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Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2

Portability
81
Imaging
52
Features
70
Overall
59
Olympus OM-D E-M5 front
 
Pentax Optio WG-2 front
Portability
91
Imaging
39
Features
37
Overall
38

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 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
  • Released April 2012
  • Successor is Olympus E-M5 II
Pentax WG-2
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 192g - 122 x 61 x 30mm
  • Introduced February 2012
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Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 Overview

Its time to examine more in depth at the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax WG-2, former being a Advanced Mirrorless while the other is a Waterproof by rivals Olympus and Pentax. The sensor resolution of the E-M5 (16MP) and the WG-2 (16MP) is fairly close but the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and WG-2 (1/2.3") use different sensor dimensions.

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The E-M5 was brought out 3 months later than the WG-2 and they are both of a similar age. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax WG-2 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight into a in-depth comparison, below is a quick overview of how the E-M5 grades against the WG-2 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M5 over the Pentax WG-2

 E-M5 WG-2 
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display resolution610k460kCrisper display (+150k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax WG-2 over the Olympus E-M5

 WG-2 E-M5 

Common features in the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax WG-2

 E-M5 WG-2 
IntroducedApril 2012February 2012Same age
Manual focus Very exact focusing
Display dimension3"3"Identical display sizing
Selfie screen Neither contains selfie screen

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 Physical Comparison

If you are intending to lug around your camera regularly, you'll need to factor its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-M5 has got outer measurements of 122mm x 89mm x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") along with a weight of 425 grams (0.94 lbs) and the Pentax WG-2 has dimensions of 122mm x 61mm x 30mm (4.8" x 2.4" x 1.2") along with a weight of 192 grams (0.42 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-M5 and Pentax WG-2 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you are working with at the time. The following is the front view measurements comparison of the E-M5 against the WG-2.

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-M5 and WG-2 is 81 and 91 respectively.

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it is very tough to picture the gap in sensor measurements purely by viewing a spec sheet. The visual here may give you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-M5 and WG-2.

As you can see, both of these cameras have got the exact same megapixels but different sensor measurements. The E-M5 provides the larger sensor which is going to make achieving shallow depth of field easier.

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Portrait photography info
Pentax WG-2 Portrait photography info
71
has manual focus
decent megapixels (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers face detection focusing
exports RAW formats
40
you can focus manually
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
supports face detect focusing
no manual exposure
can't use external flash
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Street photography information
Pentax WG-2 Street photography information
82
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
includes focus via touch
environment sealing
good high ISO (25,600)
54
weather proofing
no moving screen
no image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-M5 as a Sports photography camera
Pentax WG-2 as a Sports photography camera
67
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers tracking autofocus
environment sealing
no phase detect AF
38
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
supports tracking focus
weather proofing
max fps low (1.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
no image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Travel photography factors
Pentax WG-2 Travel photography factors
66
environment sealing
includes focus via touch
decent megapixels (16MP)
missing Time Lapse mode
doesn't have selfie friendly screen
70
weather proofing
decent megapixels (16MP)
flash built-in
pretty wide (28mm)
does not have a selfie friendly screen
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M5 as a Landscape photography camera
Pentax WG-2 as a Landscape photography camera
73
has manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a decent size (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
good high ISO (25,600)
exports RAW formats
environment sealing
missing Time Lapse mode
47
you can focus manually
pretty wide (28mm)
decent sized screen (3 inches)
decent megapixels (16 megapixels)
weather proofing
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
no manual exposure
no image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M5 as a Vlogging camera
Pentax WG-2 as a Vlogging camera
34
screen is touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
offers face detection focusing
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
doesn't have selfie friendly screen
missing external mic jack
30
pretty wide (28mm)
supports face detect focusing
video res high (1920 x 1080 resolution)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.5)
does not have a selfie friendly screen
no image stabilization
doesn't have mic socket
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Olympus E-M5 vs Pentax WG-2 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M5 and Pentax WG-2
 Olympus OM-D E-M5Pentax Optio WG-2
General Information
Company Olympus Pentax
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M5 Pentax Optio WG-2
Category Advanced Mirrorless Waterproof
Released 2012-04-30 2012-02-07
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic VI -
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
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 16 megapixel 16 megapixel
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 4288 x 3216
Max native ISO 25600 6400
Minimum native ISO 200 125
RAW data
Minimum enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 35 9
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-140mm (5.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.5-5.5
Macro focusing distance - 1cm
Total lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Screen type Tilting Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inches 3 inches
Screen resolution 610 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen technology Touch control in electrostatic capacitance type OLED monitor Widescreen TFT color LCD with anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 1,440 thousand dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Min shutter speed 60 seconds 4 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/4000 seconds
Continuous shutter rate 9.0 frames/s 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 5.40 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync (2), Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Max flash synchronize 1/250 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video file format H.264, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, H.264
Mic port
Headphone port
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 sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 425 gr (0.94 pounds) 192 gr (0.42 pounds)
Dimensions 122 x 89 x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") 122 x 61 x 30mm (4.8" x 2.4" x 1.2")
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 260 images
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 recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC card, Internal
Card slots Single Single
Price at release $799 $350