Olympus E-PL1 vs Olympus PEN-F

On this page, we will be evaluating the Olympus E-PL1 and Olympus PEN-F, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless and both of them are offered by Olympus. There exists a considerable gap among the image resolutions of the E-PL1 (12MP) and PEN-F (20MP) but both cameras posses the same sensor size (Four Thirds).

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The E-PL1 was unveiled 6 years before the PEN-F which is a fairly large difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of the cameras have the same body design (Rangefinder-style mirrorless).

Before diving straight to a full comparison, here is a concise introduction of how the E-PL1 scores versus the PEN-F for portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-PL1 & Olympus PEN-F. The full galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL1 Gallery & Olympus PEN-F Gallery.

When you are looking to carry around your camera, you'll have to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL1 comes with outside measurements of 115mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") having a weight of 334 grams (0.74 lbs) whilst the Olympus PEN-F has measurements of 125mm x 72mm x 37mm (4.9" x 2.8" x 1.5") and a weight of 427 grams (0.94 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-PL1 and Olympus PEN-F in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you are using at that moment. Below is a front view scale comparison of the E-PL1 against the PEN-F.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL1 and PEN-F is 86 and 84 respectively.

Quite often, its tough to visualise the gap in sensor sizes purely by researching technical specs. The image below will help offer you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL1 and PEN-F.

As you can tell, each of the cameras have the same sensor dimensions albeit not the same megapixels. You can count on the Olympus PEN-F to result in greater detail having an extra 8MP. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The more aged E-PL1 will be disadvantaged in sensor tech.