Olympus E-P2 vs Sony HX20V

Its time to look a little more closely at the Olympus E-P2 and Sony HX20V, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by competitors Olympus and Sony. There is a crucial difference between the image resolutions of the E-P2 (12MP) and HX20V (18MP) and the E-P2 (Four Thirds) and HX20V (1/2.3") boast different sensor dimensions.

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The E-P2 was introduced 3 years prior to the HX20V which is quite a serious gap as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-P2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony HX20V being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a comprehensive comparison, here is a quick overview of how the E-P2 grades versus the HX20V when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

This is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus PEN E-P2 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-P2 Gallery and Sony HX20V Gallery.

For anyone who is looking to carry around your camera, you should think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-P2 features exterior 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 HX20V has proportions of 107mm x 62mm x 35mm (4.2" x 2.4" x 1.4") having a weight of 254 grams (0.56 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-P2 and Sony HX20V in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you select at the time. Below is a front view overall size comparison of the E-P2 against the HX20V.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability grade of the E-P2 and HX20V is 86 and 90 respectively.

Oftentimes, its hard to visualize the difference between sensor sizes simply by looking at specifications. The pic underneath may give you a greater sense of the sensor sizing in the E-P2 and HX20V.

To sum up, the two cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The E-P2 using its larger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF simpler and the Sony HX20V will resolve greater detail using its extra 6MP. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop photos a bit more aggressively. The more aged E-P2 is going to be behind in sensor tech.