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Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5

Portability
85
Imaging
55
Features
78
Overall
64
Olympus PEN E-PL9 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 front
Portability
88
Imaging
35
Features
44
Overall
38

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL9
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 6400 (Push to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 380g - 117 x 68 x 39mm
  • Revealed February 2018
  • Superseded the Olympus E-PL8
Panasonic LX5
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/1.63" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 12800
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 24-90mm (F2.0-3.3) lens
  • 271g - 110 x 65 x 43mm
  • Announced December 2011
  • Succeeded the Panasonic LX3
  • Later Model is Panasonic LX7
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 Overview

Below is a extensive comparison of the Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a substantial gap between the image resolutions of the E-PL9 (16MP) and LX5 (10MP) and the E-PL9 (Four Thirds) and LX5 (1/1.63") boast different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL9 was unveiled 6 years later than the LX5 and that is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL9 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic LX5 being a Compact camera.

Before going into a complete comparison, here is a short overview of how the E-PL9 grades vs the LX5 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL9 over the Panasonic LX5

 E-PL9 LX5 
AnnouncedFebruary 2018December 2011More recent by 75 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1040k460kClearer screen (+580k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Panasonic LX5 over the Olympus E-PL9

 LX5 E-PL9 

Common features in the Olympus E-PL9 and Panasonic LX5

 E-PL9 LX5 
Manual focus More exact focus
Screen size3"3"Same screen sizing
Selfie screen Lack of selfie screen

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is aiming to lug around your camera regularly, you will need to think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL9 enjoys external dimensions of 117mm x 68mm x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") having a weight of 380 grams (0.84 lbs) and the Panasonic LX5 has specifications of 110mm x 65mm x 43mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 271 grams (0.60 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have at the time. The following is a front view sizing comparison of the E-PL9 vs the LX5.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL9 and LX5 is 85 and 88 respectively.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 Sensor Comparison

Normally, it is hard to imagine the difference between sensor measurements purely by going over a spec sheet. The graphic below should offer you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL9 and LX5.

Clearly, both of those cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-PL9 with its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field simpler and the Olympus E-PL9 will offer you extra detail having an extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will let you crop shots way more aggressively. The newer E-PL9 should have a benefit when it comes to sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Portrait photography advice
Panasonic LX5 Portrait photography advice
73
you can focus manually
good megapixels (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes face detection focus
supports RAW formats
41
focusing manually
delivers RAW files
low megapixels (10 megapixels)
sensor is small (1/1.63")
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-PL9
Street photography with Panasonic LX5
84
has a tilting screen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
provides touch focus
59
has image stabilization (Optical)
delivers RAW files
screen is fixed
sensor is small (1/1.63")
more heavy than others (271 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Sports photography features
Panasonic LX5 Sports photography features
69
quiet shooting (1/16,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes tracking autofocus
lack of phase detect auto focus
27
has image stabilization (Optical)
slow continuous shooting (3.0 fps)
low megapixels (10 megapixels)
sensor is small (1/1.63")
lack of phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Travel photography advice
Panasonic LX5 Travel photography advice
77
has bluetooth
provides touch focus
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
flash built-in
display is not selfie friendly
59
has built in flash
decently wide (24mm)
fast max aperture (f2.0)
no Timelapse recording
more heavy than others (271 grams)
low megapixels (10 megapixels)
display isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 as a Landscape photography camera
Panasonic LX5 as a Landscape photography camera
80
you can focus manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a good size (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
52
focusing manually
decently wide (24mm)
fast max aperture (f2.0)
screen size is good (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Optical)
delivers RAW files
cannot switch lens (fixed lens mount)
low megapixels (10 megapixels)
sensor is small (1/1.63")
no Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 as a Vlogging camera
Panasonic LX5 as a Vlogging camera
35
touch screen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detection focus
video res high (3840 x 2160 resolution)
display is not selfie friendly
does not have external microphone socket
29
decently wide (24mm)
fast max aperture (f2.0)
has image stabilization (Optical)
display isn't selfie friendly
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pxls)
no external microphone socket
more heavy than others (271 grams)
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Olympus E-PL9 vs Panasonic LX5 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL9 and Panasonic LX5
 Olympus PEN E-PL9Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5
General Information
Company Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus PEN E-PL9 Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2018-02-08 2011-12-15
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic VIII Venus Engine FHD
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/1.63"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 8.07 x 5.56mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 44.9mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 10MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4608 x 3456 3648 x 2736
Highest native ISO 6400 12800
Highest enhanced ISO 25600 -
Lowest native ISO 200 80
RAW images
Lowest enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 121 23
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 24-90mm (3.8x)
Highest aperture - f/2.0-3.3
Macro focus distance - 1cm
Number of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 4.5
Screen
Display type Tilting Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of display 1,040 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) Electronic (optional)
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 60s
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Fastest quiet shutter speed 1/16000s -
Continuous shutter rate 8.6 frames per sec 3.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 7.60 m (at ISO 200) 7.20 m
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, Slow Sync
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 102 Mbps, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution 3840x2160 1280x720
Video format MPEG-4, H.264 AVCHD Lite
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 380g (0.84 lb) 271g (0.60 lb)
Physical dimensions 117 x 68 x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") 110 x 65 x 43mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.7")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested 41
DXO Color Depth score not tested 19.6
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 10.8
DXO Low light score not tested 132
Other
Battery life 350 photographs -
Battery type Battery Pack -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 secs, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC card (UHS-I supported) SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots Single Single
Pricing at release $599 $294