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Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220

Portability
81
Imaging
52
Features
70
Overall
59
Olympus OM-D E-M5 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX220 front
Portability
96
Imaging
43
Features
41
Overall
42

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 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
  • Replacement is Olympus E-M5 II
Sony WX220
(Full Review)
  • 18MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 12800
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-250mm (F3.3-5.9) lens
  • 121g - 92 x 52 x 22mm
  • Announced February 2014
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 Overview

In this write-up, we will be looking at the Olympus E-M5 and Sony WX220, former is a Advanced Mirrorless while the latter is a Ultracompact by companies Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the E-M5 (16MP) and the WX220 (18MP) is pretty well matched but the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and WX220 (1/2.3") possess different sensor size.

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The E-M5 was released 21 months earlier than the WX220 which makes the cameras a generation away from one another. Both cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony WX220 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before getting straight into a step-by-step comparison, below is a simple synopsis of how the E-M5 grades against the WX220 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M5 over the Sony WX220

 E-M5 WX220 
Manually focus More accurate focusing
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution610k460kCrisper screen (+150k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony WX220 over the Olympus E-M5

 WX220 E-M5 
AnnouncedFebruary 2014April 2012More modern by 21 months

Common features in the Olympus E-M5 and Sony WX220

 E-M5 WX220 
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen size
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 Physical Comparison

For those who are aiming to carry around your camera often, you're going to have to take into account its weight and volume. The Olympus E-M5 comes with external measurements of 122mm x 89mm x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") with a weight of 425 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Sony WX220 has sizing of 92mm x 52mm x 22mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.9") with a weight of 121 grams (0.27 lbs).

Examine the Olympus E-M5 and Sony WX220 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you are employing during that time. The following is the front view measurements comparison of the E-M5 against the WX220.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-M5 and WX220 is 81 and 96 respectively.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, it's difficult to picture the gap between sensor sizes purely by looking at specs. The picture here will help give you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M5 and WX220.

All in all, both cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The E-M5 because of its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field simpler and the Sony WX220 will resolve more detail as a result of its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will let you crop shots a little more aggressively. The more aged E-M5 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Portrait photography information
Sony WX220 Portrait photography information
71
focusing manually
good resolution (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with face detection focus
saves RAW formats
37
decent sensor resolution (18MP)
supports face detection focus
manual focus not available
manual exposure not possible
can't use external flash
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Street photography advice
Sony WX220 Street photography advice
82
has a tilting screen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
features touch focus
weather proof
great high ISO (25,600)
59
built in image stabilization (Optical)
screen is fixed
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Sports photography factors
Sony WX220 Sports photography factors
67
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good resolution (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking autofocus
weather proof
does not have phase detect auto focus
46
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor resolution (18 megapixels)
supports tracking autofocus
no shutter priority mode
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M5 as a Travel photography camera
Sony WX220 as a Travel photography camera
66
weather proof
features touch focus
good resolution (16 megapixels)
lack of Time Lapse function
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
69
decent sensor resolution (18MP)
flash built-in
reasonably wide (25mm)
long reach (250mm)
missing Timelapse function
does not contain selfie friendly screen
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Landscape photography factors
Sony WX220 Landscape photography factors
73
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
great high ISO (25,600)
saves RAW formats
weather proof
lack of Time Lapse function
44
reasonably wide (25mm)
nice screen size (3")
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor resolution (18 megapixels)
manual focus not available
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
manual exposure not possible
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
missing Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Vlogging highlights
Sony WX220 Vlogging highlights
34
screen is touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
comes with face detection focus
great video quality (1920 x 1080 pxls)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
lack of external mic support
34
reasonably wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
supports face detection focus
good video quality (1920 x 1080 pixels)
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
does not contain selfie friendly screen
missing external microphone jack
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Olympus E-M5 vs Sony WX220 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M5 and Sony WX220
 Olympus OM-D E-M5Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX220
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M5 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX220
Category Advanced Mirrorless Ultracompact
Revealed 2012-04-30 2014-02-12
Body design SLR-style mirrorless Ultracompact
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic VI Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 18 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4608 x 3456 4896 x 3672
Max native ISO 25600 12800
Lowest native ISO 200 100
RAW data
Lowest enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
AF continuous
AF single
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 35 -
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 25-250mm (10.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.3-5.9
Amount of lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Range of screen Tilting Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 610 thousand dot 460 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen tech Touch control in electrostatic capacitance type OLED monitor -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 1,440 thousand dot -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 secs 4 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shutter speed 9.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 3.70 m (with Auto ISO)
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync (2), Manual (3 levels) Auto, on, slow synchro, off, advanced
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/250 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video file format H.264, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 425 grams (0.94 lbs) 121 grams (0.27 lbs)
Dimensions 122 x 89 x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") 92 x 52 x 22mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.9")
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 210 images
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLN-1 NP-BN
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, portrait)
Time lapse feature
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Price at release $799 $198