Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony A580

Below, we will be reviewing the Olympus E-PL1s versus Sony A580, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There exists a significant gap among the resolutions of the E-PL1s (12MP) and A580 (16MP) and the E-PL1s (Four Thirds) and A580 (APS-C) possess different sensor size.

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The E-PL1s was announced 6 months before the A580 which means that they are of a similar generation. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL1s being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A580 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving straight into a complete comparison, below is a simple introduction of how the E-PL1s matches up versus the A580 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-PL1s and Sony Alpha DSLR-A580. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL1s Gallery and Sony A580 Gallery.

For those who are intending to carry around your camera often, you will want to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL1s comes with external measurements of 115mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") along with a weight of 334 grams (0.74 lbs) and the Sony A580 has measurements of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") having a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-PL1s versus Sony A580 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you select at that time. Below is the front view over all size comparison of the E-PL1s against the A580.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL1s and A580 is 86 and 64 respectively.

Normally, it is difficult to imagine the difference in sensor sizes just by researching specs. The pic underneath may offer you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL1s and A580.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-PL1s having a smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF tougher and the Sony A580 will provide you with greater detail with its extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop shots somewhat more aggressively.