Olympus E-PM2 vs Pentax WS80

Here is a extensive overview of the Olympus E-PM2 and Pentax WS80, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Waterproof by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a substantial gap among the image resolutions of the E-PM2 (16MP) and WS80 (10MP) and the E-PM2 (Four Thirds) and WS80 (1/2.3") posses different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The E-PM2 was manufactured 3 years later than the WS80 and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PM2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax WS80 being a Compact camera.

Before getting right into a thorough comparison, here is a brief overview of how the E-PM2 scores versus the WS80 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus PEN E-PM2 & Pentax Optio WS80. The entire galleries are available at Olympus E-PM2 Gallery & Pentax WS80 Gallery.

If you're going to carry your camera regularly, you'll have to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PM2 comes with physical measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 34mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.3") along with a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs) while the Pentax WS80 has measurements of 92mm x 60mm x 22mm (3.6" x 2.4" x 0.9") with a weight of 125 grams (0.28 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-PM2 and Pentax WS80 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have attached during that time. Following is a front view physical size comparison of the E-PM2 versus the WS80.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-PM2 and WS80 is 89 and 95 respectively.

More often than not, it is difficult to imagine the contrast in sensor sizing simply by going through specs. The visual here should give you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PM2 and WS80.

As you can plainly see, both of the cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-PM2 because of its larger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF less difficult and the Olympus E-PM2 will show more detail due to its extra 6 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop photos a bit more aggressively. The more modern E-PM2 should have an advantage with regard to sensor tech.