Olympus E-P1 vs Sony WX500

Its time to look more closely at the Olympus E-P1 versus Sony WX500, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by rivals Olympus and Sony. There exists a large gap among the resolutions of the E-P1 (12MP) and WX500 (18MP) and the E-P1 (Four Thirds) and WX500 (1/2.3") come with totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-P1 was brought out 6 years earlier than the WX500 which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-P1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony WX500 being a Compact camera.

Before going in to a more detailed comparison, below is a simple highlight of how the E-P1 matches up vs the WX500 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-P1 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX500. The entire galleries are provided at Olympus E-P1 Gallery & Sony WX500 Gallery.

For those who are planning to travel with your camera, you should factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-P1 provides outer measurements of 121mm x 70mm x 36mm (4.8" x 2.8" x 1.4") along with a weight of 355 grams (0.78 lbs) and the Sony WX500 has measurements of 102mm x 58mm x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") with a weight of 236 grams (0.52 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-P1 versus Sony WX500 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you are utilizing at the time. Following is the front view proportions comparison of the E-P1 vs the WX500.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-P1 and WX500 is 86 and 91 respectively.

Sometimes, it is tough to visualise the difference in sensor dimensions just by going through specifications. The picture here will help offer you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-P1 and WX500.

To sum up, both of the cameras enjoy different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The E-P1 featuring a bigger sensor will make getting shallower DOF easier and the Sony WX500 will show more detail having its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will let you crop photographs far more aggressively. The more aged E-P1 will be behind when it comes to sensor tech.