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Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55

Portability
85
Imaging
48
Features
47
Overall
47
Olympus PEN E-PL2 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H55 front
Portability
92
Imaging
37
Features
28
Overall
33

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 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
  • Revealed February 2011
  • Earlier Model is Olympus E-PL1s
  • Replacement is Olympus E-PL3
Sony H55
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-250mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 200g - 103 x 58 x 29mm
  • Released June 2010
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 Overview

The following is a complete review of the Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. The sensor resolution of the E-PL2 (12MP) and the H55 (14MP) is relatively close but the E-PL2 (Four Thirds) and H55 (1/2.3") use different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL2 was unveiled 8 months after the H55 which means that they are of a similar age. Both of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-PL2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony H55 being a Compact camera.

Before delving straight into a in depth comparison, below is a simple summation of how the E-PL2 matches up versus the H55 for portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL2 over the Sony H55

 E-PL2 H55 
ReleasedFebruary 2011June 2010Newer by 8 months
Manual focus Very accurate focus
Screen resolution460k230kCrisper screen (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony H55 over the Olympus E-PL2

 H55 E-PL2 

Common features in the Olympus E-PL2 and Sony H55

 E-PL2 H55 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen sizing
Selfie screen Neither includes selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Neither includes Touch friendly screen

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is aiming to travel with your camera, you'll have to think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL2 features external dimensions of 114mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") and a weight of 362 grams (0.80 lbs) and the Sony H55 has specifications of 103mm x 58mm x 29mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.1") along with a weight of 200 grams (0.44 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are utilising at the time. Below is the front view dimension comparison of the E-PL2 vs the H55.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL2 and H55 is 85 and 92 respectively.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 Sensor Comparison

Often, it is hard to picture the contrast in sensor dimensions only by looking through a spec sheet. The picture here may provide you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL2 and H55.

Clearly, the 2 cameras enjoy different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL2 using its bigger sensor is going to make getting shallow depth of field easier and the Sony H55 will provide you with extra detail having an extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will enable you to crop pictures far more aggressively. The newer E-PL2 should have a benefit with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony H55 as a Portrait photography camera
60
focusing manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with face detect focus
supports RAW files
MP count low (12 megapixels)
28
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
no manual focus
no manual mode
cannot use external flash
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Street photography features
Sony H55 Street photography features
73
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
screen is fixed
56
built in image stabilization (Optical)
screen is fixed
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Sports photography info
Sony H55 Sports photography info
45
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking focus
very slow continuous shooting (3.0 fps)
MP count low (12MP)
terrible battery pack (280 per charge)
lacks phase detect auto focus
38
built in image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (14MP)
no shutter priority mode
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-PL2
Travel photography with Sony H55
51
built-in flash
lack of Time Lapse recording
terrible battery pack (280 per charge)
MP count low (12MP)
screen isn't selfie friendly
67
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
has built in flash
pretty wide (25mm)
very long reach (250mm)
does not have Time Lapse function
doesn't have selfie friendly screen
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Landscape photography highlights
Sony H55 Landscape photography highlights
61
focusing manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice screen size (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
MP count low (12 megapixels)
terrible battery pack (280 shots)
lack of Time Lapse recording
42
pretty wide (25mm)
decent sized screen (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (14MP)
no manual focus
can't change lenses (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
no manual mode
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
does not have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Vlogging info
Sony H55 Vlogging info
29
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detect focus
screen isn't selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
lack of mic port
28
pretty wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.5)
doesn't have selfie friendly screen
low video resolution (1280 x 720 pxls)
does not have external mic jack
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Olympus E-PL2 vs Sony H55 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL2 and Sony H55
 Olympus PEN E-PL2Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H55
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL2 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H55
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2011-02-11 2010-06-16
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Chip Truepic V Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 14MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 4032 x 3024 4320 x 3240
Maximum native ISO 6400 3200
Minimum native ISO 100 80
RAW data
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch focus
Continuous autofocus
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Total focus points 11 9
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 25-250mm (10.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.5-5.5
Macro focusing range - 5cm
Amount of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 460 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen technology HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shooting speed 3.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 10.00 m 3.80 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Slow Syncro, Off
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 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) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1280x720
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 362 grams (0.80 lb) 200 grams (0.44 lb)
Dimensions 114 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") 103 x 58 x 29mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.1")
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 shots -
Style of battery Battery Pack -
Battery ID BLS-5 NP-BG1
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, portrait1/ portrait2)
Time lapse feature
Storage media SD/SDHC Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo/ PRO HG-Duo, SD/SDHC, Internal
Storage slots Single Single
Cost at launch $0 $235