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Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27

Portability
88
Imaging
48
Features
52
Overall
49
Olympus PEN E-PL3 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH27 front
Portability
94
Imaging
39
Features
34
Overall
37

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL3
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 313g - 110 x 64 x 37mm
  • Released September 2011
  • Succeeded the Olympus E-PL2
Panasonic FH27
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-224mm (F3.3-5.9) lens
  • 152g - 99 x 57 x 28mm
  • Revealed January 2011
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 Overview

Lets take a closer look at the Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a sizeable gap between the resolutions of the E-PL3 (12MP) and FH27 (16MP) and the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and FH27 (1/2.3") use totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-PL3 was launched 9 months after the FH27 which means that they are of a similar generation. The two cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FH27 being a Compact camera.

Before going in to a step-by-step comparison, below is a brief overview of how the E-PL3 grades versus the FH27 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL3 over the Panasonic FH27

 E-PL3 FH27 
RevealedSeptember 2011January 2011More modern by 9 months
Manually focus Very exact focusing
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution460k230kCrisper screen (+230k dot)

Reasons to pick Panasonic FH27 over the Olympus E-PL3

 FH27 E-PL3 
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-PL3 and Panasonic FH27

 E-PL3 FH27 
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen measurement
Selfie screen Neither provides selfie screen

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 Physical Comparison

If you're going to carry around your camera often, you'll have to factor in its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL3 provides physical dimensions of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") with a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs) whilst the Panasonic FH27 has specifications of 99mm x 57mm x 28mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1") and a weight of 152 grams (0.34 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are utilising during that time. Following is the front view overall size comparison of the E-PL3 vs the FH27.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL3 and FH27 is 88 and 94 respectively.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it can be tough to visualise the difference between sensor sizes only by going over technical specs. The picture below might offer you a clearer sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL3 and FH27.

As you have seen, both the cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The E-PL3 due to its bigger sensor will make achieving shallower DOF less difficult and the Panasonic FH27 will deliver more detail utilizing its extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also let you crop photographs somewhat more aggressively. The newer E-PL3 is going to have an advantage in sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Portrait photography factors
Panasonic FH27 Portrait photography factors
60
manual focus
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
provides face detect focusing
delivers RAW formats
low resolution (12 megapixels)
34
megapixel count decent (16MP)
comes with face detect focus
manual focus not available
no manual mode
can't use external flash
sensor is small (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Street photography advice
Panasonic FH27 Street photography advice
84
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
63
image stabilization (Optical)
offers touch focus
no moving screen
sensor is small (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 as a Sports photography camera
Panasonic FH27 as a Sports photography camera
45
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
provides tracking focus
slow frames per second (6.0 frames per second)
low resolution (12 megapixels)
low battery life (300 per charge)
lacks phase detect AF
40
image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count decent (16MP)
comes with tracking focus
low frames per second (4.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
sensor is small (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 as a Travel photography camera
Panasonic FH27 as a Travel photography camera
44
no Timelapse recording
low battery life (300 CIPA)
low resolution (12 megapixels)
does not contain selfie friendly display
68
offers touch focus
megapixel count decent (16MP)
built-in flash
really wide (28mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse recording
screen isn't selfie friendly
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
Photography Glossary

Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Landscape photography info
Panasonic FH27 Landscape photography info
61
manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
low resolution (12MP)
low battery life (300 per charge)
no Timelapse recording
43
really wide (28mm)
nice screen size (3 inches)
image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count decent (16 megapixels)
manual focus not available
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
no manual mode
sensor is small (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
doesn't have Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 as a Vlogging camera
Panasonic FH27 as a Vlogging camera
34
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
provides face detect focusing
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does not contain selfie friendly display
no microphone port
32
really wide (28mm)
screen is touchscreen
image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detect focus
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
screen isn't selfie friendly
low quality video (1280 x 720 resolution)
doesn't have mic support
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FH27 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL3 and Panasonic FH27
 Olympus PEN E-PL3Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH27
General Information
Make Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus PEN E-PL3 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH27
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Released 2011-09-20 2011-01-05
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Truepic VI Venus Engine VI
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 -
Peak resolution 4032 x 3024 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 12800 6400
Minimum native ISO 200 100
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Center weighted autofocus
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Number of focus points 35 11
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 28-224mm (8.0x)
Largest aperture - f/3.3-5.9
Macro focus range - 5cm
Available lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.9
Screen
Type of screen Tilting Fixed Type
Screen size 3" 3"
Screen resolution 460 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Screen technology HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating TFT Touch Screen LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) None
Features
Min shutter speed 60 seconds 60 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/1600 seconds
Continuous shutter rate 6.0 frames/s 4.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range no built-in flash 5.80 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Max flash synchronize 1/160 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (24 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video format AVCHD, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic support
Headphone support
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 sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 313 gr (0.69 lbs) 152 gr (0.34 lbs)
Dimensions 110 x 64 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") 99 x 57 x 28mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 52 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 20.9 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 10.3 not tested
DXO Low light score 499 not tested
Other
Battery life 300 photos 250 photos
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-5 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots 1 1
Pricing at release $399 $229