Olympus E-M5 II vs Sony A290

The following is a complete overview of the Olympus E-M5 II vs Sony A290, former is a Advanced Mirrorless while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the E-M5 II (16MP) and the A290 (14MP) is fairly well matched but the E-M5 II (Four Thirds) and A290 (APS-C) possess different sensor sizing.

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The E-M5 II was launched 4 years after the A290 which is quite a sizable difference as far as tech is concerned. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-M5 II being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A290 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before going straight into a in-depth comparison, below is a brief synopsis of how the E-M5 II grades vs the A290 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus OM-D E-M5 II & Sony Alpha DSLR-A290. The complete galleries are provided at Olympus E-M5 II Gallery & Sony A290 Gallery.

If you are aiming to travel with your camera regularly, you'll have to consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-M5 II enjoys outside measurements of 124mm x 85mm x 45mm (4.9" x 3.3" x 1.8") accompanied by a weight of 469 grams (1.03 lbs) and the Sony A290 has dimensions of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") having a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-M5 II vs Sony A290 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have chosen at the time. Here is the front view dimensions comparison of the E-M5 II against the A290.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability rating of the E-M5 II and A290 is 80 and 66 respectively.

Often, it can be hard to imagine the gap between sensor dimensions just by reading through technical specs. The pic below should provide you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M5 II and A290.

As you have seen, both cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-M5 II featuring a tinier sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field more difficult and the Olympus E-M5 II will give you greater detail utilizing its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop photos somewhat more aggressively. The more modern E-M5 II should have an edge in sensor technology.