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Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II

Portability
88
Imaging
48
Features
52
Overall
49
Olympus PEN E-PL3 front
 
Sony Alpha A99 II front
Portability
57
Imaging
77
Features
92
Overall
83

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II Key Specs

Olympus E-PL3
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 313g - 110 x 64 x 37mm
  • Announced September 2011
  • Old Model is Olympus E-PL2
Sony A99 II
(Full Review)
  • 42MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 100 - 25600 (Boost to 102400)
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 849g - 143 x 104 x 76mm
  • Announced September 2016
  • Replaced the Sony A99
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II Overview

Below, we are analyzing the Olympus E-PL3 and Sony A99 II, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Advanced DSLR by competitors Olympus and Sony. There exists a big gap between the resolutions of the E-PL3 (12MP) and A99 II (42MP) and the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and A99 II (Full frame) use totally different sensor measurements.

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The E-PL3 was launched 6 years before the A99 II and that is quite a big gap as far as technology is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A99 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before going in to a in-depth comparison, below is a short overview of how the E-PL3 scores against the A99 II in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL3 over the Sony A99 II

 E-PL3 A99 II 

Reasons to pick Sony A99 II over the Olympus E-PL3

 A99 II E-PL3 
AnnouncedSeptember 2016September 2011More recent by 60 months
Display typeFully articulatedTiltingFully Articulating display
Display resolution1229k460kSharper display (+769k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Common features in the Olympus E-PL3 and Sony A99 II

 E-PL3 A99 II 
Manually focus Dial accurate focusing
Display dimension3"3"Identical display measurements
Touch display Lacking Touch display

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II Physical Comparison

If you are planning to lug around your camera often, you have to think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL3 has got exterior measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") having a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs) whilst the Sony A99 II has measurements of 143mm x 104mm x 76mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.0") having a weight of 849 grams (1.87 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL3 and Sony A99 II in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you are utilising during that time. Below is the front view overall size comparison of the E-PL3 vs the A99 II.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL3 and A99 II is 88 and 57 respectively.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II Sensor Comparison

More often than not, it's hard to visualise the difference between sensor measurements just by looking at specifications. The photograph below should give you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL3 and A99 II.

To sum up, both of those cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-PL3 featuring a tinier sensor will make shooting bokeh harder and the Sony A99 II will give you extra detail utilizing its extra 30MP. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The older E-PL3 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Portrait photography information
Sony A99 II Portrait photography information
60
manual focus
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
features face detection autofocus
supports RAW formats
low MP (12 megapixels)
86
focusing manually
MP count fantastic (42MP)
great sensor size (Full frame)
provides face detect focus
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Street photography details
Sony A99 II Street photography details
84
tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
76
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
great sensor size (Full frame)
saves RAW files
environment sealing
good high ISO (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-PL3
Sports photography with Sony A99 II
45
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
features tracking autofocus
slow frames per second (6.0 fps)
low MP (12 megapixels)
bad battery pack (300 CIPA)
has no phase detect autofocus
82
great max shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
MP count fantastic (42 megapixels)
great sensor size (Full frame)
provides tracking focus
environment sealing
has phase detect auto focus
bad battery (490 CIPA)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Travel photography highlights
Sony A99 II Travel photography highlights
44
missing Time Lapse recording
bad battery pack (300 per charge)
low MP (12MP)
screen is not selfie friendly
70
environment sealing
has bluetooth
MP count fantastic (42 megapixels)
selfie friendly display
bad battery (490 CIPA)
Photography Glossary

Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Landscape photography info
Sony A99 II Landscape photography info
61
manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
low MP (12 megapixels)
bad battery pack (300 shots)
missing Time Lapse recording
82
focusing manually
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
screen is a good size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
MP count fantastic (42 megapixels)
great sensor size (Full frame)
does not have low pass filter
good high ISO (25,600)
saves RAW files
environment sealing
has dual storage slots
bad battery (490 CIPA)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Vlogging features
Sony A99 II Vlogging features
34
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
features face detection autofocus
high video quality (1920 x 1080 pixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
missing external mic jack
78
selfie friendly display
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
provides face detect focus
video resolution high (3840 x 2160 resolution)
has mic jack
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony A99 II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL3 and Sony A99 II
 Olympus PEN E-PL3Sony Alpha A99 II
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model Olympus PEN E-PL3 Sony Alpha A99 II
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Advanced DSLR
Announced 2011-09-20 2016-09-19
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Truepic VI Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Full frame
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 35.9 x 24mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 861.6mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 42 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4032 x 3024 7952 x 5304
Max native ISO 12800 25600
Max boosted ISO - 102400
Lowest native ISO 200 100
RAW files
Lowest boosted ISO - 50
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 35 399
Cross focus points - 79
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds Sony/Minolta Alpha
Available lenses 107 143
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1
Screen
Range of display Tilting Fully articulated
Display size 3" 3"
Display resolution 460 thousand dot 1,229 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Display technology HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.78x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/8000 secs
Continuous shooting speed 6.0fps 12.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range no built-in flash no built-in flash
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Off, auto, fill, slow sync, redeye reduction, rear sync, high-speed sync, wireless
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/160 secs 1/250 secs
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) -
Max video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video format AVCHD, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 313 grams (0.69 lb) 849 grams (1.87 lb)
Dimensions 110 x 64 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") 143 x 104 x 76mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 52 92
DXO Color Depth score 20.9 25.4
DXO Dynamic range score 10.3 13.4
DXO Low light score 499 2317
Other
Battery life 300 shots 490 shots
Form of battery Battery Pack NP-FM500H lithium-ion battery & charger
Battery model BLS-5 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2, 5, 10 secs)
Time lapse shooting
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC/MS Duo slots
Storage slots 1 2
Retail cost $399 $3,198