Olympus E-P3 vs Pentax RS1500

Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus E-P3 versus Pentax RS1500, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Pentax. The sensor resolution of the E-P3 (12MP) and the RS1500 (14MP) is pretty close but the E-P3 (Four Thirds) and RS1500 (1/2.3") feature totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-P3 was released 6 months after the RS1500 which means that they are of a similar age. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-P3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax RS1500 being a Compact camera.

Before delving through a in depth comparison, below is a short summary of how the E-P3 scores against the RS1500 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus PEN E-P3 & Pentax Optio RS1500. The complete galleries are available at Olympus E-P3 Gallery & Pentax RS1500 Gallery.

When you are looking to carry around your camera often, you should consider its weight and volume. The Olympus E-P3 offers outside dimensions of 122mm x 69mm x 34mm (4.8" x 2.7" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 369 grams (0.81 lbs) whilst the Pentax RS1500 has sizing of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") accompanied by a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-P3 versus Pentax RS1500 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are using at that moment. Underneath is the front view physical size comparison of the E-P3 versus the RS1500.

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the E-P3 and RS1500 is 86 and 93 respectively.

Usually, its tough to visualise the contrast in sensor sizes simply by looking through technical specs. The image here will provide you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-P3 and RS1500.

As you have seen, both of these cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-P3 because of its bigger sensor will make getting shallow DOF easier and the Pentax RS1500 will render greater detail as a result of its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also let you crop pictures a little more aggressively.