Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX100 VA

Its time to examine more closely at the Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX100 VA, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Large Sensor Compact by brands Olympus and Sony. There is a crucial difference between the resolutions of the E-PL3 (12MP) and RX100 VA (20MP) and the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and RX100 VA (1") feature totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-PL3 was brought out 7 years before the RX100 VA which is quite a serious gap as far as tech is concerned. Both cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony RX100 VA being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before going straight into a detailed comparison, below is a brief introduction of how the E-PL3 scores versus the RX100 VA in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL3 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 V(A). The entire galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL3 Gallery and Sony RX100 VA Gallery.

For anyone who is planning to carry around your camera regularly, you'll need to think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL3 offers outside measurements 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 Sony RX100 VA has specifications of 102mm x 58mm x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6") accompanied by a weight of 299 grams (0.66 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-PL3 vs Sony RX100 VA in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you are using at the time. The following is the front view sizing comparison of the E-PL3 compared to the RX100 VA.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL3 and RX100 VA is 88 and 89 respectively.

Oftentimes, it can be difficult to visualise the difference between sensor sizes purely by looking at specs. The image here will give you a stronger sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL3 and RX100 VA.

All in all, each of these cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-PL3 featuring a larger sensor will make getting shallower DOF simpler and the Sony RX100 VA will give greater detail having its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop photos a little more aggressively. The more aged E-PL3 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.