Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony NEX-C3
86 Imaging
47 Features
43 Overall
45


91 Imaging
56 Features
57 Overall
56
Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony NEX-C3 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 2.7" Fixed Display
- ISO 100 - 6400
- Sensor based Image Stabilization
- 1280 x 720 video
- Micro Four Thirds Mount
- 334g - 115 x 72 x 42mm
- Introduced November 2010
- Previous Model is Olympus E-PL1
- Refreshed by Olympus E-PL2
(Full Review)
- 16MP - APS-C Sensor
- 3" Tilting Screen
- ISO 100 - 12800
- 1280 x 720 video
- Sony E Mount
- 225g - 110 x 60 x 33mm
- Launched August 2011
- Superseded the Sony NEX-3
- Successor is Sony NEX-F3

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony NEX-C3 Overview
Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus E-PL1s versus Sony NEX-C3, both Entry-Level Mirrorless cameras by brands Olympus and Sony. There exists a noticeable gap among the resolutions of the E-PL1s (12MP) and NEX-C3 (16MP) and the E-PL1s (Four Thirds) and NEX-C3 (APS-C) posses different sensor measurements.

The E-PL1s was released 9 months before the NEX-C3 so they are of a similar age. Both cameras feature the same body design (Rangefinder-style mirrorless).
Before going into a full comparison, here is a short summation of how the E-PL1s matches up versus the NEX-C3 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony NEX-C3 Gallery
Here is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus PEN E-PL1s & Sony Alpha NEX-C3. The complete galleries are available at Olympus E-PL1s Gallery & Sony NEX-C3 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL1s over the Sony NEX-C3
E-PL1s | NEX-C3 |
---|
Reasons to pick Sony NEX-C3 over the Olympus E-PL1s
NEX-C3 | E-PL1s | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Launched | August 2011 | ![]() | November 2010 | More modern by 9 months |
Screen type | Tilting | ![]() | Fixed | Tilting screen |
Screen size | 3" | ![]() | 2.7" | Bigger screen (+0.3") |
Screen resolution | 920k | ![]() | 230k | Crisper screen (+690k dot) |
Common features in the Olympus E-PL1s and Sony NEX-C3
E-PL1s | NEX-C3 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Focus manually | ![]() | Dial exact focusing | ||
Selfie screen | ![]() | Lack of selfie screen | ||
Touch friendly screen | ![]() | Neither offers Touch friendly screen |
Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony NEX-C3 Physical Comparison
If you're aiming to carry around your camera often, you should factor its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-PL1s offers outer measurements of 115mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") with a weight of 334 grams (0.74 lbs) and the Sony NEX-C3 has proportions of 110mm x 60mm x 33mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.3") along with a weight of 225 grams (0.50 lbs).
See the Olympus E-PL1s versus Sony NEX-C3 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you use at that moment. Following is a front view measurements comparison of the E-PL1s and the NEX-C3.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL1s and NEX-C3 is 86 and 91 respectively.

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony NEX-C3 Sensor Comparison
Quite often, it's tough to picture the contrast in sensor sizes purely by looking through a spec sheet. The picture here might give you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-PL1s and NEX-C3.
Clearly, the 2 cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-PL1s featuring a smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF harder and the Sony NEX-C3 will result in extra detail as a result of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop shots way more aggressively. The more aged E-PL1s will be behind in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony NEX-C3 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony NEX-C3 Specifications
Olympus PEN E-PL1s | Sony Alpha NEX-C3 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Brand Name | Olympus | Sony |
Model | Olympus PEN E-PL1s | Sony Alpha NEX-C3 |
Class | Entry-Level Mirrorless | Entry-Level Mirrorless |
Introduced | 2010-11-16 | 2011-08-22 |
Body design | Rangefinder-style mirrorless | Rangefinder-style mirrorless |
Sensor Information | ||
Chip | Truepic V | Bionz |
Sensor type | CMOS | CMOS |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | APS-C |
Sensor measurements | 17.3 x 13mm | 23.4 x 15.6mm |
Sensor surface area | 224.9mm² | 365.0mm² |
Sensor resolution | 12 megapixel | 16 megapixel |
Anti aliasing filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 | 3:2 and 16:9 |
Peak resolution | 4032 x 3024 | 4912 x 3264 |
Highest native ISO | 6400 | 12800 |
Minimum native ISO | 100 | 100 |
RAW images | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Focus manually | ||
Touch focus | ||
AF continuous | ||
AF single | ||
Tracking AF | ||
AF selectice | ||
AF center weighted | ||
Multi area AF | ||
Live view AF | ||
Face detect focusing | ||
Contract detect focusing | ||
Phase detect focusing | ||
Number of focus points | 11 | 25 |
Lens | ||
Lens mount | Micro Four Thirds | Sony E |
Amount of lenses | 107 | 121 |
Crop factor | 2.1 | 1.5 |
Screen | ||
Range of display | Fixed Type | Tilting |
Display sizing | 2.7 inches | 3 inches |
Resolution of display | 230 thousand dot | 920 thousand dot |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch functionality | ||
Display tech | HyperCrystal LCD AR (Anti-Reflective) coating | TFT Xtra Fine LCD |
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder | Electronic (optional) | None |
Features | ||
Min shutter speed | 60 seconds | 30 seconds |
Max shutter speed | 1/2000 seconds | 1/4000 seconds |
Continuous shutter speed | 3.0 frames per second | 6.0 frames per second |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Expose Manually | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
Change WB | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash range | 10.00 m | no built-in flash |
Flash modes | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in |
Hot shoe | ||
AE bracketing | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Max flash sync | 1/160 seconds | 1/160 seconds |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment metering | ||
Average metering | ||
Spot metering | ||
Partial metering | ||
AF area metering | ||
Center weighted metering | ||
Video features | ||
Supported video resolutions | 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) | 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) |
Highest video resolution | 1280x720 | 1280x720 |
Video file format | Motion JPEG | MPEG-4 |
Microphone input | ||
Headphone input | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | Eye-Fi Connected |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | None |
Physical | ||
Environment seal | ||
Water proof | ||
Dust proof | ||
Shock proof | ||
Crush proof | ||
Freeze proof | ||
Weight | 334 grams (0.74 pounds) | 225 grams (0.50 pounds) |
Physical dimensions | 115 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") | 110 x 60 x 33mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.3") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO Overall score | not tested | 73 |
DXO Color Depth score | not tested | 22.7 |
DXO Dynamic range score | not tested | 12.2 |
DXO Low light score | not tested | 1083 |
Other | ||
Battery life | 290 photographs | 400 photographs |
Battery format | Battery Pack | Battery Pack |
Battery model | BLS-1 | NPFW50 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec 3 or 5 images) |
Time lapse shooting | ||
Storage media | SD/SDHC | SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo |
Storage slots | 1 | 1 |
Pricing at release | $599 | $343 |