Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony A380

Let's look much closer at the Olympus E-PL2 versus Sony A380, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Olympus and Sony. The sensor resolution of the E-PL2 (12MP) and the A380 (14MP) is fairly well matched but the E-PL2 (Four Thirds) and A380 (APS-C) posses different sensor measurements.

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The E-PL2 was unveiled 18 months later than the A380 making them a generation apart from each other. Both the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A380 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving right into a comprehensive comparison, here is a short summary of how the E-PL2 matches up against the A380 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL2 & Sony Alpha DSLR-A380. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL2 Gallery & Sony A380 Gallery.

If you're looking to carry your camera often, you should think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL2 comes with outside measurements of 114mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") having a weight of 362 grams (0.80 lbs) whilst the Sony A380 has measurements of 128mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.8") with a weight of 519 grams (1.14 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL2 versus Sony A380 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you select at that time. Underneath is a front view over all size comparison of the E-PL2 and the A380.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL2 and A380 is 85 and 68 respectively.

Generally, its hard to picture the difference between sensor sizing just by checking a spec sheet. The visual here may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the E-PL2 and A380.

As you can see, the 2 cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-PL2 using its tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field tougher and the Sony A380 will resolve extra detail having an extra 2MP. Greater resolution can also let you crop pics more aggressively. The fresher E-PL2 should have a benefit with regard to sensor innovation.