Olympus E-PL3 vs Olympus SZ-30MR

Lets look more in depth at the Olympus E-PL3 vs Olympus SZ-30MR, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom and they are both built by Olympus. There exists a large gap among the image resolutions of the E-PL3 (12MP) and SZ-30MR (16MP) and the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and SZ-30MR (1/2.3") have different sensor size.

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The E-PL3 was launched 7 months later than the SZ-30MR which means that they are both of a similar age. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Olympus SZ-30MR being a Compact camera.

Before we go right into a more detailed comparison, here is a short view of how the E-PL3 scores vs the SZ-30MR when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-PL3 & Olympus SZ-30MR. The complete galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL3 Gallery & Olympus SZ-30MR Gallery.

In case you're planning to carry your camera regularly, you will want to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL3 has physical measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") accompanied by a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs) while the Olympus SZ-30MR has dimensions of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") along with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-PL3 vs Olympus SZ-30MR in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have attached at the time. Following is a front view size comparison of the E-PL3 against the SZ-30MR.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL3 and SZ-30MR is 88 and 89 respectively.

Normally, its difficult to picture the gap in sensor sizing merely by researching technical specs. The visual here should offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-PL3 and SZ-30MR.

As you have seen, each of the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-PL3 due to its bigger sensor is going to make achieving bokeh simpler and the Olympus SZ-30MR will provide you with extra detail utilizing its extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The more recent E-PL3 should have an edge in sensor innovation.