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Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500

Portability
81
Imaging
52
Features
70
Overall
59
Olympus OM-D E-M5 front
 
Pentax Optio RS1500 front
Portability
93
Imaging
37
Features
30
Overall
34

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 Key Specs

Olympus E-M5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 425g - 122 x 89 x 43mm
  • Introduced April 2012
  • Replacement is Olympus E-M5 II
Pentax RS1500
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-110mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 157g - 114 x 58 x 28mm
  • Launched March 2011
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Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 Overview

Below, we are comparing the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax RS1500, former being a Advanced Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Olympus and Pentax. The resolution of the E-M5 (16MP) and the RS1500 (14MP) is very comparable but the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and RS1500 (1/2.3") come with different sensor sizing.

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The E-M5 was announced 14 months later than the RS1500 making the cameras a generation apart from one another. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax RS1500 being a Compact camera.

Before we go straight into a in depth comparison, below is a quick view of how the E-M5 matches up against the RS1500 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M5 over the Pentax RS1500

 E-M5 RS1500 
LaunchedApril 2012March 2011More recent by 14 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display dimension3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution610k230kClearer display (+380k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax RS1500 over the Olympus E-M5

 RS1500 E-M5 

Common features in the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax RS1500

 E-M5 RS1500 
Manual focus Very accurate focus
Selfie screen Neither comes with selfie screen

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is intending to lug around your camera regularly, you have to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-M5 comes with outer measurements of 122mm x 89mm x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") and a weight of 425 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Pentax RS1500 has dimensions of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") along with a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs).

See the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax RS1500 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you have attached at the time. The following is the front view overall size comparison of the E-M5 compared to the RS1500.

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-M5 and RS1500 is 81 and 93 respectively.

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it is very tough to picture the contrast in sensor measurements purely by seeing a spec sheet. The graphic here should offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the E-M5 and RS1500.

As you can see, both cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-M5 using its larger sensor is going to make getting bokeh easier and the Olympus E-M5 will show extra detail with its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will enable you to crop photos somewhat more aggressively. The newer E-M5 provides an advantage when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Portrait photography features
Pentax RS1500 Portrait photography features
71
you can focus manually
MP count good (16MP)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
has face detection focus
saves RAW formats
35
focusing manually
decent sensor resolution (14MP)
no manual mode
no external flash support
small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M5 as a Street photography camera
Pentax RS1500 as a Street photography camera
82
tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
comes with focus by touch
environment sealing
above average ISO range (25,600)
54
weather proof
screen is fixed
does not have image stabilization
small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Sports photography features
Pentax RS1500 Sports photography features
67
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
MP count good (16MP)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
has tracking autofocus
environment sealing
does not have phase detect auto focus
37
decent sensor resolution (14MP)
provides tracking autofocus
weather proof
very slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
does not have image stabilization
small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-M5
Travel photography with Pentax RS1500
66
environment sealing
comes with focus by touch
MP count good (16 megapixels)
lack of Time Lapse recording
display is not selfie friendly
67
weather proof
decent sensor resolution (14MP)
flash built-in
rather wide (28mm)
does not have Timelapse recording
doesn't have a selfie friendly screen
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M5 as a Landscape photography camera
Pentax RS1500 as a Landscape photography camera
73
you can focus manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a good size (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
MP count good (16MP)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
above average ISO range (25,600)
saves RAW formats
environment sealing
lack of Time Lapse recording
40
focusing manually
rather wide (28mm)
decent sensor resolution (14MP)
weather proof
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
tiny screen (2.7 inch)
no manual mode
does not have image stabilization
small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
does not have Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Vlogging factors
Pentax RS1500 Vlogging factors
34
has touchscreen
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
has face detection focus
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
display is not selfie friendly
lack of external mic socket
25
rather wide (28mm)
slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
doesn't have a selfie friendly screen
does not have image stabilization
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pxls)
does not have external microphone support
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Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax RS1500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M5 and Pentax RS1500
 Olympus OM-D E-M5Pentax Optio RS1500
General Information
Make Olympus Pentax
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M5 Pentax Optio RS1500
Class Advanced Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2012-04-30 2011-03-16
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic VI -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 14 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 4608 x 3456 4288 x 3216
Maximum native ISO 25600 6400
Minimum native ISO 200 80
RAW images
Minimum boosted ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
AF continuous
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 35 9
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-110mm (3.9x)
Largest aperture - f/3.5-5.5
Macro focusing range - 1cm
Number of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Type of screen Tilting Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inch 2.7 inch
Resolution of screen 610k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen tech Touch control in electrostatic capacitance type OLED monitor TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 1,440k dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 secs 4 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1500 secs
Continuous shooting rate 9.0 frames per second 1.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 3.90 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync (2), Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/250 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video file format H.264, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 425 gr (0.94 lbs) 157 gr (0.35 lbs)
Dimensions 122 x 89 x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") 114 x 58 x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 71 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 22.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.3 not tested
DXO Low light rating 826 not tested
Other
Battery life 360 photos 260 photos
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLN-1 D-LI92
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots 1 1
Pricing at launch $799 $150