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Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300

Portability
81
Imaging
52
Features
70
Overall
59
Olympus OM-D E-M5 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX300 front
Portability
63
Imaging
44
Features
51
Overall
46

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 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
  • Introduced April 2012
  • Successor is Olympus E-M5 II
Sony HX300
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 80 - 12800
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 24-1200mm (F2.8-6.3) lens
  • 623g - 130 x 103 x 93mm
  • Launched February 2013
  • Superseded the Sony HX200V
  • Updated by Sony HX400V
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Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 Overview

Its time to look more closely at the Olympus E-M5 versus Sony HX300, former is a Advanced Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by brands Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the E-M5 (16MP) and the HX300 (20MP) is very well matched but the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and HX300 (1/2.3") posses totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-M5 was announced 9 months prior to the HX300 and they are of a similar age. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony HX300 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before delving into a step-by-step comparison, here is a quick highlight of how the E-M5 grades against the HX300 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M5 over the Sony HX300

 E-M5 HX300 
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Sony HX300 over the Olympus E-M5

 HX300 E-M5 
LaunchedFebruary 2013April 2012More modern by 9 months
Display resolution921k610kCrisper display (+311k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-M5 and Sony HX300

 E-M5 HX300 
Manual focus More precise focus
Display typeTiltingTiltingTilting display
Display size3"3"Same display sizing
Selfie screen Lack of selfie screen

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 Physical Comparison

When you are looking to carry around your camera often, you are going to need to factor its weight and size. The Olympus E-M5 has got physical dimensions of 122mm x 89mm x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 425 grams (0.94 lbs) while the Sony HX300 has specifications of 130mm x 103mm x 93mm (5.1" x 4.1" x 3.7") and a weight of 623 grams (1.37 lbs).

Examine the Olympus E-M5 versus Sony HX300 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you have attached at the time. Here is a front view dimensions comparison of the E-M5 compared to the HX300.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-M5 and HX300 is 81 and 63 respectively.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it is tough to see the gap between sensor sizes simply by looking at specs. The pic here will offer you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-M5 and HX300.

As you can plainly see, both cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-M5 having a larger sensor will make getting shallower DOF less difficult and the Sony HX300 will give more detail with its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also let you crop images way more aggressively. The more aged E-M5 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Portrait photography advice
Sony HX300 Portrait photography advice
71
manual focus
decent MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
comes with face detection focus
supports RAW formats
42
focusing manually
sensor resolution is decent (20 megapixels)
can't use external flash
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Street photography advice
Sony HX300 Street photography advice
82
has a tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
boasts touch focus
environment proofing
very good ISO range (25,600)
50
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Optical)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
more heavy than competition (623 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-M5
Sports photography with Sony HX300
67
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent MP (16MP)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking autofocus
environment proofing
lacks phase detect auto focus
55
amazing zoom range (24-1200mm 50.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (20 megapixels)
offers tracking focus
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-M5
Travel photography with Sony HX300
66
environment proofing
boasts touch focus
decent MP (16 megapixels)
lack of Time Lapse recording
screen is not selfie friendly
54
sensor resolution is decent (20MP)
has built in flash
reasonably wide (24mm)
very long zoom (1200mm)
doesn't have Timelapse mode
more heavy than competition (623g)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Landscape photography details
Sony HX300 Landscape photography details
73
manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
very good ISO range (25,600)
supports RAW formats
environment proofing
lack of Time Lapse recording
48
focusing manually
reasonably wide (24mm)
pretty good screen size (3")
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (20MP)
cannot switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW support
doesn't have Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M5 as a Vlogging camera
Sony HX300 as a Vlogging camera
34
built-in touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
comes with face detection focus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
lack of external mic port
25
reasonably wide (24mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
high res video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
doesn't have microphone support
more heavy than competition (623 grams)
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Olympus E-M5 vs Sony HX300 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M5 and Sony HX300
 Olympus OM-D E-M5Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX300
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model Olympus OM-D E-M5 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX300
Type Advanced Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2012-04-30 2013-02-20
Physical type SLR-style mirrorless SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic VI -
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.16 x 4.62mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.5mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 -
Peak resolution 4608 x 3456 5184 x 3888
Highest native ISO 25600 12800
Lowest native ISO 200 80
RAW photos
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 AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points 35 9
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-1200mm (50.0x)
Highest aperture - f/2.8-6.3
Available lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Type of screen Tilting Tilting
Screen size 3" 3"
Resolution of screen 610 thousand dots 921 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Screen tech Touch control in electrostatic capacitance type OLED monitor -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic Electronic
Viewfinder resolution 1,440 thousand dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 30s
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter rate 9.0 frames per second 10.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range no built-in flash -
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync (2), Manual (3 levels) -
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize 1/250s -
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) 1920 x 1080 (60, 50 fps)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video data format H.264, Motion JPEG -
Microphone support
Headphone support
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) 623 grams (1.37 lbs)
Physical dimensions 122 x 89 x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") 130 x 103 x 93mm (5.1" x 4.1" x 3.7")
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 shots -
Battery style Battery Pack -
Battery model BLN-1 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) -
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC -
Card slots One One
Launch price $799 $339