Olympus E-PL9 vs Sony RX100 II

On this page, we are evaluating the Olympus E-PL9 and Sony RX100 II, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Large Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Sony. The image resolution of the E-PL9 (16MP) and the RX100 II (20MP) is fairly similar but the E-PL9 (Four Thirds) and RX100 II (1") boast different sensor sizes.

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The E-PL9 was revealed 4 years later than the RX100 II and that is quite a big gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL9 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony RX100 II being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a quick synopsis of how the E-PL9 scores vs the RX100 II with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL9 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 II. The full galleries are available at Olympus E-PL9 Gallery and Sony RX100 II Gallery.

For anybody who is intending to lug around your camera often, you'll have to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL9 provides physical measurements of 117mm x 68mm x 39mm (4.6" x 2.7" x 1.5") and a weight of 380 grams (0.84 lbs) whilst the Sony RX100 II has measurements of 102mm x 58mm x 38mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.5") having a weight of 281 grams (0.62 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL9 and Sony RX100 II in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you use at that time. Underneath is a front view dimensions comparison of the E-PL9 vs the RX100 II.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL9 and RX100 II is 85 and 89 respectively.

Sometimes, its difficult to visualize the gap between sensor measurements merely by going over technical specs. The visual below might provide you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL9 and RX100 II.

As you can tell, the two cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-PL9 with its larger sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF simpler and the Sony RX100 II will offer you extra detail because of its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also help you crop pics more aggressively. The newer E-PL9 should have a benefit when it comes to sensor technology.