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Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85

Portability
86
Imaging
47
Features
43
Overall
45
Olympus PEN E-PL1 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-G85 front
Portability
69
Imaging
54
Features
84
Overall
66

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 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
  • Launched May 2010
  • Refreshed by Olympus E-PL1s
Panasonic G85
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600 (Expand to 25600)
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 505g - 128 x 89 x 74mm
  • Launched September 2016
  • Also Known as Lumix DMC-G80
  • Successor is Panasonic G95
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 Overview

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless by rivals Olympus and Panasonic. There is a noticeable difference between the resolutions of the E-PL1 (12MP) and G85 (16MP) but both cameras posses the same sensor size (Four Thirds).

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The E-PL1 was released 7 years earlier than the G85 and that is quite a sizable difference as far as tech is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic G85 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before going into a complete comparison, here is a concise summation of how the E-PL1 scores vs the G85 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL1 over the Panasonic G85

 E-PL1 G85 

Reasons to pick Panasonic G85 over the Olympus E-PL1

 G85 E-PL1 
LaunchedSeptember 2016May 2010More recent by 77 months
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution1040k230kSharper screen (+810k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic G85

 E-PL1 G85 
Manually focus Very exact focusing

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 Physical Comparison

In case you're aiming to lug around your camera often, you will need to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-PL1 has got physical 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 G85 has proportions of 128mm x 89mm x 74mm (5.0" x 3.5" x 2.9") along with a weight of 505 grams (1.11 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you have at that time. Following is a front view dimension comparison of the E-PL1 against the G85.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL1 and G85 is 86 and 69 respectively.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 Sensor Comparison

Generally, its hard to imagine the gap between sensor measurements just by reviewing specs. The graphic here will offer you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL1 and G85.

All in all, both of those cameras have the same sensor dimensions albeit different MP. You can count on the Panasonic G85 to offer more detail as a result of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will enable you to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The older E-PL1 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 as a Portrait photography camera
Panasonic G85 as a Portrait photography camera
60
has manual focus
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
features face detection focus
delivers RAW formats
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
72
focusing manually
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
includes face detect focusing
supports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Street photography highlights
Panasonic G85 Street photography highlights
74
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
screen does not articulate
77
fully articulated screen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
comes with touch to focus
weather proofing
above average ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-PL1
Sports photography with Panasonic G85
44
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
features tracking autofocus
very slow continuous shooting (3.0 fps)
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
bad battery life (290 CIPA)
lacks phase detect auto focus
64
quiet mode (1/16,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
includes tracking focus
weather proofing
not so great battery pack (330 shots)
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Travel photography details
Panasonic G85 Travel photography details
51
built-in flash
does not have Time Lapse recording
bad battery life (290 CIPA)
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
71
weather proofing
comes with touch to focus
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
built-in flash
display is selfie friendly
not so great battery pack (330 CIPA)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Landscape photography highlights
Panasonic G85 Landscape photography highlights
55
has manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
screen is small (2.7 inch)
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
bad battery life (290 per charge)
does not have Time Lapse recording
73
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good megapixels (16MP)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
no anti aliasing filter
above average ISO range (25,600)
supports RAW files
weather proofing
not so great battery pack (330 shots)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Vlogging advice
Panasonic G85 Vlogging advice
29
image stabilization (Sensor based)
features face detection focus
screen is not selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 resolution)
does not have external mic socket
78
display is selfie friendly
screen is touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
includes face detect focusing
high res video (3840 x 2160 pixels)
does have mic socket
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Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic G85 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic G85
 Olympus PEN E-PL1Panasonic Lumix DMC-G85
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus PEN E-PL1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-G85
Alternate name - Lumix DMC-G80
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Advanced Mirrorless
Launched 2010-05-17 2016-09-19
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Truepic V -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Four Thirds
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 16 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4032 x 3024 4592 x 3448
Maximum native ISO 3200 25600
Maximum enhanced ISO - 25600
Minimum native ISO 100 200
RAW pictures
Minimum enhanced ISO - 100
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 11 49
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds Micro Four Thirds
Total lenses 107 107
Crop factor 2.1 2.1
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Fully Articulated
Display size 2.7" 3"
Resolution of display 230 thousand dots 1,040 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display technology HyperCrystal LCD AR (Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,360 thousand dots
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.74x
Features
Min shutter speed 60 secs 60 secs
Max shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/4000 secs
Max quiet shutter speed - 1/16000 secs
Continuous shutter rate 3.0fps 9.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 10.00 m 6.20 m (at ISO 100)
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, Auto/Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Forced On/Red-eye Reduction, Slow Sync., Slow Sync./Red-eye Reduction, Forced Off
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Max flash synchronize 1/160 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 100 Mbps, MP4, H.264, AAC
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 3840x2160
Video format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 334 gr (0.74 pounds) 505 gr (1.11 pounds)
Physical dimensions 115 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") 128 x 89 x 74mm (5.0" x 3.5" x 2.9")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 54 71
DXO Color Depth score 21.5 22.8
DXO Dynamic range score 10.1 12.5
DXO Low light score 487 656
Other
Battery life 290 photos 330 photos
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-1 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 secs, 10 secs x 3 shots)
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD/SDHC card SD/SDHC/SDXC card
Card slots One One
Price at release $288 $900