Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS70

Let's look more in depth at the Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS70, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by companies Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a substantial gap among the image resolutions of the E-PL2 (12MP) and ZS70 (20MP) and the E-PL2 (Four Thirds) and ZS70 (1/2.3") have different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL2 was brought out 7 years prior to the ZS70 which is a fairly big difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic ZS70 being a Compact camera.

Before going into a detailed comparison, here is a simple summation of how the E-PL2 grades vs the ZS70 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL2 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS70. The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL2 Gallery & Panasonic ZS70 Gallery.

For anybody who is intending to travel with your camera regularly, you should take into account its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL2 enjoys outer dimensions of 114mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") with a weight of 362 grams (0.80 lbs) while the Panasonic ZS70 has dimensions of 112mm x 67mm x 41mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.6") and a weight of 322 grams (0.71 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS70 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you are employing during that time. Underneath is a front view physical size comparison of the E-PL2 vs the ZS70.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL2 and ZS70 is 85 and 87 respectively.

Normally, it's difficult to imagine the contrast in sensor dimensions merely by viewing technical specs. The pic here should give you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL2 and ZS70.

As you have seen, each of these cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL2 due to its larger sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field simpler and the Panasonic ZS70 will result in greater detail having its extra 8MP. Greater resolution will allow you to crop images way more aggressively. The more aged E-PL2 will be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.