Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic GM5

Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic GM5, both Entry-Level Mirrorless digital cameras by companies Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a substantial gap between the resolutions of the E-PL1 (12MP) and GM5 (16MP) but they use the exact same sensor sizes (Four Thirds).

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The E-PL1 was introduced 5 years before the GM5 and that is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras come with the identical body type (Rangefinder-style mirrorless).

Before diving in to a more detailed comparison, below is a simple summary of how the E-PL1 matches up against the GM5 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL1 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-PL1 Gallery & Panasonic GM5 Gallery.

For those who are going to lug around your camera, you have to think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL1 has 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) while the Panasonic GM5 has measurements of 99mm x 60mm x 36mm (3.9" x 2.4" x 1.4") along with a weight of 211 grams (0.47 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL1 vs Panasonic GM5 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you use during that time. Underneath is the front view physical size comparison of the E-PL1 against the GM5.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL1 and GM5 is 86 and 91 respectively.

Sometimes, it is very difficult to picture the contrast between sensor measurements merely by checking specs. The photograph here will provide you a better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-PL1 and GM5.

All in all, the 2 cameras posses the exact same sensor measurements but different megapixels. You can anticipate the Panasonic GM5 to resolve greater detail using its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will allow you to crop images somewhat more aggressively. The older E-PL1 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.