Olympus E-PL9 vs Sony A560

Lets take a closer look at the Olympus E-PL9 vs Sony A560, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Olympus and Sony. The image resolution of the E-PL9 (16MP) and the A560 (14MP) is very comparable but the E-PL9 (Four Thirds) and A560 (APS-C) posses different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The E-PL9 was unveiled 7 years later than the A560 and that is a fairly serious gap 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 Sony A560 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving into a full comparison, here is a simple overview of how the E-PL9 matches up versus the A560 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus PEN E-PL9 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A560. The full galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL9 Gallery and Sony A560 Gallery.

For those who are aiming to lug around your camera regularly, you will need to consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL9 offers outside 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 Sony A560 has dimensions of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") and a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs).

Examine the Olympus E-PL9 vs Sony A560 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ based on the lens you have attached at that time. Following is a front view size comparison of the E-PL9 versus the A560.

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL9 and A560 is 85 and 64 respectively.

Often, it is very difficult to picture the gap in sensor measurements merely by going through a spec sheet. The visual below should offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL9 and A560.

Clearly, the 2 cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-PL9 having a smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF harder and the Olympus E-PL9 will produce more detail having an extra 2MP. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop photos a good deal more aggressively. The newer E-PL9 provides an edge in sensor tech.