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Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10

Portability
85
Imaging
55
Features
78
Overall
64
Olympus PEN E-PL9 front
 
Olympus SZ-10 front
Portability
90
Imaging
37
Features
36
Overall
36

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL9
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 6400 (Expand to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 380g - 117 x 68 x 39mm
  • Introduced February 2018
  • Earlier Model is Olympus E-PL8
Olympus SZ-10
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-504mm (F3.1-4.4) lens
  • 215g - 106 x 67 x 38mm
  • Introduced February 2011
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Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 Overview

Its time to take a deeper look at the Olympus E-PL9 and Olympus SZ-10, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom and they are both sold by Olympus. The sensor resolution of the E-PL9 (16MP) and the SZ-10 (14MP) is relatively close but the E-PL9 (Four Thirds) and SZ-10 (1/2.3") provide totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL9 was unveiled 7 years after the SZ-10 which is a fairly significant gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL9 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Olympus SZ-10 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a concise overview of how the E-PL9 grades against the SZ-10 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL9 over the Olympus SZ-10

 E-PL9 SZ-10 
IntroducedFebruary 2018February 2011Newer by 86 months
Manually focus Dial exact focus
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1040k460kSharper screen (+580k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-10 over the Olympus E-PL9

 SZ-10 E-PL9 

Common features in the Olympus E-PL9 and Olympus SZ-10

 E-PL9 SZ-10 
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen sizing
Selfie screen Neither provides selfie screen

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 Physical Comparison

When you are intending to travel with your camera often, you will want to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL9 provides physical dimensions of 117mm x 68mm x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") having a weight of 380 grams (0.84 lbs) whilst the Olympus SZ-10 has dimensions of 106mm x 67mm x 38mm (4.2" x 2.6" x 1.5") along with a weight of 215 grams (0.47 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-PL9 and Olympus SZ-10 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you are utilising at the time. Below is a front view measurements comparison of the E-PL9 against the SZ-10.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL9 and SZ-10 is 85 and 90 respectively.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, it's hard to see the difference in sensor dimensions merely by viewing a spec sheet. The picture underneath will help give you a clearer sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL9 and SZ-10.

As you can see, the two cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL9 with its bigger sensor will make getting bokeh simpler and the Olympus E-PL9 will result in extra detail having an extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The younger E-PL9 is going to have a benefit in sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-PL9
Portrait photography with Olympus SZ-10
73
focusing manually
good resolution (16 megapixels)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with face detection focusing
exports RAW files
33
good megapixels (14MP)
provides face detection focus
manual focus not available
manual mode not available
can't use external flash
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Street photography information
Olympus SZ-10 Street photography information
84
tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
boasts focus by touch
60
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than competitors in class (215g)
screen does not articulate
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-PL9
Sports photography with Olympus SZ-10
69
quiet shutter (1/16,000s)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking autofocus
doesn't have phase detect AF
40
great zoom range (28-504mm 18.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (14MP)
provides tracking autofocus
slow continuous shooting (1.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
bad battery (220 per charge)
has no phase detect auto focus
Photography Glossary

Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-PL9
Travel photography with Olympus SZ-10
77
has bluetooth
boasts focus by touch
good resolution (16MP)
has built in flash
display isn't selfie friendly
65
lighter than competitors in class (215 grams)
good megapixels (14MP)
flash built-in
relatively wide (28mm)
long reach (504mm)
doesn't have Timelapse recording
bad battery (220 per charge)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
slow maximum aperture (f3.1)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 as a Landscape photography camera
Olympus SZ-10 as a Landscape photography camera
80
focusing manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good resolution (16MP)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
40
relatively wide (28mm)
screen size is good (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (14MP)
manual focus not available
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.1)
manual mode not available
sensor is very small (1/2.3")
has no RAW format
bad battery (220 shots)
doesn't have Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Vlogging highlights
Olympus SZ-10 Vlogging highlights
35
touchscreen functionality
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detection focusing
high res video (3840 x 2160 pxls)
display isn't selfie friendly
no external mic support
31
relatively wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
provides face detection focus
lighter than competitors in class (215 grams)
slow maximum aperture (f3.1)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
low quality video (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have external microphone support
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Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus SZ-10 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL9 and Olympus SZ-10
 Olympus PEN E-PL9Olympus SZ-10
General Information
Make Olympus Olympus
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL9 Olympus SZ-10
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2018-02-08 2011-02-08
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic VIII TruePic III+
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 14MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4608 x 3456 4288 x 3216
Highest native ISO 6400 1600
Highest boosted ISO 25600 -
Minimum native ISO 200 80
RAW format
Minimum boosted ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
AF continuous
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points 121 -
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-504mm (18.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/3.1-4.4
Macro focusing range - 1cm
Amount of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Type of display Tilting Fixed Type
Display size 3 inches 3 inches
Display resolution 1,040 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Display tech - TFT Color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 4 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Maximum quiet shutter speed 1/16000 seconds -
Continuous shooting rate 8.6fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 7.60 m (at ISO 200) 7.10 m
Flash modes Auto, manual, redeye reduction, slow sync w/redeye reduction, slow sync , slow sync 2nd-curtain, fill-in, off Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 102 Mbps, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM 1280 x 720 (30, 15fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15fps)
Highest video resolution 3840x2160 1280x720
Video file format MPEG-4, H.264 Motion JPEG
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 380 grams (0.84 lbs) 215 grams (0.47 lbs)
Physical dimensions 117 x 68 x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") 106 x 67 x 38mm (4.2" x 2.6" x 1.5")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth rating not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested not tested
DXO Low light rating not tested not tested
Other
Battery life 350 shots 220 shots
Battery style Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - LI-50B
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 secs, custom) Yes (2 or 12 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC card (UHS-I supported) SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots One One
Retail price $599 $300