Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A390

Let's look a little more in depth at the Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A390, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Olympus and Sony. The sensor resolution of the E-PL5 (16MP) and the A390 (14MP) is very comparable but the E-PL5 (Four Thirds) and A390 (APS-C) possess different sensor sizes.

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The E-PL5 was announced 2 years later than the A390 and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of the cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A390 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before we go through a more detailed comparison, below is a brief overview of how the E-PL5 matches up against the A390 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus PEN E-PL5 & Sony Alpha DSLR-A390. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL5 Gallery & Sony A390 Gallery.

For anyone who is planning to lug around your camera regularly, you should consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL5 has got physical dimensions of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") accompanied by a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs) and the Sony A390 has dimensions of 128mm x 97mm x 86mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 3.4") accompanied by a weight of 549 grams (1.21 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-PL5 vs Sony A390 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you are utilizing at that time. Here is the front view sizing comparison of the E-PL5 versus the A390.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL5 and A390 is 88 and 66 respectively.

Usually, its hard to imagine the difference in sensor measurements merely by seeing specs. The visual below should provide you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL5 and A390.

All in all, both of these cameras enjoy different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-PL5 using its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF harder and the Olympus E-PL5 will provide more detail with its extra 2MP. Greater resolution will let you crop images far more aggressively. The newer E-PL5 provides a benefit in sensor innovation.