Olympus E-PL3 vs Olympus VR-340

Here, we will be looking at the Olympus E-PL3 and Olympus VR-340, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both designed by Olympus. There is a sizeable difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-PL3 (12MP) and VR-340 (16MP) and the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and VR-340 (1/2.3") provide totally different sensor size.

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The E-PL3 was released 3 months before the VR-340 which means that they are of a similar generation. Both of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Olympus VR-340 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a detailed comparison, here is a short synopsis of how the E-PL3 scores vs the VR-340 for portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-PL3 and Olympus VR-340. The complete galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL3 Gallery and Olympus VR-340 Gallery.

If you're aiming to carry around your camera, you will want to consider its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL3 provides outside dimensions of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") accompanied by a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs) whilst the Olympus VR-340 has specifications of 96mm x 57mm x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") accompanied by a weight of 125 grams (0.28 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-PL3 and Olympus VR-340 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are employing at the time. Following is a front view physical size comparison of the E-PL3 vs the VR-340.

Considering size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL3 and VR-340 is 88 and 96 respectively.

Usually, its tough to envision the difference in sensor sizes purely by researching technical specs. The pic here will help give you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL3 and VR-340.

As you can tell, each of these cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-PL3 due to its bigger sensor will make getting shallower DOF less difficult and the Olympus VR-340 will result in greater detail as a result of its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop pictures way more aggressively.