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Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1

Portability
85
Imaging
48
Features
47
Overall
47
Olympus PEN E-PL2 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS1 front
Portability
91
Imaging
33
Features
25
Overall
29

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL2
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 362g - 114 x 72 x 42mm
  • Introduced February 2011
  • Succeeded the Olympus E-PL1s
  • Successor is Olympus E-PL3
Panasonic ZS1
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/2.5" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 25-300mm (F3.3-4.9) lens
  • 229g - 103 x 60 x 33mm
  • Revealed May 2009
  • Alternative Name is Lumix DMC-TZ6
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Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 Overview

Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by rivals Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the E-PL2 (12MP) and the ZS1 (10MP) is very comparable but the E-PL2 (Four Thirds) and ZS1 (1/2.5") posses different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL2 was released 22 months after the ZS1 making them a generation away from one another. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic ZS1 being a Compact camera.

Before we go into a complete comparison, here is a short summary of how the E-PL2 scores vs the ZS1 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL2 over the Panasonic ZS1

 E-PL2 ZS1 
RevealedFebruary 2011May 2009Newer by 22 months
Focus manually Dial precise focusing
Display size3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution460k230kSharper display (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Panasonic ZS1 over the Olympus E-PL2

 ZS1 E-PL2 

Common features in the Olympus E-PL2 and Panasonic ZS1

 E-PL2 ZS1 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen Neither offers selfie screen
Touch display Neither offers Touch display

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 Physical Comparison

If you're going to travel with your camera often, you are going to need to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL2 offers exterior measurements of 114mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") with a weight of 362 grams (0.80 lbs) whilst the Panasonic ZS1 has measurements of 103mm x 60mm x 33mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3") with a weight of 229 grams (0.50 lbs).

Examine the Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you have chosen during that time. The following is a front view dimension comparison of the E-PL2 compared to the ZS1.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL2 and ZS1 is 85 and 91 respectively.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, its hard to visualize the gap in sensor dimensions simply by checking out specifications. The image here will help give you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL2 and ZS1.

To sum up, both of these cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL2 due to its larger sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field easier and the Olympus E-PL2 will show greater detail as a result of its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also let you crop photos a good deal more aggressively. The younger E-PL2 should have an edge in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Portrait photography features
Panasonic ZS1 Portrait photography features
60
manual focus
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
comes with face detection focusing
supports RAW formats
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
25
supports face detect autofocus
manual focus not available
manual exposure not available
no external flash support
low megapixels (10MP)
sensor is small (1/2.5")
doesn't have RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Street photography info
Panasonic ZS1 Street photography info
73
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
no articulating screen
60
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competition (229 grams)
screen does not articulate
sensor is small (1/2.5")
doesn't have RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-PL2
Sports photography with Panasonic ZS1
45
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking autofocus
painfully slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames/s)
low megapixels (12MP)
not so great battery pack (280 CIPA)
has no phase detect AF
24
has image stabilization (Optical)
slow frames per second (3.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
low megapixels (10 megapixels)
sensor is small (1/2.5")
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Travel photography factors
Panasonic ZS1 Travel photography factors
51
has built in flash
lack of Timelapse mode
not so great battery pack (280 per charge)
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
63
lighter than competition (229 grams)
built-in flash
rather wide (25mm)
great reach (300mm)
missing Timelapse mode
low megapixels (10MP)
screen is not selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Landscape photography details
Panasonic ZS1 Landscape photography details
61
manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
decent sized screen (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
low megapixels (12MP)
not so great battery pack (280 per charge)
lack of Timelapse mode
31
rather wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
manual focus not available
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.3)
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inch)
manual exposure not available
low megapixels (10MP)
sensor is small (1/2.5")
doesn't have RAW format
missing Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Vlogging info
Panasonic ZS1 Vlogging info
29
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detection focusing
does not posses selfie friendly screen
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
lack of external microphone socket
31
rather wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
supports face detect autofocus
lighter than competition (229 grams)
slow max aperture (f3.3)
screen is not selfie friendly
low quality video (640 x 480 resolution)
missing microphone support
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Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS1 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL2 and Panasonic ZS1
 Olympus PEN E-PL2Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS1
General Information
Make Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL2 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS1
Otherwise known as - Lumix DMC-TZ6
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2011-02-11 2009-05-14
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Truepic V -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.5"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 5.744 x 4.308mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 24.7mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 10 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 16:9, 4:3 and 3:2
Full resolution 4032 x 3024 3648 x 2736
Max native ISO 6400 6400
Lowest native ISO 100 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 11 11
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 25-300mm (12.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/3.3-4.9
Macro focusing distance - 3cm
Available lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 6.3
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 3" 2.7"
Resolution of screen 460k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen tech HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 secs 60 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/2000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 3.0fps 3.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 10.00 m 5.30 m (Auto ISO)
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/160 secs -
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) 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1280x720 640x480
Video file format Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 362 grams (0.80 lbs) 229 grams (0.50 lbs)
Physical dimensions 114 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") 103 x 60 x 33mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 55 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.4 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.2 not tested
DXO Low light rating 573 not tested
Other
Battery life 280 photos -
Battery style Battery Pack -
Battery ID BLS-5 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD/SDHC SD/MMC/SDHC card, Internal
Card slots One One
Launch cost $0 $0