Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony W650

Let's examine more closely at the Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony W650, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Sony. There exists a crucial gap between the resolutions of the E-PL1 (12MP) and W650 (16MP) and the E-PL1 (Four Thirds) and W650 (1/2.3") feature different sensor size.

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The E-PL1 was announced 20 months prior to the W650 which makes the cameras a generation away from one another. Each of the cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-PL1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony W650 being a Compact camera.

Before delving in to a step-by-step comparison, below is a brief overview of how the E-PL1 matches up against the W650 for portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus PEN E-PL1 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W650. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL1 Gallery and Sony W650 Gallery.

When you are looking to carry around your camera often, you should consider its weight and volume. The Olympus E-PL1 features physical measurements 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 W650 has sizing of 94mm x 56mm x 19mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.7") with a weight of 124 grams (0.27 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony W650 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you are using at that moment. The following is the front view sizing comparison of the E-PL1 compared to the W650.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL1 and W650 is 86 and 96 respectively.

Sometimes, it is difficult to visualize the difference between sensor sizes purely by going over technical specs. The image below will help give you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL1 and W650.

As you can tell, each of the cameras enjoy different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-PL1 having a bigger sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF less difficult and the Sony W650 will offer more detail with its extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop photographs far more aggressively. The more aged E-PL1 is going to be behind in sensor innovation.