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Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150

Portability
88
Imaging
48
Features
52
Overall
49
Olympus PEN E-PL3 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150 front
Portability
67
Imaging
36
Features
57
Overall
44

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 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
  • Launched September 2011
  • Superseded the Olympus E-PL2
Panasonic FZ150
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-600mm (F2.8-5.2) lens
  • 528g - 124 x 82 x 92mm
  • Revealed April 2012
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 Overview

Its time to look closer at the Olympus E-PL3 versus Panasonic FZ150, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by brands Olympus and Panasonic. The image resolution of the E-PL3 (12MP) and the FZ150 (12MP) is very similar but the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and FZ150 (1/2.3") offer different sensor size.

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The E-PL3 was revealed 6 months prior to the FZ150 which means that they are of a similar age. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FZ150 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before we go right into a detailed comparison, here is a concise highlight of how the E-PL3 scores versus the FZ150 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL3 over the Panasonic FZ150

 E-PL3 FZ150 

Reasons to pick Panasonic FZ150 over the Olympus E-PL3

 FZ150 E-PL3 
Display typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating display
Selfie screen Take selfies

Common features in the Olympus E-PL3 and Panasonic FZ150

 E-PL3 FZ150 
RevealedSeptember 2011April 2012Similar age
Manually focus Dial exact focus
Display size3"3"Same display size
Display resolution460k460kThe same display resolution
Touch friendly display Neither includes Touch friendly display

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 Physical Comparison

If you are aiming to travel with your camera frequently, you need to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL3 features outside measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") along with a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs) and the Panasonic FZ150 has measurements of 124mm x 82mm x 92mm (4.9" x 3.2" x 3.6") with a weight of 528 grams (1.16 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-PL3 versus Panasonic FZ150 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are utilizing at that moment. Underneath is a front view sizing comparison of the E-PL3 versus the FZ150.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL3 and FZ150 is 88 and 67 respectively.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it is difficult to imagine the gap between sensor dimensions merely by going over a spec sheet. The image below will offer you a clearer sense of the sensor sizing in the E-PL3 and FZ150.

As you can see, the two cameras come with the identical megapixels but different sensor dimensions. The E-PL3 includes the larger sensor which should make getting bokeh simpler.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Portrait photography info
Panasonic FZ150 Portrait photography info
60
focusing manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
features face detection focusing
delivers RAW files
low megapixels (12MP)
41
focusing manually
saves RAW files
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-PL3
Street photography with Panasonic FZ150
84
tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
58
screen articulates
has image stabilization (Optical)
saves RAW files
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
heavier than competition (528 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Sports photography info
Panasonic FZ150 Sports photography info
45
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
features tracking autofocus
slow fps (6.0 frames per second)
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
bad battery life (300 per charge)
does not have phase detect AF
43
long zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Optical)
better than average battery (410 shots)
megapixel count low (12MP)
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Travel photography features
Panasonic FZ150 Travel photography features
44
doesn't have Timelapse recording
bad battery life (300 CIPA)
low megapixels (12MP)
does not posses selfie friendly display
56
better than average battery (410 per charge)
built-in flash
display is selfie friendly
really wide (25mm)
long zoom (600mm)
doesn't have Time Lapse function
heavier than competition (528g)
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Landscape photography features
Panasonic FZ150 Landscape photography features
61
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sized screen (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
bad battery life (300 per charge)
doesn't have Timelapse recording
48
focusing manually
really wide (25mm)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Optical)
saves RAW files
better than average battery (410 CIPA)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
megapixel count low (12MP)
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-PL3
Vlogging with Panasonic FZ150
34
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
features face detection focusing
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
does not posses selfie friendly display
doesn't have external microphone support
62
really wide (25mm)
display is selfie friendly
has image stabilization (Optical)
video res high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
comes with external mic jack
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
heavier than competition (528g)
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ150 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL3 and Panasonic FZ150
 Olympus PEN E-PL3Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150
General Information
Make Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus PEN E-PL3 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Launched 2011-09-20 2012-04-11
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Chip Truepic VI -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4032 x 3024 4000 x 3000
Highest native ISO 12800 6400
Lowest native ISO 200 100
RAW images
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 35 23
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-600mm (24.0x)
Max aperture - f/2.8-5.2
Macro focus range - 1cm
Amount of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Screen type Tilting Fully Articulated
Screen diagonal 3 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 460k dot 460k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen technology HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) Electronic
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 6.0 frames/s 12.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range no built-in flash 9.50 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Sync
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/160 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60, 30 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (220 fps)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video format AVCHD, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, Motion JPEG
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 proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 313 gr (0.69 lb) 528 gr (1.16 lb)
Physical dimensions 110 x 64 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") 124 x 82 x 92mm (4.9" x 3.2" x 3.6")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 52 40
DXO Color Depth score 20.9 19.4
DXO Dynamic range score 10.3 10.9
DXO Low light score 499 132
Other
Battery life 300 shots 410 shots
Battery format Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-5 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 pictures))
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots 1 1
Cost at launch $399 $499