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Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85

Portability
88
Imaging
53
Features
77
Overall
62
Olympus PEN E-PL6 front
 
Pentax Optio E85 front
Portability
95
Imaging
35
Features
10
Overall
25

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL6
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 325g - 111 x 64 x 38mm
  • Launched August 2014
  • Successor is Olympus E-PL7
Pentax E85
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 32-96mm (F2.9-5.2) lens
  • 145g - 93 x 58 x 24mm
  • Revealed September 2009
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 Overview

On this page, we will be analyzing the Olympus E-PL6 versus Pentax E85, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a sizeable gap between the image resolutions of the E-PL6 (16MP) and E85 (12MP) and the E-PL6 (Four Thirds) and E85 (1/2.3") have totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL6 was introduced 4 years after the E85 which is quite a large gap as far as technology is concerned. Both cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL6 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax E85 being a Compact camera.

Before getting into a thorough comparison, here is a brief synopsis of how the E-PL6 scores vs the E85 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL6 over the Pentax E85

 E-PL6 E85 
RevealedAugust 2014September 2009More modern by 60 months
Manual focus Dial exact focus
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kSharper screen (+230k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax E85 over the Olympus E-PL6

 E85 E-PL6 

Common features in the Olympus E-PL6 and Pentax E85

 E-PL6 E85 

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 Physical Comparison

For those who are looking to carry around your camera frequently, you are going to need to think about its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL6 comes with external measurements of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") and a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs) whilst the Pentax E85 has dimensions of 93mm x 58mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.3" x 0.9") with a weight of 145 grams (0.32 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-PL6 versus Pentax E85 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you are using at the time. Below is a front view measurement comparison of the E-PL6 against the E85.

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL6 and E85 is 88 and 95 respectively.

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it can be tough to visualise the difference between sensor sizes purely by looking at specifications. The image below should give you a better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-PL6 and E85.

To sum up, the two cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The E-PL6 having a bigger sensor will make shooting shallow depth of field easier and the Olympus E-PL6 will resolve more detail using its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop pictures more aggressively. The more modern E-PL6 is going to have an edge in sensor tech.

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-PL6
Portrait photography with Pentax E85
71
has manual focus
megapixel count good (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports face detection autofocus
exports RAW files
21
lack of manual focus
manual mode not available
can't use external flash
MP count low (12MP)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL6 Street photography advice
Pentax E85 Street photography advice
85
screen tilts
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
supports focus via touch
good ISO range (25,600)
47
screen does not articulate
lack of image stabilization
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL6 Sports photography features
Pentax E85 Sports photography features
66
image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports tracking autofocus
has no phase detect autofocus
17
very slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority
lack of image stabilization
MP count low (12 megapixels)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL6 as a Travel photography camera
Pentax E85 as a Travel photography camera
85
supports focus via touch
megapixel count good (16MP)
selfie friendly display
51
has built in flash
missing Time Lapse recording
MP count low (12 megapixels)
does not contain selfie friendly display
wide angle not great (32mm)
sluggish max aperture (f2.9)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-PL6
Landscape photography with Pentax E85
80
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sized screen (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
good ISO range (25,600)
exports RAW files
23
lack of manual focus
cannot swap lens (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not great (32mm)
sluggish max aperture (f2.9)
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inches)
manual mode not available
lack of image stabilization
MP count low (12MP)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
missing Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-PL6
Vlogging with Pentax E85
79
selfie friendly display
touchscreen enabled
image stabilization (Sensor based)
supports face detection autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
no external microphone jack
22
wide angle not great (32mm)
sluggish max aperture (f2.9)
does not contain selfie friendly display
lack of image stabilization
low res video (640 x 480 resolution)
missing mic port
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Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax E85 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL6 and Pentax E85
 Olympus PEN E-PL6Pentax Optio E85
General Information
Company Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus PEN E-PL6 Pentax Optio E85
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Launched 2014-08-01 2009-09-17
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic VI -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4608 x 3456 4000 x 3000
Maximum native ISO 25600 3200
Min native ISO 100 80
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
AF continuous
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 35 -
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 32-96mm (3.0x)
Maximal aperture - f/2.9-5.2
Macro focus range - 10cm
Total lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Display type Tilting Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3 inches 2.7 inches
Display resolution 460 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) None
Features
Min shutter speed 60 seconds 2 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 8.0fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 7.00 m (bundled FL-LM1) 3.00 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) -
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 640x480
Video data format MPEG-4, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic 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 proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 325 gr (0.72 lbs) 145 gr (0.32 lbs)
Physical dimensions 111 x 64 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") 93 x 58 x 24mm (3.7" x 2.3" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life 360 photos -
Type of battery Battery Pack -
Battery model BLS-5 D-LI95
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC, Internal
Storage slots Single Single
Retail cost $300 $0