Clicky

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27

Portability
86
Imaging
47
Features
43
Overall
45
Olympus PEN E-PL1 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH27 front
Portability
94
Imaging
39
Features
34
Overall
37

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL1
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 334g - 115 x 72 x 42mm
  • Introduced May 2010
  • Replacement is Olympus E-PL1s
Panasonic FH27
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-224mm (F3.3-5.9) lens
  • 152g - 99 x 57 x 28mm
  • Revealed January 2011
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 Overview

Let's look a bit more closely at the Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a significant gap between the image resolutions of the E-PL1 (12MP) and FH27 (16MP) and the E-PL1 (Four Thirds) and FH27 (1/2.3") feature different sensor measurements.

Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

The E-PL1 was brought out 7 months prior to the FH27 and they are of a similar generation. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FH27 being a Compact camera.

Before delving straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a concise overview of how the E-PL1 grades versus the FH27 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone
	
	

Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL1 over the Panasonic FH27

 E-PL1 FH27 
Manual focus More precise focusing

Reasons to pick Panasonic FH27 over the Olympus E-PL1

 FH27 E-PL1 
RevealedJanuary 2011May 2010Newer by 7 months
Screen dimension3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic FH27

 E-PL1 FH27 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen resolution230k230kEqual screen resolution
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 Physical Comparison

If you are intending to travel with your camera frequently, you will have to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL1 offers outer dimensions of 115mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") along with a weight of 334 grams (0.74 lbs) whilst the Panasonic FH27 has dimensions of 99mm x 57mm x 28mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1") along with a weight of 152 grams (0.34 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you are employing at that moment. Underneath is the front view dimensions comparison of the E-PL1 versus the FH27.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL1 and FH27 is 86 and 94 respectively.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, its difficult to imagine the contrast between sensor dimensions only by looking at a spec sheet. The picture below should offer you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL1 and FH27.

As you can see, both of those cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL1 because of its bigger sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF easier and the Panasonic FH27 will give you more detail having its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The more aged E-PL1 is going to be behind with regard to sensor tech.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Portrait photography advice
Panasonic FH27 Portrait photography advice
60
focusing manually
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes face detection focus
saves RAW formats
megapixel count low (12MP)
34
good resolution (16 megapixels)
has face detection focusing
lack of manual focus
no manual mode
no external flash support
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month

Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Street photography information
Panasonic FH27 Street photography information
74
image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
no moving screen
63
has image stabilization (Optical)
supports focus by touch
no moving screen
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
President Biden pushes bill mandating TikTok sale or ban

Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Sports photography info
Panasonic FH27 Sports photography info
44
image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes tracking autofocus
painfully slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames/s)
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
not so great battery (290 shots)
no phase detect auto focus
40
has image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (16MP)
has tracking autofocus
very slow continuous shooting (4.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images

Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Travel photography highlights
Panasonic FH27 Travel photography highlights
51
built-in flash
lack of Timelapse recording
not so great battery (290 per charge)
megapixel count low (12MP)
screen is not selfie friendly
68
supports focus by touch
good resolution (16MP)
built-in flash
quite wide (28mm)
no Time Lapse function
display is not selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.3)
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-PL1
Landscape photography with Panasonic FH27
55
focusing manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
small screen (2.7 inch)
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
not so great battery (290 per charge)
lack of Timelapse recording
43
quite wide (28mm)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
lack of manual focus
can't swap lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.3)
no manual mode
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
no Time Lapse function
Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Vlogging features
Panasonic FH27 Vlogging features
29
image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detection focus
screen is not selfie friendly
low quality video (1280 x 720 pixels)
lack of external microphone jack
32
quite wide (28mm)
touchscreen functionality
has image stabilization (Optical)
has face detection focusing
slow max aperture (f3.3)
display is not selfie friendly
low quality video (1280 x 720 pxls)
no external mic port
Body cameras now worn by bakery staff to deter stealing

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic FH27 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic FH27
 Olympus PEN E-PL1Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH27
General Information
Company Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH27
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2010-05-17 2011-01-05
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Chip Truepic V Venus Engine VI
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 -
Highest Possible resolution 4032 x 3024 4608 x 3456
Maximum native ISO 3200 6400
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
AF continuous
AF single
AF tracking
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points 11 11
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-224mm (8.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.3-5.9
Macro focusing range - 5cm
Amount of lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.9
Screen
Range of display Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display sizing 2.7" 3"
Display resolution 230k dot 230k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Display technology HyperCrystal LCD AR (Anti-Reflective) coating TFT Touch Screen LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) None
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 secs 60 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shutter speed 3.0 frames/s 4.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 10.00 m 5.80 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/160 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (24 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1280x720
Video file format Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 334 gr (0.74 lbs) 152 gr (0.34 lbs)
Dimensions 115 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") 99 x 57 x 28mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 54 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.5 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.1 not tested
DXO Low light rating 487 not tested
Other
Battery life 290 shots 250 shots
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLS-1 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots One One
Retail pricing $288 $229