Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic LS5
88 Imaging
52 Features
72 Overall
60


94 Imaging
37 Features
25 Overall
32
Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic LS5 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 3" Tilting Display
- ISO 200 - 25600
- Sensor based Image Stabilization
- 1920 x 1080 video
- Micro Four Thirds Mount
- 325g - 111 x 64 x 38mm
- Announced September 2012
(Full Review)
- 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 2.7" Fixed Display
- ISO 100 - 6400
- Optical Image Stabilization
- 1280 x 720 video
- 26-130mm (F2.8-6.5) lens
- 126g - 97 x 62 x 27mm
- Released July 2011

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic LS5 Overview
Following is a thorough overview of the Olympus E-PL5 and Panasonic LS5, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. The resolution of the E-PL5 (16MP) and the LS5 (14MP) is fairly close but the E-PL5 (Four Thirds) and LS5 (1/2.3") feature totally different sensor size.

The E-PL5 was launched 15 months after the LS5 making the cameras a generation away from one another. Both cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic LS5 being a Compact camera.
Before diving through a step-by-step comparison, below is a simple highlight of how the E-PL5 scores vs the LS5 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic LS5 Gallery
Below is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL5 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS5. The complete galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL5 Gallery & Panasonic LS5 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL5 over the Panasonic LS5
E-PL5 | LS5 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Released | September 2012 | ![]() | July 2011 | More modern by 15 months |
Focus manually | ![]() | Very accurate focusing | ||
Display type | Tilting | ![]() | Fixed | Tilting display |
Display dimension | 3" | ![]() | 2.7" | Larger display (+0.3") |
Display resolution | 460k | ![]() | 230k | Clearer display (+230k dot) |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Easy selfies | ||
Touch friendly display | ![]() | Easily navigate |
Reasons to pick Panasonic LS5 over the Olympus E-PL5
LS5 | E-PL5 |
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Common features in the Olympus E-PL5 and Panasonic LS5
E-PL5 | LS5 |
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Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic LS5 Physical Comparison
If you're looking to carry around your camera, you should factor its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL5 provides outer dimensions of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") with a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs) while the Panasonic LS5 has dimensions of 97mm x 62mm x 27mm (3.8" x 2.4" x 1.1") and a weight of 126 grams (0.28 lbs).
Analyze the Olympus E-PL5 and Panasonic LS5 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Remember that, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you select during that time. Here is the front view measurements comparison of the E-PL5 vs the LS5.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL5 and LS5 is 88 and 94 respectively.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic LS5 Sensor Comparison
Quite often, it can be difficult to visualise the gap in sensor sizes simply by viewing a spec sheet. The pic underneath will help provide you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL5 and LS5.
Clearly, the two cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-PL5 because of its larger sensor will make achieving shallower depth of field simpler and the Olympus E-PL5 will render more detail utilizing its extra 2MP. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The more modern E-PL5 is going to have a benefit with regard to sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic LS5 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic LS5 Specifications
Olympus PEN E-PL5 | Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS5 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Brand Name | Olympus | Panasonic |
Model type | Olympus PEN E-PL5 | Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS5 |
Class | Entry-Level Mirrorless | Small Sensor Compact |
Announced | 2012-09-17 | 2011-07-21 |
Body design | Rangefinder-style mirrorless | Compact |
Sensor Information | ||
Sensor type | CMOS | CCD |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | 1/2.3" |
Sensor measurements | 17.3 x 13mm | 6.08 x 4.56mm |
Sensor area | 224.9mm² | 27.7mm² |
Sensor resolution | 16 megapixel | 14 megapixel |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 4:3 and 16:9 |
Highest resolution | 4608 x 3456 | 4320 x 3240 |
Highest native ISO | 25600 | 6400 |
Min native ISO | 200 | 100 |
RAW format | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Manual focusing | ||
Autofocus touch | ||
Continuous autofocus | ||
Autofocus single | ||
Autofocus tracking | ||
Selective autofocus | ||
Center weighted autofocus | ||
Autofocus multi area | ||
Autofocus live view | ||
Face detect focus | ||
Contract detect focus | ||
Phase detect focus | ||
Total focus points | 35 | 9 |
Lens | ||
Lens support | Micro Four Thirds | fixed lens |
Lens zoom range | - | 26-130mm (5.0x) |
Maximal aperture | - | f/2.8-6.5 |
Available lenses | 107 | - |
Focal length multiplier | 2.1 | 5.9 |
Screen | ||
Display type | Tilting | Fixed Type |
Display diagonal | 3 inches | 2.7 inches |
Resolution of display | 460 thousand dot | 230 thousand dot |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch functionality | ||
Display tech | - | TFT Color LCD |
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder | Electronic (optional) | None |
Features | ||
Lowest shutter speed | 60 secs | 8 secs |
Highest shutter speed | 1/4000 secs | 1/2000 secs |
Continuous shooting speed | 8.0fps | 1.0fps |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manual exposure | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | - |
Change white balance | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash distance | 7.00 m (bundled FL-LM1) | 4.60 m |
Flash settings | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction |
External flash | ||
Auto exposure bracketing | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Highest flash sync | 1/250 secs | - |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment metering | ||
Average metering | ||
Spot metering | ||
Partial metering | ||
AF area metering | ||
Center weighted metering | ||
Video features | ||
Supported video resolutions | 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) | 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) |
Highest video resolution | 1920x1080 | 1280x720 |
Video data format | MPEG-4, H.264, Motion JPEG | Motion JPEG |
Microphone jack | ||
Headphone jack | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | Eye-Fi Connected | None |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | None |
Physical | ||
Environmental seal | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 325 gr (0.72 pounds) | 126 gr (0.28 pounds) |
Dimensions | 111 x 64 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") | 97 x 62 x 27mm (3.8" x 2.4" x 1.1") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO All around rating | 72 | not tested |
DXO Color Depth rating | 22.8 | not tested |
DXO Dynamic range rating | 12.3 | not tested |
DXO Low light rating | 889 | not tested |
Other | ||
Battery life | 360 images | 160 images |
Battery form | Battery Pack | AA |
Battery ID | BLS-5 | 2 x AA |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec) |
Time lapse shooting | ||
Storage media | SD/SDHC/SDXC | SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal |
Storage slots | Single | Single |
Retail price | $400 | $294 |