Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony W730

Below, we are looking at the Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony W730, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Olympus and Sony. There exists a significant gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-PL1 (12MP) and W730 (16MP) and the E-PL1 (Four Thirds) and W730 (1/2.3") feature different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL1 was introduced 3 years prior to the W730 and that is quite a sizable gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony W730 being a Compact camera.

Before we go in to a thorough comparison, below is a short summation of how the E-PL1 scores versus the W730 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL1 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W730. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL1 Gallery and Sony W730 Gallery.

When you are planning to carry your camera, you'll need to factor its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL1 comes with outside 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 W730 has dimensions of 93mm x 52mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.0" x 0.9") and a weight of 122 grams (0.27 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-PL1 vs Sony W730 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ based on the lens you have at the time. Here is the front view measurement comparison of the E-PL1 and the W730.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL1 and W730 is 86 and 96 respectively.

More often than not, it is hard to imagine the contrast between sensor sizing simply by going over specs. The photograph below will give you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL1 and W730.

All in all, both the cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-PL1 having a larger sensor is going to make getting shallower DOF simpler and the Sony W730 will deliver greater detail using its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will enable you to crop photos somewhat more aggressively. The older E-PL1 is going to be behind in sensor technology.