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Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10

Portability
86
Imaging
54
Features
76
Overall
62
Olympus PEN E-PL8 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 front
Portability
58
Imaging
51
Features
76
Overall
61

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL8
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 357g - 115 x 67 x 38mm
  • Announced September 2016
  • Previous Model is Olympus E-PL7
  • Successor is Olympus E-PL9
Sony RX10
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 24-200mm (F2.8) lens
  • 813g - 129 x 88 x 102mm
  • Revealed March 2014
  • Updated by Sony RX10 II
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Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 Overview

Below, we are matching up the Olympus E-PL8 and Sony RX10, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Large Sensor Superzoom by competitors Olympus and Sony. The sensor resolution of the E-PL8 (16MP) and the RX10 (20MP) is fairly well matched but the E-PL8 (Four Thirds) and RX10 (1") use totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL8 was released 2 years later than the RX10 and that is quite a big gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL8 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony RX10 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before going through a detailed comparison, below is a short summation of how the E-PL8 scores against the RX10 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL8 over the Sony RX10

 E-PL8 RX10 
RevealedSeptember 2016March 2014More recent by 31 months
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 over the Olympus E-PL8

 RX10 E-PL8 
Display resolution1290k1037kSharper display (+253k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-PL8 and Sony RX10

 E-PL8 RX10 
Focus manually Dial accurate focusing
Display typeTiltingTiltingTilting display
Display dimension3"3"Identical display sizing
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 Physical Comparison

For those who are going to lug around your camera often, you'll have to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL8 has exterior measurements of 115mm x 67mm x 38mm (4.5" x 2.6" x 1.5") having a weight of 357 grams (0.79 lbs) whilst the Sony RX10 has measurements of 129mm x 88mm x 102mm (5.1" x 3.5" x 4.0") and a weight of 813 grams (1.79 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL8 and Sony RX10 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you are employing at that moment. Following is the front view measurements comparison of the E-PL8 against the RX10.

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL8 and RX10 is 86 and 58 respectively.

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it's tough to envision the contrast between sensor measurements merely by looking at specs. The visual underneath will provide you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL8 and RX10.

As you can plainly see, each of the cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-PL8 due to its larger sensor will make achieving bokeh simpler and the Sony RX10 will give you more detail as a result of its extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also allow you to crop photos somewhat more aggressively. The more modern E-PL8 will have an edge in sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL8 Portrait photography highlights
Sony RX10 Portrait photography highlights
72
manual focus
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
provides face detection focus
exports RAW formats
70
you can focus manually
good resolution (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
features face detect focusing
delivers RAW files
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-PL8
Street photography with Sony RX10
84
has a tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
has touch focus
above average high ISO (25,600)
72
has a tilting screen
image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor size (1")
delivers RAW files
environment sealing
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL8 Sports photography highlights
Sony RX10 Sports photography highlights
67
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
provides tracking autofocus
lacks phase detect auto focus
67
image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (20MP)
decent sensor size (1")
environment sealing
great battery life (420 per charge)
doesn't have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL8 Travel photography info
Sony RX10 Travel photography info
71
has touch focus
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
58
great battery life (420 CIPA)
environment sealing
good resolution (20MP)
has built in flash
fairly wide (24mm)
lack of Time Lapse recording
display isn't selfie friendly
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL8 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony RX10 as a Landscape photography camera
80
manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
above average high ISO (25,600)
exports RAW formats
63
you can focus manually
fairly wide (24mm)
screen size is good (3 inch)
image stabilization (Optical)
good resolution (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (1")
delivers RAW files
environment sealing
great battery life (420 CIPA)
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
lack of Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-PL8
Vlogging with Sony RX10
35
touchscreen capability
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
provides face detection focus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
missing external microphone socket
30
fairly wide (24mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
features face detect focusing
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
comes with mic port
somewhat slow max aperture (f2.8)
display isn't selfie friendly
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-PL8 vs Sony RX10 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL8 and Sony RX10
 Olympus PEN E-PL8Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Sony
Model Olympus PEN E-PL8 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Large Sensor Superzoom
Announced 2016-09-19 2014-03-20
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Processor TruePic VII Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4608 x 3456 5472 x 3648
Max native ISO 25600 12800
Max enhanced ISO - 25600
Minimum native ISO 200 125
RAW images
Minimum enhanced ISO 100 80
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
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 81 25
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-200mm (8.3x)
Maximal aperture - f/2.8
Available lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 2.7
Screen
Range of display Tilting Tilting
Display diagonal 3 inch 3 inch
Display resolution 1,037k dot 1,290k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Display technology - WhiteMagic
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 1,440k dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.7x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/3200 secs
Continuous shutter speed 8.0 frames/s 10.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range no built-in flash 10.20 m
Flash options no built-in flash Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
Hot shoe
AEB
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video data format H.264, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In 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 357g (0.79 pounds) 813g (1.79 pounds)
Dimensions 115 x 67 x 38mm (4.5" x 2.6" x 1.5") 129 x 88 x 102mm (5.1" x 3.5" x 4.0")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested 69
DXO Color Depth score not tested 22.9
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 12.6
DXO Low light score not tested 474
Other
Battery life 350 images 420 images
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse recording
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots Single Single
Cost at release $500 $698