Olympus E-PL6 vs Pentax RS1500

Following is a complete assessment of the Olympus E-PL6 and Pentax RS1500, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by companies Olympus and Pentax. The sensor resolution of the E-PL6 (16MP) and the RS1500 (14MP) is relatively close but the E-PL6 (Four Thirds) and RS1500 (1/2.3") use different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The E-PL6 was announced 3 years after the RS1500 which is a fairly significant difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL6 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax RS1500 being a Compact camera.

Before going through a thorough comparison, below is a quick view of how the E-PL6 matches up versus the RS1500 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Here is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-PL6 & Pentax Optio RS1500. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL6 Gallery & Pentax RS1500 Gallery.

If you are going to carry around your camera often, you will need to factor in its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL6 provides external measurements of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") with a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs) whilst the Pentax RS1500 has specifications of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") with a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL6 and Pentax RS1500 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are using at that time. Here is the front view dimension comparison of the E-PL6 against the RS1500.

Considering size and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL6 and RS1500 is 88 and 93 respectively.

Usually, it can be tough to visualize the gap in sensor sizes merely by viewing specs. The pic below might provide you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL6 and RS1500.

As you can plainly see, the 2 cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-PL6 using its bigger sensor is going to make achieving bokeh less difficult and the Olympus E-PL6 will provide you with greater detail with its extra 2MP. Higher resolution can also enable you to crop photographs somewhat more aggressively. The fresher E-PL6 should have a benefit with regard to sensor innovation.