggressively. The more recent E-M10 should have a benefit with regard to sensor technology.

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
President Biden pushes bill mandating TikTok sale or ban

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M10 Portrait photography details
Sony W290 Portrait photography details
71
manual focus
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers face detection focus
supports RAW files
27
has manual focus
lack of manual mode
external flash not possible
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Street photography camera
Sony W290 as a Street photography camera
77
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
has focus via touch
very good ISO range (25,600)
heavier than competition in class (396 grams)
56
image stabilization (Optical)
screen is fixed
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-M10
Sports photography with Sony W290
66
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers tracking autofocus
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
25
image stabilization (Optical)
max fps very slow (2.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority mode
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect auto focus
Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Travel photography camera
Sony W290 as a Travel photography camera
67
has focus via touch
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
has built in flash
heavier than competition in class (396 grams)
does not feature selfie friendly screen
57
has built in flash
reasonably wide (28mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
sensor resolution low (12MP)
does not offer selfie friendly screen
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-M10
Landscape photography with Sony W290
79
manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a decent size (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
very good ISO range (25,600)
supports RAW files
41
has manual focus
reasonably wide (28mm)
decent sized screen (3 inches)
image stabilization (Optical)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
lack of manual mode
sensor resolution low (12MP)
sensor is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M10 as a Vlogging camera
Sony W290 as a Vlogging camera
33
touchscreen capability
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection focus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
does not feature selfie friendly screen
does not have external mic port
heavier than competition in class (396 grams)
28
reasonably wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
does not offer selfie friendly screen
low res video (1280 x 720 resolution)
doesn't have mic socket
Body cameras now worn by bakery staff to deter stealing

Olympus E-M10 vs Sony W290 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M10 and Sony W290
 Olympus OM-D E-M10Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290
General Information
Brand Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M10 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Released 2014-03-18 2009-02-17
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic VII -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 12MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4608 x 3456 4000 x 3000
Max native ISO 25600 3200
Lowest native ISO 200 80
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
AF continuous
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 81 9
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-140mm (5.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.3-5.2
Macro focusing range - 10cm
Available lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Type of screen Tilting Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 1,037k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Screen technology TFT LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 1,440k dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Min shutter speed 60 secs 2 secs
Max shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shutter rate 8.0fps 2.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 5.80 m (ISO100) 3.90 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 reduction, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Max flash synchronize 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) 1280 x 720 (30 fps) 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video format H.264, Motion JPEG MPEG-4
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 Optional None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 396 gr (0.87 lbs) 167 gr (0.37 lbs)
Dimensions 119 x 82 x 46mm (4.7" x 3.2" x 1.8") 98 x 57 x 23mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 72 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 22.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.3 not tested
DXO Low light rating 884 not tested
Other
Battery life 320 shots -
Style of battery Battery Pack -
Battery ID BLS-5 -
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 Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo, Internal
Card slots 1 1
Cost at release $600 $230