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Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W

Portability
81
Imaging
52
Features
70
Overall
59
Olympus OM-D E-M5 front
 
Samsung HZ30W front
Portability
91
Imaging
35
Features
40
Overall
37

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W 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
  • Revealed April 2012
  • Newer Model is Olympus E-M5 II
Samsung HZ30W
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 24-360mm (F3.2-5.8) lens
  • 245g - 107 x 61 x 28mm
  • Launched January 2010
  • Alternate Name is WB600
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Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W Overview

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Olympus E-M5 and Samsung HZ30W, former being a Advanced Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by brands Olympus and Samsung. There is a sizable difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-M5 (16MP) and HZ30W (12MP) and the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and HZ30W (1/2.3") have totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-M5 was manufactured 2 years later than the HZ30W and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera tech is concerned. The two cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Samsung HZ30W being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a thorough comparison, here is a concise highlight of how the E-M5 grades versus the HZ30W for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M5 over the Samsung HZ30W

 E-M5 HZ30W 
LaunchedApril 2012January 2010More recent by 28 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution610k230kSharper screen (+380k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Samsung HZ30W over the Olympus E-M5

 HZ30W E-M5 

Common features in the Olympus E-M5 and Samsung HZ30W

 E-M5 HZ30W 
Manual focus Dial exact focusing
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen sizing
Selfie screen Missing selfie screen

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W Physical Comparison

In case you're looking to lug around your camera, you're going to have to factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-M5 has got outer dimensions 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 Samsung HZ30W has measurements of 107mm x 61mm x 28mm (4.2" x 2.4" x 1.1") and a weight of 245 grams (0.54 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-M5 and Samsung HZ30W in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you have at that moment. Underneath is a front view overall size comparison of the E-M5 and the HZ30W.

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the E-M5 and HZ30W is 81 and 91 respectively.

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W Sensor Comparison

Usually, it can be difficult to envision the gap in sensor measurements just by viewing a spec sheet. The visual here will offer you a better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-M5 and HZ30W.

As you can see, the two cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-M5 featuring a bigger sensor will make getting shallow DOF less difficult and the Olympus E-M5 will render more detail due to its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop shots more aggressively. The more recent E-M5 is going to have an edge in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Portrait photography information
Samsung HZ30W Portrait photography information
71
has manual focus
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers face detection autofocus
supports RAW formats
29
you can focus manually
external flash not possible
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Street photography highlights
Samsung HZ30W Street photography highlights
82
screen tilts
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
features focus via touch
environment sealing
great high ISO (25,600)
60
built in image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than others (245g)
fixed screen
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Sports photography features
Samsung HZ30W Sports photography features
67
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers tracking autofocus
environment sealing
no phase detect autofocus
42
excellent zoom range (24-360mm 15.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
supports tracking focus
sensor resolution low (12MP)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Travel photography advice
Samsung HZ30W Travel photography advice
66
environment sealing
features focus via touch
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
doesn't have Timelapse function
does not offer selfie friendly display
63
lighter than others (245g)
flash built-in
pretty wide (24mm)
very long zoom (360mm)
does not have Time Lapse function
sensor resolution low (12MP)
screen isn't selfie friendly
sluggish max aperture (f3.2)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-M5
Landscape photography with Samsung HZ30W
73
has manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sized screen (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
great high ISO (25,600)
supports RAW formats
environment sealing
doesn't have Timelapse function
43
you can focus manually
pretty wide (24mm)
screen is a decent size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f3.2)
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
does not have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Vlogging highlights
Samsung HZ30W Vlogging highlights
34
touchscreen functionality
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
offers face detection autofocus
good video quality (1920 x 1080 pixels)
does not offer selfie friendly display
doesn't have external microphone support
30
pretty wide (24mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than others (245 grams)
sluggish max aperture (f3.2)
screen isn't selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
does not have mic socket
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-M5 vs Samsung HZ30W Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M5 and Samsung HZ30W
 Olympus OM-D E-M5Samsung HZ30W
General Information
Company Olympus Samsung
Model Olympus OM-D E-M5 Samsung HZ30W
Other name - WB600
Category Advanced Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Revealed 2012-04-30 2010-01-19
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic VI -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 12MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4608 x 3456 4000 x 3000
Maximum native ISO 25600 3200
Lowest native ISO 200 80
RAW data
Lowest enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 35 -
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-360mm (15.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.2-5.8
Macro focus range - 3cm
Total lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Screen type Tilting Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 610k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Screen technology Touch control in electrostatic capacitance type OLED monitor -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 1,440k dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Min shutter speed 60 secs 16 secs
Max shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/2000 secs
Continuous shutter rate 9.0fps -
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range no built-in flash 5.00 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync (2), Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Max flash synchronize 1/250 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
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 (60, 30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video data format H.264, Motion JPEG H.264
Mic port
Headphone port
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
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 425 grams (0.94 lbs) 245 grams (0.54 lbs)
Physical dimensions 122 x 89 x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") 107 x 61 x 28mm (4.2" x 2.4" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 71 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 22.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 12.3 not tested
DXO Low light score 826 not tested
Other
Battery life 360 photos -
Battery type Battery Pack -
Battery model BLN-1 SLB-11A
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, Double, Motion)
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SC/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots One One
Launch price $799 $280