Olympus E-PL6 vs Sony HX5
88 Imaging
53 Features
77 Overall
62


92 Imaging
33 Features
30 Overall
31
Olympus E-PL6 vs Sony HX5 Key Specs
(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
- Renewed by Olympus E-PL7
(Full Review)
- 10MP - 1/2.4" Sensor
- 3" Fixed Screen
- ISO 125 - 3200
- Optical Image Stabilization
- 1920 x 1080 video
- 25-250mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
- 200g - 102 x 58 x 29mm
- Released June 2010

Olympus E-PL6 vs Sony HX5 Overview
Here, we will be contrasting the Olympus E-PL6 versus Sony HX5, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Sony. There exists a large gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-PL6 (16MP) and HX5 (10MP) and the E-PL6 (Four Thirds) and HX5 (1/2.4") have different sensor dimensions.

The E-PL6 was brought out 4 years later than the HX5 and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL6 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony HX5 being a Compact camera.
Before going right into a in depth comparison, here is a concise highlight of how the E-PL6 matches up versus the HX5 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Olympus E-PL6 vs Sony HX5 Gallery
The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-PL6 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5. The entire galleries are available at Olympus E-PL6 Gallery & Sony HX5 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL6 over the Sony HX5
E-PL6 | HX5 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Released | August 2014 | ![]() | June 2010 | Fresher by 51 months |
Manual focus | ![]() | Very exact focusing | ||
Screen type | Tilting | ![]() | Fixed | Tilting screen |
Screen resolution | 460k | ![]() | 230k | Crisper screen (+230k dot) |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Take selfies | ||
Touch friendly screen | ![]() | Quickly navigate |
Reasons to pick Sony HX5 over the Olympus E-PL6
HX5 | E-PL6 |
---|
Common features in the Olympus E-PL6 and Sony HX5
E-PL6 | HX5 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Screen size | 3" | ![]() | 3" | Same screen sizing |
Olympus E-PL6 vs Sony HX5 Physical Comparison
In case you're looking to carry your camera often, you need to factor in its weight and volume. The Olympus E-PL6 has outer dimensions of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") along with a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs) whilst the Sony HX5 has sizing of 102mm x 58mm x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1") having a weight of 200 grams (0.44 lbs).
Compare the Olympus E-PL6 versus Sony HX5 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Always remember, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you are utilizing at that time. The following is a front view scale comparison of the E-PL6 compared to the HX5.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL6 and HX5 is 88 and 92 respectively.

Olympus E-PL6 vs Sony HX5 Sensor Comparison
Sometimes, it can be difficult to picture the difference in sensor sizing only by going through a spec sheet. The graphic below will give you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL6 and HX5.
As you can see, each of the cameras come with different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The E-PL6 featuring a bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF simpler and the Olympus E-PL6 will provide more detail having its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will let you crop shots a good deal more aggressively. The younger E-PL6 should have an edge when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus E-PL6 vs Sony HX5 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL6 vs Sony HX5 Specifications
Olympus PEN E-PL6 | Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Company | Olympus | Sony |
Model | Olympus PEN E-PL6 | Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5 |
Class | Entry-Level Mirrorless | Small Sensor Compact |
Launched | 2014-08-01 | 2010-06-16 |
Physical type | Rangefinder-style mirrorless | Compact |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor Chip | TruePic VI | Bionz |
Sensor type | CMOS | BSI-CMOS |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | 1/2.4" |
Sensor dimensions | 17.3 x 13mm | 6.104 x 4.578mm |
Sensor surface area | 224.9mm² | 27.9mm² |
Sensor resolution | 16MP | 10MP |
Anti aliasing filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 | 4:3 and 16:9 |
Max resolution | 4608 x 3456 | 3456 x 2592 |
Max native ISO | 25600 | 3200 |
Min native ISO | 100 | 125 |
RAW format | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Focus manually | ||
Autofocus touch | ||
Autofocus continuous | ||
Single autofocus | ||
Autofocus tracking | ||
Autofocus selectice | ||
Center weighted autofocus | ||
Multi area autofocus | ||
Live view autofocus | ||
Face detect autofocus | ||
Contract detect autofocus | ||
Phase detect autofocus | ||
Number of focus points | 35 | 9 |
Lens | ||
Lens mount | Micro Four Thirds | fixed lens |
Lens focal range | - | 25-250mm (10.0x) |
Max aperture | - | f/3.5-5.5 |
Macro focus distance | - | 5cm |
Total lenses | 107 | - |
Focal length multiplier | 2.1 | 5.9 |
Screen | ||
Type of display | Tilting | Fixed Type |
Display sizing | 3 inches | 3 inches |
Resolution of display | 460k dots | 230k dots |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch capability | ||
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | Electronic (optional) | None |
Features | ||
Min shutter speed | 60 seconds | 30 seconds |
Max shutter speed | 1/4000 seconds | 1/1600 seconds |
Continuous shutter rate | 8.0 frames per sec | 10.0 frames per sec |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manually set exposure | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
Set white balance | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash range | 7.00 m (bundled FL-LM1) | 3.80 m |
Flash modes | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) | Auto, On, Off, Slow syncro |
Hot shoe | ||
AE bracketing | ||
White balance bracketing | ||
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) | 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1440 x 1080 (60, 30fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) |
Max video resolution | 1920x1080 | 1920x1080 |
Video format | MPEG-4, Motion JPEG | AVCHD |
Mic support | ||
Headphone support | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | Eye-Fi Connected | None |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | BuiltIn |
Physical | ||
Environmental sealing | ||
Water proof | ||
Dust proof | ||
Shock proof | ||
Crush proof | ||
Freeze proof | ||
Weight | 325g (0.72 lb) | 200g (0.44 lb) |
Physical dimensions | 111 x 64 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") | 102 x 58 x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1") |
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 photographs | - |
Battery style | Battery Pack | - |
Battery model | BLS-5 | NP-BG1 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec, portrait1/portrait2) |
Time lapse shooting | ||
Storage type | SD/SDHC/SDXC | Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo/ PRO HG-Duo, optional SD/SDHC, Internal |
Card slots | One | One |
Cost at release | $300 | $275 |