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Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III

Portability
88
Imaging
48
Features
52
Overall
49
Olympus PEN E-PL3 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III front
Portability
53
Imaging
52
Features
77
Overall
62

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III 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
  • Launched September 2011
  • Superseded the Olympus E-PL2
Sony RX10 III
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Boost to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1051g - 133 x 94 x 127mm
  • Announced March 2016
  • Older Model is Sony RX10 II
  • Newer Model is Sony RX10 IV
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III Overview

Let's look a little more closely at the Olympus E-PL3 and Sony RX10 III, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Large Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There exists a sizable gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-PL3 (12MP) and RX10 III (20MP) and the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and RX10 III (1") have totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL3 was unveiled 5 years before the RX10 III and that is quite a significant difference as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony RX10 III being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before we go into a thorough comparison, here is a short overview of how the E-PL3 scores vs the RX10 III in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL3 over the Sony RX10 III

 E-PL3 RX10 III 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 III over the Olympus E-PL3

 RX10 III E-PL3 
AnnouncedMarch 2016September 2011Fresher by 55 months
Display resolution1229k460kClearer display (+769k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-PL3 and Sony RX10 III

 E-PL3 RX10 III 
Manually focus More precise focus
Display typeTiltingTiltingTilting display
Display size3"3"Same display sizing
Selfie screen Missing selfie screen
Touch display Missing Touch display

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III Physical Comparison

For those who are intending to carry your camera, you need to take into account its weight and volume. The Olympus E-PL3 has got 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) while the Sony RX10 III has sizing of 133mm x 94mm x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0") and a weight of 1051 grams (2.32 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL3 and Sony RX10 III in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are employing during that time. Here is a front view physical size comparison of the E-PL3 vs the RX10 III.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL3 and RX10 III is 88 and 53 respectively.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it is very difficult to envision the gap between sensor sizing only by looking at technical specs. The visual below will offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL3 and RX10 III.

As you have seen, both of these cameras come with different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The E-PL3 using its larger sensor will make getting shallower depth of field easier and the Sony RX10 III will resolve more detail having an extra 8MP. Greater resolution will let you crop photos a good deal more aggressively. The older E-PL3 is going to be behind in sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Portrait photography highlights
Sony RX10 III Portrait photography highlights
60
has manual focus
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
has face detection autofocus
exports RAW formats
MP count low (12MP)
71
manual focus
resolution is good (20MP)
sensor size is decent (1")
comes with face detect autofocus
exports RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Street photography highlights
Sony RX10 III Street photography highlights
84
screen tilts up and down
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
64
tilting screen
has image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is decent (1")
exports RAW files
weather proofing
more heavy than competitors in class (1,051 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Sports photography highlights
Sony RX10 III Sports photography highlights
45
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
has tracking autofocus
continuous shooting slow (6.0 frames per second)
MP count low (12 megapixels)
low battery power (300 shots)
lack of phase detect autofocus
70
incredible zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
quiet shooting (1/32,000 seconds)
has image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (20 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (1")
comes with tracking focus
weather proofing
good battery power (420 per charge)
has no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Travel photography details
Sony RX10 III Travel photography details
44
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
low battery power (300 per charge)
MP count low (12 megapixels)
display is not selfie friendly
55
good battery power (420 CIPA)
weather proofing
resolution is good (20MP)
flash built-in
fairly wide (24mm)
very long zoom (600mm)
missing Timelapse recording
more heavy than competitors in class (1,051 grams)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.4)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-PL3
Landscape photography with Sony RX10 III
61
has manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a good size (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
MP count low (12MP)
low battery power (300 shots)
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
63
manual focus
fairly wide (24mm)
screen is a good size (3")
has image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (20MP)
sensor size is decent (1")
exports RAW files
weather proofing
good battery power (420 CIPA)
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.4)
missing Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Vlogging advice
Sony RX10 III Vlogging advice
34
image stabilization (Sensor based)
has face detection autofocus
high res video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
display is not selfie friendly
doesn't have external mic support
28
fairly wide (24mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
comes with face detect autofocus
video res high (3840 x 2160 pxls)
has microphone socket
sluggish maximum aperture (f2.4)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
more heavy than competitors in class (1,051g)
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX10 III Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL3 and Sony RX10 III
 Olympus PEN E-PL3Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Sony
Model Olympus PEN E-PL3 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Large Sensor Superzoom
Launched 2011-09-20 2016-03-29
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Truepic VI Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4032 x 3024 5472 x 3648
Highest native ISO 12800 12800
Highest boosted ISO - 25600
Minimum native ISO 200 125
RAW pictures
Minimum boosted ISO - 64
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 35 25
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-600mm (25.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/2.4-4.0
Macro focus range - 3cm
Total lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 2.7
Screen
Type of display Tilting Tilting
Display size 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of display 460 thousand dots 1,229 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Display tech HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dots
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/2000s
Highest quiet shutter speed - 1/32000s
Continuous shooting rate 6.0 frames/s 14.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range no built-in flash 10.80 m (at Auto ISO)
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/160s -
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) 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video data format AVCHD, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone port
Headphone port
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
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 313 gr (0.69 lb) 1051 gr (2.32 lb)
Physical dimensions 110 x 64 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") 133 x 94 x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 52 70
DXO Color Depth score 20.9 23.1
DXO Dynamic range score 10.3 12.6
DXO Low light score 499 472
Other
Battery life 300 photos 420 photos
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-5 NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Card slots One One
Price at launch $399 $1,398