Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A290

Here is a detailed comparison of the Olympus E-M5 and Sony A290, one being a Advanced Mirrorless and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the E-M5 (16MP) and the A290 (14MP) is very comparable but the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and A290 (APS-C) offer different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The E-M5 was manufactured 24 months later than the A290 making them a generation apart from one another. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A290 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving right into a in depth comparison, here is a concise introduction of how the E-M5 matches up vs the A290 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

This is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus OM-D E-M5 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A290. The entire galleries are available at Olympus E-M5 Gallery and Sony A290 Gallery.

For those who are planning to carry your camera regularly, you are going to need to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-M5 provides physical 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 Sony A290 has measurements of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") accompanied by a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-M5 and Sony A290 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you have during that time. The following is a front view dimension comparison of the E-M5 versus the A290.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-M5 and A290 is 81 and 66 respectively.

Normally, its hard to visualize the gap in sensor sizing only by going through technical specs. The visual below should give you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M5 and A290.

As you can tell, both of the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-M5 because of its smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field tougher and the Olympus E-M5 will show greater detail due to its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also let you crop pics a bit more aggressively. The younger E-M5 provides an advantage when it comes to sensor technology.