Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax W80

The following is a extensive review of the Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax W80, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Pentax. There is a large difference among the image resolutions of the E-PL9 (16MP) and W80 (12MP) and the E-PL9 (Four Thirds) and W80 (1/2.3") use different sensor size.

Photography Glossary

The E-PL9 was unveiled 8 years after the W80 which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. The two cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL9 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax W80 being a Compact camera.

Before delving straight into a in-depth comparison, below is a short summary of how the E-PL9 scores against the W80 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

This is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus PEN E-PL9 & Pentax Optio W80. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL9 Gallery & Pentax W80 Gallery.

If you're aiming to travel with your camera often, you're going to have to think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL9 has physical dimensions of 117mm x 68mm x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") with a weight of 380 grams (0.84 lbs) while the Pentax W80 has measurements of 100mm x 56mm x 25mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.0") along with a weight of 156 grams (0.34 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-PL9 vs Pentax W80 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you select during that time. Here is the front view measurements comparison of the E-PL9 versus the W80.

Using size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL9 and W80 is 85 and 94 respectively.

In many cases, it can be difficult to imagine the contrast in sensor dimensions just by going through specifications. The picture below may offer you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL9 and W80.

To sum up, both of those cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL9 using its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field simpler and the Olympus E-PL9 will produce more detail having an extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop photographs much more aggressively. The more modern E-PL9 should have an edge with regard to sensor tech.