Olympus E-PL2 vs Olympus VR-340

Lets take a more detailed look at the Olympus E-PL2 and Olympus VR-340, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both sold by Olympus. There exists a sizeable gap among the image resolutions of the E-PL2 (12MP) and VR-340 (16MP) and the E-PL2 (Four Thirds) and VR-340 (1/2.3") have different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The E-PL2 was announced 11 months before the VR-340 which means that they are both of a similar generation. Both cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Olympus VR-340 being a Compact camera.

Before getting right into a comprehensive comparison, here is a short highlight of how the E-PL2 scores vs the VR-340 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus PEN E-PL2 and Olympus VR-340. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-PL2 Gallery and Olympus VR-340 Gallery.

When you are planning to lug around your camera frequently, you are going to need to consider its weight and volume. The Olympus E-PL2 comes with exterior measurements of 114mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") along with a weight of 362 grams (0.80 lbs) whilst the Olympus VR-340 has sizing of 96mm x 57mm x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") having a weight of 125 grams (0.28 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL2 and Olympus VR-340 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you are working with at that time. The following is a front view physical size comparison of the E-PL2 against the VR-340.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL2 and VR-340 is 85 and 96 respectively.

Quite often, it can be difficult to picture the contrast in sensor measurements purely by researching technical specs. The graphic here may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL2 and VR-340.

As you can tell, each of these cameras come with different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-PL2 using its larger sensor is going to make shooting bokeh less difficult and the Olympus VR-340 will provide you with greater detail with its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also enable you to crop photos a good deal more aggressively. The older E-PL2 will be behind with regard to sensor technology.