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Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100

Portability
86
Imaging
47
Features
43
Overall
45
Olympus PEN E-PL1s front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 front
Portability
91
Imaging
50
Features
68
Overall
57

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL1s
(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
  • Announced November 2010
  • Superseded the Olympus E-PL1
  • Replacement is Olympus E-PL2
Sony RX100
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-100mm (F1.8-4.9) lens
  • 240g - 102 x 58 x 36mm
  • Revealed August 2012
  • Later Model is Sony RX100 II
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Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 Overview

Let's look closer at the Olympus E-PL1s and Sony RX100, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Large Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Sony. There exists a significant gap among the image resolutions of the E-PL1s (12MP) and RX100 (20MP) and the E-PL1s (Four Thirds) and RX100 (1") come with totally different sensor size.

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The E-PL1s was announced 21 months earlier than the RX100 making the cameras a generation apart from one another. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL1s being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony RX100 being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before diving straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a short view of how the E-PL1s matches up versus the RX100 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL1s over the Sony RX100

 E-PL1s RX100 

Reasons to pick Sony RX100 over the Olympus E-PL1s

 RX100 E-PL1s 
RevealedAugust 2012November 2010Fresher by 21 months
Display dimension3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution1229k230kClearer display (+999k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-PL1s and Sony RX100

 E-PL1s RX100 
Manually focus Very accurate focus
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen
Touch friendly display Absent Touch friendly display

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 Physical Comparison

If you are looking to carry your camera regularly, you should factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL1s has got outside dimensions of 115mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") with a weight of 334 grams (0.74 lbs) whilst the Sony RX100 has measurements of 102mm x 58mm x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") accompanied by a weight of 240 grams (0.53 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL1s and Sony RX100 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ based on the lens you have chosen at that moment. Following is the front view physical size comparison of the E-PL1s and the RX100.

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL1s and RX100 is 86 and 91 respectively.

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, its hard to visualise the contrast in sensor sizing purely by viewing specs. The graphic underneath will provide you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL1s and RX100.

All in all, each of the cameras have got different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-PL1s with its larger sensor will make shooting shallow DOF simpler and the Sony RX100 will render extra detail with its extra 8MP. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop images much more aggressively. The older E-PL1s will be behind in sensor tech.

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL1s Portrait photography advice
Sony RX100 Portrait photography advice
60
you can focus manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
has face detection focusing
supports RAW formats
low MP (12MP)
64
has manual focus
great flash sync speed (1/2,000 seconds)
resolution is good (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
has face detection autofocus
saves RAW files
can't use external flash
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL1s Street photography details
Sony RX100 Street photography details
74
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
no moving screen
79
image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor size (1")
saves RAW files
lighter than others (240g)
very good high ISO (25,600)
screen does not articulate
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL1s Sports photography features
Sony RX100 Sports photography features
44
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
has tracking autofocus
continuous shooting slow (3.0 frames/s)
low MP (12MP)
bad battery pack (290 shots)
lacks phase detect AF
65
image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
has tracking autofocus
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL1s Travel photography details
Sony RX100 Travel photography details
51
built-in flash
missing Time Lapse recording
bad battery pack (290 shots)
low MP (12MP)
display is not selfie friendly
79
lighter than others (240g)
resolution is good (20MP)
built-in flash
fairly wide (28mm)
very good maximum aperture (f1.8)
display isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL1s as a Landscape photography camera
Sony RX100 as a Landscape photography camera
55
you can focus manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
screen is small (2.7 inch)
low MP (12MP)
bad battery pack (290 shots)
missing Time Lapse recording
74
has manual focus
fairly wide (28mm)
very good maximum aperture (f1.8)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
very good high ISO (25,600)
saves RAW files
cannot change lens (fixed lens mount)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL1s Vlogging advice
Sony RX100 Vlogging advice
29
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
has face detection focusing
display is not selfie friendly
low res video (1280 x 720 pxls)
missing external mic socket
38
fairly wide (28mm)
very good maximum aperture (f1.8)
image stabilization (Optical)
has face detection autofocus
great video quality (1920 x 1080 resolution)
lighter than others (240g)
display isn't selfie friendly
lack of external mic port
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-PL1s vs Sony RX100 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL1s and Sony RX100
 Olympus PEN E-PL1sSony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model Olympus PEN E-PL1s Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Large Sensor Compact
Announced 2010-11-16 2012-08-28
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Large Sensor Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by Truepic V -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 20MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 4032 x 3024 5472 x 3648
Maximum native ISO 6400 25600
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
AF continuous
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 11 25
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 28-100mm (3.6x)
Max aperture - f/1.8-4.9
Macro focus range - 5cm
Number of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 2.7
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display sizing 2.7 inches 3 inches
Display resolution 230k dot 1,229k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Display technology HyperCrystal LCD AR (Anti-Reflective) coating WhiteMagic TFT LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 3.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 10.00 m -
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/160 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video file format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic jack
Headphone jack
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 gr (0.74 lb) 240 gr (0.53 lb)
Dimensions 115 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") 102 x 58 x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 66
DXO Color Depth score not tested 22.6
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 12.4
DXO Low light score not tested 390
Other
Battery life 290 photos 330 photos
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-1 NP-BX1
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, Portrait 1/2)
Time lapse recording With downloadable app
Type of storage SD/SDHC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Retail price $599 $448