Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH22

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic FH22, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by brands Olympus and Panasonic. The resolution of the E-PL1 (12MP) and the FH22 (14MP) is fairly well matched but the E-PL1 (Four Thirds) and FH22 (1/2.3") use different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL1 was announced 5 months later than the FH22 which means that they are both of a similar age. Both cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FH22 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight into a complete comparison, below is a concise view of how the E-PL1 grades against the FH22 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL1 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH22. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL1 Gallery & Panasonic FH22 Gallery.

If you're going to lug around your camera often, you'll need to consider its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-PL1 offers outer dimensions of 115mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") and a weight of 334 grams (0.74 lbs) whilst the Panasonic FH22 has proportions of 100mm x 57mm x 27mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1") accompanied by a weight of 170 grams (0.37 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic FH22 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you are employing at the time. Underneath is the front view physical size comparison of the E-PL1 and the FH22.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL1 and FH22 is 86 and 94 respectively.

Usually, it's tough to picture the gap between sensor measurements merely by checking a spec sheet. The visual below will offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL1 and FH22.

As you can see, each of these cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-PL1 with its larger sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field easier and the Panasonic FH22 will resolve more detail with its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will let you crop photos much more aggressively.