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Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10

Portability
86
Imaging
47
Features
43
Overall
45
Olympus PEN E-PL1 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 front
Portability
58
Imaging
51
Features
76
Overall
61

Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL1
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 334g - 115 x 72 x 42mm
  • Launched May 2010
  • Replacement is Olympus E-PL1s
Sony RX10
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Bump to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 24-200mm (F2.8) lens
  • 813g - 129 x 88 x 102mm
  • Launched March 2014
  • Refreshed by Sony RX10 II
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Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 Overview

Following is a in-depth comparison of the Olympus E-PL1 versus Sony RX10, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Large Sensor Superzoom by companies Olympus and Sony. There is a big difference between the sensor resolutions of the E-PL1 (12MP) and RX10 (20MP) and the E-PL1 (Four Thirds) and RX10 (1") provide totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-PL1 was announced 4 years before the RX10 which is quite a big gap as far as tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony RX10 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before delving straight to a full comparison, here is a quick synopsis of how the E-PL1 matches up against the RX10 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL1 over the Sony RX10

 E-PL1 RX10 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 over the Olympus E-PL1

 RX10 E-PL1 
LaunchedMarch 2014May 2010More modern by 46 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display dimensions3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution1290k230kSharper display (+1060k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-PL1 and Sony RX10

 E-PL1 RX10 
Manual focus Very precise focus
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch friendly display No Touch friendly display

Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is looking to carry around your camera, you are going to need to factor in its weight and volume. The Olympus E-PL1 has exterior 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 Sony RX10 has sizing of 129mm x 88mm x 102mm (5.1" x 3.5" x 4.0") with a weight of 813 grams (1.79 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL1 versus Sony RX10 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you are employing at that time. Following is a front view physical size comparison of the E-PL1 vs the RX10.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL1 and RX10 is 86 and 58 respectively.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 Sensor Comparison

In many cases, it is hard to envision the difference between sensor sizes merely by looking at specs. The picture underneath may offer you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL1 and RX10.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras have different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-PL1 with its larger sensor will make getting shallow depth of field simpler and the Sony RX10 will resolve greater detail with its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop images a bit more aggressively. The more aged E-PL1 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Portrait photography info
Sony RX10 Portrait photography info
60
you can focus manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes face detection focusing
supports RAW files
low MP (12MP)
70
manual focus
decent MP (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
supports face detection focus
delivers RAW formats
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Street photography highlights
Sony RX10 Street photography highlights
74
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
screen is fixed
72
tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor size (1")
delivers RAW formats
weather proofing
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Sports photography information
Sony RX10 Sports photography information
44
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes tracking autofocus
very slow continuous shooting (3.0 fps)
low MP (12MP)
terrible battery pack (290 CIPA)
lack of phase detect AF
67
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
weather proofing
better than average battery life (420 CIPA)
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Travel photography features
Sony RX10 Travel photography features
51
built-in flash
lack of Timelapse recording
terrible battery pack (290 per charge)
low MP (12 megapixels)
does not have a selfie friendly display
58
better than average battery life (420 per charge)
weather proofing
decent MP (20MP)
built-in flash
pretty wide (24mm)
no Timelapse function
does not feature selfie friendly screen
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL1 Landscape photography info
Sony RX10 Landscape photography info
55
you can focus manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
tiny screen (2.7")
low MP (12MP)
terrible battery pack (290 shots)
lack of Timelapse recording
63
manual focus
pretty wide (24mm)
screen is a decent size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
delivers RAW formats
weather proofing
better than average battery life (420 CIPA)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
no Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-PL1
Vlogging with Sony RX10
29
image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detection focusing
does not have a selfie friendly display
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
lack of external microphone support
30
pretty wide (24mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
supports face detection focus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
includes external microphone port
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
does not feature selfie friendly screen
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Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony RX10 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL1 and Sony RX10
 Olympus PEN E-PL1Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL1 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Large Sensor Superzoom
Launched 2010-05-17 2014-03-20
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Powered by Truepic V Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4032 x 3024 5472 x 3648
Max native ISO 3200 12800
Max enhanced ISO - 25600
Lowest native ISO 100 125
RAW images
Lowest enhanced ISO - 80
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 11 25
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 24-200mm (8.3x)
Max aperture - f/2.8
Number of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 2.7
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Tilting
Screen size 2.7 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 230 thousand dot 1,290 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Screen tech HyperCrystal LCD AR (Anti-Reflective) coating WhiteMagic
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 1,440 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/3200 secs
Continuous shutter speed 3.0 frames per sec 10.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 10.00 m 10.20 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync 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) 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Max video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video file format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
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 seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 334g (0.74 pounds) 813g (1.79 pounds)
Physical dimensions 115 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") 129 x 88 x 102mm (5.1" x 3.5" x 4.0")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 54 69
DXO Color Depth rating 21.5 22.9
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.1 12.6
DXO Low light rating 487 474
Other
Battery life 290 shots 420 shots
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLS-1 NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse shooting
Storage media SD/SDHC card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Cost at release $288 $698