Olympus E-PL1s vs Panasonic FZ70

Here is a complete analysis of the Olympus E-PL1s and Panasonic FZ70, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. There is a sizeable difference between the sensor resolutions of the E-PL1s (12MP) and FZ70 (16MP) and the E-PL1s (Four Thirds) and FZ70 (1/2.3") feature different sensor sizes.

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The E-PL1s was released 3 years prior to the FZ70 and that is quite a large gap as far as tech is concerned. Both cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-PL1s being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FZ70 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before getting in to a in depth comparison, below is a simple overview of how the E-PL1s matches up vs the FZ70 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus PEN E-PL1s and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ70. The complete galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL1s Gallery and Panasonic FZ70 Gallery.

If you're aiming to carry your camera, you'll have to consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL1s has outside dimensions of 115mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 334 grams (0.74 lbs) whilst the Panasonic FZ70 has dimensions of 130mm x 97mm x 118mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 4.6") along with a weight of 606 grams (1.34 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-PL1s and Panasonic FZ70 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you use at that time. The following is the front view over all size comparison of the E-PL1s and the FZ70.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL1s and FZ70 is 86 and 63 respectively.

In many cases, it can be difficult to visualize the gap between sensor sizing only by checking specs. The visual below might give you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL1s and FZ70.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras enjoy different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The E-PL1s featuring a larger sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF simpler and the Panasonic FZ70 will give you greater detail as a result of its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also let you crop images far more aggressively. The older E-PL1s is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.