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Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II

Portability
85
Imaging
55
Features
78
Overall
64
Olympus PEN E-PL9 front
 
Pentax K-3 II front
Portability
59
Imaging
66
Features
84
Overall
73

Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II 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
  • Announced February 2018
  • Superseded the Olympus E-PL8
Pentax K-3 II
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3.2" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 800g - 131 x 100 x 77mm
  • Launched April 2015
  • Succeeded the Pentax K-3
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Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II Overview

The following is a extended review of the Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by rivals Olympus and Pentax. There exists a big gap among the image resolutions of the E-PL9 (16MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the E-PL9 (Four Thirds) and K-3 II (APS-C) boast totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-PL9 was launched 2 years after the K-3 II which is a fairly big gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Both cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL9 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-3 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before going straight to a detailed comparison, here is a short view of how the E-PL9 grades vs the K-3 II in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL9 over the Pentax K-3 II

 E-PL9 K-3 II 
LaunchedFebruary 2018April 2015Newer by 35 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1040k1037kSharper screen (+3k dot)
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax K-3 II over the Olympus E-PL9

 K-3 II E-PL9 
Screen dimensions3.2"3"Bigger screen (+0.2")

Common features in the Olympus E-PL9 and Pentax K-3 II

 E-PL9 K-3 II 
Focus manually More exact focusing
Selfie screen No selfie screen

Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II Physical Comparison

For anyone who is going to travel with your camera regularly, you're going to have to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL9 enjoys outer dimensions of 117mm x 68mm x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") with a weight of 380 grams (0.84 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-3 II has dimensions of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") with a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you are employing at that time. The following is a front view dimensions comparison of the E-PL9 versus the K-3 II.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL9 and K-3 II is 85 and 59 respectively.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it can be tough to visualise the gap in sensor dimensions just by researching specs. The image here should give you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL9 and K-3 II.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL9 because of its smaller sensor will make getting shallow depth of field tougher and the Pentax K-3 II will render extra detail utilizing its extra 8 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also let you crop photographs more aggressively. The more recent E-PL9 will have an advantage in sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Portrait photography information
Pentax K-3 II Portrait photography information
73
has manual focus
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
includes face detection autofocus
delivers RAW files
79
manual focus
megapixel count good (24 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
offers face detect focusing
supports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Street photography information
Pentax K-3 II Street photography information
84
screen tilts
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
boasts focus via touch
69
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
supports RAW formats
weather sealing
above average high ISO (51,200)
no moving screen
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Sports photography information
Pentax K-3 II Sports photography information
69
quiet shooting (1/16,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (16MP)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
includes tracking autofocus
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
76
high shutter speed (1/8,000s)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (24MP)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
offers tracking focus
weather sealing
comes with phase detect AF
terrible battery pack (720 shots)
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-PL9
Travel photography with Pentax K-3 II
77
has bluetooth
boasts focus via touch
megapixel count good (16MP)
built-in flash
display isn't selfie friendly
56
weather sealing
megapixel count good (24 megapixels)
terrible battery pack (720 CIPA)
does not have a selfie friendly display
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Landscape photography details
Pentax K-3 II Landscape photography details
80
has manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
78
manual focus
switch lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
nice screen size (3.2")
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
megapixel count good (24 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
does not have anti aliasing filter
above average high ISO (51,200)
supports RAW formats
weather sealing
two card slots
terrible battery pack (720 per charge)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL9 Vlogging details
Pentax K-3 II Vlogging details
35
screen is touchscreen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detection autofocus
great video quality (3840 x 2160 pxls)
display isn't selfie friendly
doesn't have external mic socket
34
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detect focusing
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
does have mic socket
does not have a selfie friendly display
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Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax K-3 II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL9 and Pentax K-3 II
 Olympus PEN E-PL9Pentax K-3 II
General Information
Make Olympus Pentax
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL9 Pentax K-3 II
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Advanced DSLR
Announced 2018-02-08 2015-04-23
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic VIII Prime III
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 24 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2
Highest Possible resolution 4608 x 3456 6016 x 4000
Maximum native ISO 6400 51200
Maximum enhanced ISO 25600 -
Min native ISO 200 100
RAW photos
Min enhanced ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points 121 27
Cross type focus points - 25
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds Pentax KAF2
Total lenses 107 151
Crop factor 2.1 1.5
Screen
Display type Tilting Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3 inch 3.2 inch
Display resolution 1,040 thousand dots 1,037 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.64x
Features
Min shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Max shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/8000 secs
Max quiet shutter speed 1/16000 secs -
Continuous shutter rate 8.6fps 8.3fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 7.60 m (at ISO 200) no built-in flash
Flash modes Auto, manual, redeye reduction, slow sync w/redeye reduction, slow sync , slow sync 2nd-curtain, fill-in, off Auto Flash Discharge, Auto Flash + Red-eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash On + Red-eye Reduction, Slow-speed Sync, Slow-speed Sync + Red-eye, P-TTL, Trailing Curtain Sync, Contrast-control-sync, High-speed sync, Wireless sync (available with dedicated external flash)
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Max flash synchronize - 1/180 secs
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 102 Mbps, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 (60i, 50i, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p)
Maximum video resolution 3840x2160 1920x1080
Video data format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, H.264
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Optional
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 380 grams (0.84 lb) 800 grams (1.76 lb)
Physical dimensions 117 x 68 x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") 131 x 100 x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested 80
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 23.6
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 13.6
DXO Low light rating not tested 1106
Other
Battery life 350 pictures 720 pictures
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - D-LI90
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 secs, custom) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC card (UHS-I supported) Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots 1 Dual
Retail pricing $599 $829