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Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS

Portability
85
Imaging
56
Features
78
Overall
64
Olympus PEN E-PL9 front
 
Olympus XZ-2 iHS front
Portability
85
Imaging
37
Features
67
Overall
49

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS Key Specs

Olympus E-PL9
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 6400 (Raise to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 380g - 117 x 68 x 39mm
  • Revealed February 2018
  • Replaced the Olympus E-PL8
Olympus XZ-2 iHS
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/1.7" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 12800
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 28-112mm (F1.8-2.5) lens
  • 346g - 113 x 65 x 48mm
  • Introduced December 2012
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Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS Overview

Here, we will be looking at the Olympus E-PL9 and Olympus XZ-2 iHS, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are created by Olympus. There is a noticeable difference among the resolutions of the E-PL9 (16MP) and XZ-2 iHS (12MP) and the E-PL9 (Four Thirds) and XZ-2 iHS (1/1.7") provide totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-PL9 was introduced 5 years after the XZ-2 iHS which is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL9 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Olympus XZ-2 iHS being a Compact camera.

Before diving right into a detailed comparison, here is a simple view of how the E-PL9 matches up versus the XZ-2 iHS in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL9 over the Olympus XZ-2 iHS

 E-PL9 XZ-2 iHS 
IntroducedFebruary 2018December 2012More modern by 63 months
Screen resolution1040k920kClearer screen (+120k dot)

Reasons to pick Olympus XZ-2 iHS over the Olympus E-PL9

 XZ-2 iHS E-PL9 

Common features in the Olympus E-PL9 and Olympus XZ-2 iHS

 E-PL9 XZ-2 iHS 
Manually focus Dial precise focus
Screen typeTiltingTiltingTilting screen
Screen size3"3"Same screen measurement
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS Physical Comparison

In case you're planning to carry around your camera, you need to think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL9 provides external dimensions of 117mm x 68mm x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") along with a weight of 380 grams (0.84 lbs) while the Olympus XZ-2 iHS has specifications of 113mm x 65mm x 48mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.9") with a weight of 346 grams (0.76 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-PL9 and Olympus XZ-2 iHS in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have at the time. Following is a front view dimension comparison of the E-PL9 compared to the XZ-2 iHS.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL9 and XZ-2 iHS is 85 and 85 respectively.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS Sensor Comparison

Usually, it can be difficult to envision the contrast in sensor sizes just by viewing technical specs. The image here will help offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL9 and XZ-2 iHS.

As you have seen, the 2 cameras come with different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-PL9 with its bigger sensor will make shooting shallower DOF less difficult and the Olympus E-PL9 will result in more detail using its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop pictures a good deal more aggressively. The fresher E-PL9 is going to have an advantage in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Portrait photography details
Olympus XZ-2 iHS Portrait photography details
73
has manual focus
megapixel count decent (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
has face detect autofocus
delivers RAW files
46
you can focus manually
supports face detect focus
delivers RAW files
low megapixels (12MP)
tiny sensor size (1/1.7")
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-PL9
Street photography with Olympus XZ-2 iHS
84
has a tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
features touch focus
66
screen tilts up and down
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
delivers RAW files
tiny sensor size (1/1.7")
more heavy than others (346g)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 as a Sports photography camera
Olympus XZ-2 iHS as a Sports photography camera
69
silent shutter (1/16,000 seconds)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count decent (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
has tracking focus
no phase detect autofocus
43
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
supports tracking focus
good battery life (340 per charge)
low megapixels (12MP)
tiny sensor size (1/1.7")
lacks phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-PL9
Travel photography with Olympus XZ-2 iHS
77
has bluetooth
features touch focus
megapixel count decent (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
screen isn't selfie friendly
61
good battery life (340 per charge)
has built in flash
rather wide (28mm)
good maximum aperture (f1.8)
no Timelapse recording
more heavy than others (346 grams)
low megapixels (12 megapixels)
does not feature selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-PL9
Landscape photography with Olympus XZ-2 iHS
80
has manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count decent (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
55
you can focus manually
rather wide (28mm)
good maximum aperture (f1.8)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
delivers RAW files
good battery life (340 CIPA)
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
low megapixels (12MP)
tiny sensor size (1/1.7")
no Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-PL9
Vlogging with Olympus XZ-2 iHS
35
touchscreen enabled
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
has face detect autofocus
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
lack of mic support
36
rather wide (28mm)
good maximum aperture (f1.8)
built-in touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
supports face detect focus
video res high (1920 x 1080 resolution)
does have microphone jack
does not feature selfie friendly screen
more heavy than others (346 grams)
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Olympus E-PL9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL9 and Olympus XZ-2 iHS
 Olympus PEN E-PL9Olympus XZ-2 iHS
General Information
Company Olympus Olympus
Model Olympus PEN E-PL9 Olympus XZ-2 iHS
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2018-02-08 2012-12-18
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic VIII -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/1.7"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 7.44 x 5.58mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 41.5mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3
Highest Possible resolution 4608 x 3456 3968 x 2976
Maximum native ISO 6400 12800
Maximum enhanced ISO 25600 -
Min native ISO 200 100
RAW pictures
Min enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Live view autofocus
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Number of focus points 121 35
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 28-112mm (4.0x)
Largest aperture - f/1.8-2.5
Macro focus range - 1cm
Total lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 4.8
Screen
Range of screen Tilting Tilting
Screen sizing 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 1,040 thousand dot 920 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) Electronic (optional)
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 60s
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/2000s
Fastest silent shutter speed 1/16000s -
Continuous shutter speed 8.6 frames per second -
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 7.60 m (at ISO 200) 8.60 m (ISO 800)
Flash options 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, Wireless
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 102 Mbps, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 3840x2160 1920x1080
Video data format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone input
Headphone input
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 seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 380g (0.84 lbs) 346g (0.76 lbs)
Physical dimensions 117 x 68 x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") 113 x 65 x 48mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.9")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested 49
DXO Color Depth score not tested 20.4
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 11.3
DXO Low light score not tested 216
Other
Battery life 350 photographs 340 photographs
Battery format Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - Li-90B
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 secs, custom) Yes (2 or 12 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC card (UHS-I supported) SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots 1 1
Cost at release $599 $450