Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A850

Here, we will be contrasting the Olympus E-M5 versus Sony A850, former being a Advanced Mirrorless while the latter is a Advanced DSLR by brands Olympus and Sony. There is a sizable difference between the resolutions of the E-M5 (16MP) and A850 (25MP) and the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and A850 (Full frame) offer different sensor measurements.

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The E-M5 was announced 2 years later than the A850 and that is quite a significant difference as far as tech is concerned. Both cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A850 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before getting right into a detailed comparison, here is a simple view of how the E-M5 grades vs the A850 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Sony Alpha DSLR-A850. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-M5 Gallery & Sony A850 Gallery.

For those who are aiming to lug around your camera, you need to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-M5 provides physical 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) whilst the Sony A850 has proportions of 156mm x 117mm x 82mm (6.1" x 4.6" x 3.2") having a weight of 895 grams (1.97 lbs).

See the Olympus E-M5 versus Sony A850 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you are working with at that time. Following is a front view overall size comparison of the E-M5 against the A850.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability grade of the E-M5 and A850 is 81 and 54 respectively.

Often, it is difficult to visualize the difference between sensor measurements purely by reviewing technical specs. The photograph below may give you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M5 and A850.

As you have seen, both the cameras feature different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-M5 with its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF more challenging and the Sony A850 will offer greater detail with its extra 9 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop shots way more aggressively. The newer E-M5 provides an edge with regard to sensor technology.