Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A99 II
88 Imaging
52 Features
72 Overall
60


57 Imaging
76 Features
92 Overall
82
Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A99 II Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 3" Tilting Screen
- 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)
- 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 Maximum Shutter
- 3840 x 2160 video
- Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
- 849g - 143 x 104 x 76mm
- Introduced September 2016
- Earlier Model is Sony A99

Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A99 II Overview
Below, we are comparing the Olympus E-PL5 and Sony A99 II, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Advanced DSLR by brands Olympus and Sony. There exists a sizable gap among the resolutions of the E-PL5 (16MP) and A99 II (42MP) and the E-PL5 (Four Thirds) and A99 II (Full frame) enjoy different sensor sizing.

The E-PL5 was announced 5 years prior to the A99 II and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A99 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.
Before delving through a full comparison, below is a concise summary of how the E-PL5 scores versus the A99 II with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A99 II Gallery
Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL5 & Sony Alpha A99 II. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL5 Gallery & Sony A99 II Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL5 over the Sony A99 II
E-PL5 | A99 II | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Touch friendly display | ![]() | Easily navigate |
Reasons to pick Sony A99 II over the Olympus E-PL5
A99 II | E-PL5 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Introduced | September 2016 | ![]() | September 2012 | More recent by 48 months |
Display type | Fully articulated | ![]() | Tilting | Fully Articulating display |
Display resolution | 1229k | ![]() | 460k | Crisper display (+769k dot) |
Common features in the Olympus E-PL5 and Sony A99 II
E-PL5 | A99 II | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Focus manually | ![]() | Very precise focus | ||
Display dimension | 3" | ![]() | 3" | Identical display measurement |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Both good for selfies |
Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A99 II Physical Comparison
If you're going to lug around your camera often, you will have to take into account its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-PL5 provides physical measurements 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 Sony A99 II has proportions of 143mm x 104mm x 76mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 849 grams (1.87 lbs).
Check out the Olympus E-PL5 and Sony A99 II in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are working with during that time. The following is the front view over all size comparison of the E-PL5 versus the A99 II.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL5 and A99 II is 88 and 57 respectively.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A99 II Sensor Comparison
Typically, it's hard to imagine the difference in sensor measurements just by viewing a spec sheet. The photograph here will offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the E-PL5 and A99 II.
As you can see, the two cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-PL5 using its smaller sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field harder and the Sony A99 II will result in extra detail with its extra 26 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The older E-PL5 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A99 II Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A99 II Specifications
Olympus PEN E-PL5 | Sony Alpha A99 II | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Manufacturer | Olympus | Sony |
Model | Olympus PEN E-PL5 | Sony Alpha A99 II |
Type | Entry-Level Mirrorless | Advanced DSLR |
Announced | 2012-09-17 | 2016-09-19 |
Body design | Rangefinder-style mirrorless | Mid-size SLR |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor Chip | - | Bionz X |
Sensor type | CMOS | BSI-CMOS |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | Full frame |
Sensor measurements | 17.3 x 13mm | 35.9 x 24mm |
Sensor surface area | 224.9mm² | 861.6mm² |
Sensor resolution | 16 megapixel | 42 megapixel |
Anti aliasing filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 3:2 and 16:9 |
Highest resolution | 4608 x 3456 | 7952 x 5304 |
Highest native ISO | 25600 | 25600 |
Highest boosted ISO | - | 102400 |
Minimum native ISO | 200 | 100 |
RAW files | ||
Minimum boosted ISO | - | 50 |
Autofocusing | ||
Focus manually | ||
AF touch | ||
Continuous AF | ||
Single AF | ||
AF tracking | ||
AF selectice | ||
AF center weighted | ||
AF multi area | ||
Live view AF | ||
Face detection AF | ||
Contract detection AF | ||
Phase detection AF | ||
Number of focus points | 35 | 399 |
Cross focus points | - | 79 |
Lens | ||
Lens mounting type | Micro Four Thirds | Sony/Minolta Alpha |
Total lenses | 107 | 143 |
Focal length multiplier | 2.1 | 1 |
Screen | ||
Range of screen | Tilting | Fully articulated |
Screen sizing | 3 inch | 3 inch |
Resolution of screen | 460 thousand dot | 1,229 thousand dot |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch capability | ||
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | Electronic (optional) | Electronic |
Viewfinder resolution | - | 2,359 thousand dot |
Viewfinder coverage | - | 100% |
Viewfinder magnification | - | 0.78x |
Features | ||
Slowest shutter speed | 60 seconds | 30 seconds |
Maximum shutter speed | 1/4000 seconds | 1/8000 seconds |
Continuous shooting speed | 8.0fps | 12.0fps |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manually set exposure | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
Set WB | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Built-in flash | ||
Flash range | 7.00 m (bundled FL-LM1) | 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 |
Hot shoe | ||
AE bracketing | ||
White balance bracketing | ||
Maximum flash sync | 1/250 seconds | 1/250 seconds |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment exposure | ||
Average exposure | ||
Spot exposure | ||
Partial exposure | ||
AF area exposure | ||
Center weighted exposure | ||
Video features | ||
Supported video resolutions | 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) | - |
Highest video resolution | 1920x1080 | 3840x2160 |
Video file format | MPEG-4, H.264, Motion JPEG | MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S |
Microphone jack | ||
Headphone jack | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | Eye-Fi Connected | 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 | 325g (0.72 lbs) | 849g (1.87 lbs) |
Dimensions | 111 x 64 x 38mm (4.4" 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 | 72 | 92 |
DXO Color Depth score | 22.8 | 25.4 |
DXO Dynamic range score | 12.3 | 13.4 |
DXO Low light score | 889 | 2317 |
Other | ||
Battery life | 360 photographs | 490 photographs |
Battery form | 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 feature | ||
Storage media | SD/SDHC/SDXC | Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC/MS Duo slots |
Storage slots | 1 | Two |
Cost at launch | $400 | $3,198 |