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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
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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