Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230
85 Imaging
47 Features
47 Overall
47


69 Imaging
50 Features
40 Overall
46
Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 3" Fixed Display
- ISO 100 - 6400
- Sensor based Image Stabilization
- 1280 x 720 video
- Micro Four Thirds Mount
- 362g - 114 x 72 x 42mm
- Announced February 2011
- Succeeded the Olympus E-PL1s
- Replacement is Olympus E-PL3
(Full Review)

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230 Overview
Below is a comprehensive overview of the Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by competitors Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the E-PL2 (12MP) and the A230 (10MP) is fairly close but the E-PL2 (Four Thirds) and A230 (APS-C) enjoy different sensor measurements.

The E-PL2 was unveiled 22 months later than the A230 making the cameras a generation apart from one another. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-PL2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A230 being a Compact SLR camera.
Before going straight into a more detailed comparison, below is a brief introduction of how the E-PL2 scores versus the A230 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230 Gallery
Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL2 & Sony Alpha DSLR-A230. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL2 Gallery & Sony A230 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL2 over the Sony A230
E-PL2 | A230 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Announced | February 2011 | ![]() | May 2009 | More recent by 22 months |
Display sizing | 3" | ![]() | 2.7" | Larger display (+0.3") |
Display resolution | 460k | ![]() | 230k | Sharper display (+230k dot) |
Reasons to pick Sony A230 over the Olympus E-PL2
A230 | E-PL2 |
---|
Common features in the Olympus E-PL2 and Sony A230
E-PL2 | A230 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Manually focus | ![]() | More exact focus | ||
Display type | Fixed | ![]() | Fixed | Fixed display |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Neither contains selfie screen | ||
Touch friendly display | ![]() | Lacking Touch friendly display |
Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230 Physical Comparison
When you are intending to lug around your camera often, you should factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL2 has got outside dimensions of 114mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") along with a weight of 362 grams (0.80 lbs) and the Sony A230 has dimensions of 128mm x 97mm x 68mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.7") with a weight of 490 grams (1.08 lbs).
Compare the Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Remember, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you are utilising at the time. Underneath is the front view dimensions comparison of the E-PL2 against the A230.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL2 and A230 is 85 and 69 respectively.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230 Sensor Comparison
More often than not, it is hard to imagine the gap in sensor measurements purely by looking through a spec sheet. The visual below should offer you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL2 and A230.
As you can see, the 2 cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-PL2 with its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field harder and the Olympus E-PL2 will render greater detail having an extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also let you crop pics a little more aggressively. The newer E-PL2 provides an advantage in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A230 Specifications
Olympus PEN E-PL2 | Sony Alpha DSLR-A230 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Brand | Olympus | Sony |
Model type | Olympus PEN E-PL2 | Sony Alpha DSLR-A230 |
Type | Entry-Level Mirrorless | Entry-Level DSLR |
Announced | 2011-02-11 | 2009-05-18 |
Body design | Rangefinder-style mirrorless | Compact SLR |
Sensor Information | ||
Chip | Truepic V | Bionz |
Sensor type | CMOS | CCD |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | APS-C |
Sensor dimensions | 17.3 x 13mm | 23.5 x 15.7mm |
Sensor surface area | 224.9mm² | 369.0mm² |
Sensor resolution | 12 megapixels | 10 megapixels |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 3:2 and 16:9 |
Highest resolution | 4032 x 3024 | 3872 x 2592 |
Highest native ISO | 6400 | 3200 |
Minimum native ISO | 100 | 100 |
RAW pictures | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Manual focusing | ||
AF touch | ||
Continuous AF | ||
AF single | ||
AF tracking | ||
AF selectice | ||
AF center weighted | ||
AF multi area | ||
Live view AF | ||
Face detect AF | ||
Contract detect AF | ||
Phase detect AF | ||
Total focus points | 11 | 9 |
Lens | ||
Lens support | Micro Four Thirds | Sony/Minolta Alpha |
Amount of lenses | 107 | 143 |
Focal length multiplier | 2.1 | 1.5 |
Screen | ||
Display type | Fixed Type | Fixed Type |
Display diagonal | 3" | 2.7" |
Resolution of display | 460 thousand dot | 230 thousand dot |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch friendly | ||
Display technology | HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating | - |
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | Electronic (optional) | Optical (pentamirror) |
Viewfinder coverage | - | 95% |
Viewfinder magnification | - | 0.55x |
Features | ||
Lowest shutter speed | 60 secs | 30 secs |
Highest shutter speed | 1/4000 secs | 1/4000 secs |
Continuous shooting speed | 3.0 frames/s | 3.0 frames/s |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manual exposure | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
Change WB | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Built-in flash | ||
Flash distance | 10.00 m | 10.00 m |
Flash settings | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Wireless |
Hot shoe | ||
AE bracketing | ||
White balance bracketing | ||
Highest flash sync | 1/160 secs | 1/160 secs |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment exposure | ||
Average exposure | ||
Spot exposure | ||
Partial exposure | ||
AF area exposure | ||
Center weighted exposure | ||
Video features | ||
Supported video resolutions | 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) | - |
Highest video resolution | 1280x720 | None |
Video data format | Motion JPEG | - |
Mic jack | ||
Headphone jack | ||
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 seal | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 362g (0.80 lbs) | 490g (1.08 lbs) |
Dimensions | 114 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") | 128 x 97 x 68mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.7") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO All around rating | 55 | 63 |
DXO Color Depth rating | 21.4 | 22.3 |
DXO Dynamic range rating | 10.2 | 11.4 |
DXO Low light rating | 573 | 531 |
Other | ||
Battery life | 280 photographs | 230 photographs |
Style of battery | Battery Pack | Battery Pack |
Battery ID | BLS-5 | NP-FH50 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec) |
Time lapse feature | ||
Storage media | SD/SDHC | SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo |
Storage slots | One | One |
Price at launch | $0 | $569 |