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Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20

Portability
81 Imaging
52 Features
70 Overall
59
Olympus OM-D E-M5 front
 
Pentax Optio VS20 front
Portability
90 Imaging
39 Features
35 Overall
37

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 Key Specs

Olympus E-M5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 425g - 122 x 89 x 43mm
  • Announced April 2012
  • Renewed by Olympus E-M5 II
Pentax VS20
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-560mm (F3.1-4.8) lens
  • 235g - 111 x 61 x 38mm
  • Launched January 2012
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 Overview

On this page, we will be matching up the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax VS20, former is a Advanced Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by competitors Olympus and Pentax. The resolution of the E-M5 (16MP) and the VS20 (16MP) is pretty similar but the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and VS20 (1/2.3") posses different sensor dimensions.

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The E-M5 was launched 4 months after the VS20 and they are of a similar age. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax VS20 being a Compact camera.

Before going straight to a in-depth comparison, here is a simple overview of how the E-M5 scores against the VS20 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M5 over the Pentax VS20

		

		

			
 E-M5 VS20 
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution610k460kCrisper screen (+150k dot)
Touch friendly screen  Quickly navigate
		

	

	
	

		

		
Reasons to pick Pentax VS20 over the Olympus E-M5

		

		

			
 VS20 E-M5 
		

	

	
	

		

		
Common features in the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax VS20

		

		

			
 E-M5 VS20 
LaunchedApril 2012January 2012Similar age
Manual focus  Very exact focusing
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen sizing
Selfie screen  Missing selfie screen
		

	

	

	
	
	
	

	

		

		
Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 Physical Comparison

		

		

			
If you're aiming to carry around your camera, you're going to have to factor its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-M5 offers outside measurements of 122mm x 89mm x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") having a weight of 425 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Pentax VS20 has proportions of 111mm x 61mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.4" x 1.5") along with a weight of 235 grams (0.52 lbs).
Take a look at the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax VS20 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses
Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you are using at that time. The following is a front view sizing comparison of the E-M5 and the VS20.
Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 size comparison
Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-M5 and VS20 is 81 and 90 respectively.
Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 top view buttons comparison		

	

	
	

		

		
Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 Sensor Comparison

		

		

			
Quite often, it is very tough to imagine the gap between sensor sizes merely by going over a spec sheet. The image below will help offer you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M5 and VS20.
Clearly, the two cameras have the same megapixel count albeit different sensor sizes. The E-M5 features the bigger sensor which is going to make obtaining shallow depth of field simpler.
	
			Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 sensor size comparison			
		

	

	
	

		

		
Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 Screen and ViewFinder

		

		

					

		Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 Screen and Viewfinder comparison	

	
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Photography Type Scores

		

	

	
Portrait Comparison
Olympus E-M5 Portrait photography information
Pentax VS20 Portrait photography information
71
 you can focus manually
 good  resolution (16 megapixels)
 nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
 supports face detection autofocus
 supports RAW formats
36
 has manual focus
 good MP (16MP)
 lack of manual mode
 no external flash support
 sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
 lack of RAW files
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Street Comparison
Olympus E-M5 Street photography factors
Pentax VS20 Street photography factors
82
 has a tilting screen
 has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
 nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
 supports RAW formats
 features touch focus
 weather sealing
 great high ISO (25,600)
61
 built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
 lighter than competition (235g)
 screen is fixed
 sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
 lack of RAW files
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Sports Comparison
Sports photography with Olympus E-M5
Sports photography with Pentax VS20
67
 has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
 good  resolution (16MP)
 nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
 supports tracking autofocus
 weather sealing
 does not have phase detect autofocus
44
 long zoom range (28-560mm  20.0 x zoom)
 built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
 good MP (16 megapixels)
 provides tracking autofocus
 very slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames/s)
 no shutter priority mode
 sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
 lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison
Travel photography with Olympus E-M5
Travel photography with Pentax VS20
66
 weather sealing
 features touch focus
 good  resolution (16MP)
 lack of Time Lapse recording
 does not offer selfie friendly display
68
 lighter than competition (235 grams)
 good MP (16MP)
 built-in flash
 decently wide (28mm)
 long reach (560mm)
 does not have Timelapse mode
 display is not selfie friendly
 sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
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Landscape Comparison
Olympus E-M5 Landscape photography details
Pentax VS20 Landscape photography details
73
 you can focus manually
 interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
 screen is a good size (3")
 has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
 good  resolution (16MP)
 nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
 great high ISO (25,600)
 supports RAW formats
 weather sealing
 lack of Time Lapse recording
47
 has manual focus
 decently wide (28mm)
 screen size is good (3")
 built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
 good MP (16 megapixels)
 lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
 sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
 lack of manual mode
 sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
 lack of RAW files
 does not have Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison
Olympus E-M5 Vlogging details
Pentax VS20 Vlogging details
34
 has touchscreen
 has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
 supports face detection autofocus
 high res video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
 does not offer selfie friendly display
 lack of external mic support
30
 decently wide (28mm)
 built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
 lighter than competition (235 grams)
 sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
 display is not selfie friendly
 low video resolution (1280 x 720 resolution)
 does not have external microphone jack
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Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax VS20 Specifications

		

		

					

		
		

			Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M5 and Pentax VS20
 Olympus OM-D E-M5Pentax Optio VS20
General Information
Brand Olympus Pentax
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M5 Pentax Optio VS20
Class Advanced Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Announced 2012-04-30 2012-01-25
Body design 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 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 16MP
Anti alias 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
Lowest native ISO 200 100
RAW files    
Lowest enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Manual focusing    
Touch focus    
Continuous AF    
AF single    
Tracking AF    
Selective AF    
AF center weighted    
AF multi area    
AF live view    
Face detect focusing    
Contract detect focusing    
Phase detect focusing    
Total focus points 35 3
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-560mm (20.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/3.1-4.8
Macro focusing range - 3cm
Number of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.9
Screen
Display type Tilting Fixed Type
Display size 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of display 610k dot 460k dot
Selfie friendly    
Liveview    
Touch friendly    
Display tech Touch control in electrostatic capacitance type OLED monitor TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 1,440k dot -
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 seconds 4 seconds
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2500 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 9.0 frames/s 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority    
Aperture priority    
Expose Manually    
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB    
Image stabilization    
Built-in flash    
Flash distance no built-in flash 2.80 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync (2), Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
External flash    
AE bracketing    
White balance bracketing    
Fastest flash sync 1/250 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure    
Average exposure    
Spot exposure    
Partial exposure    
AF area exposure    
Center weighted exposure    
Video features
Supported 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)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video file format H.264, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Microphone input    
Headphone input    
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth    
NFC    
HDMI    
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal    
Water proofing    
Dust proofing    
Shock proofing    
Crush proofing    
Freeze proofing    
Weight 425g (0.94 lb) 235g (0.52 lb)
Physical dimensions 122 x 89 x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") 111 x 61 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.4" x 1.5")
DXO scores
DXO Overall 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 images -
Style of battery Battery Pack -
Battery ID BLN-1 D-LI122
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature    
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots One One
Retail pricing $799 $106