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Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100

Portability
84
Imaging
59
Features
79
Overall
67
Olympus PEN-F front
 
Sony Alpha a6100 front
Portability
81
Imaging
70
Features
88
Overall
77

Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 Key Specs

Olympus PEN-F
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 427g - 125 x 72 x 37mm
  • Announced January 2016
Sony A6100
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 32000 (Expand to 51200)
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 396g - 120 x 67 x 59mm
  • Revealed August 2019
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Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 Overview

Here is a extensive overview of the Olympus PEN-F and Sony A6100, both Advanced Mirrorless digital cameras by companies Olympus and Sony. The resolution of the PEN-F (20MP) and the A6100 (24MP) is pretty well matched but the PEN-F (Four Thirds) and A6100 (APS-C) use different sensor measurements.

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The PEN-F was revealed 4 years earlier than the A6100 and that is quite a significant gap as far as technology is concerned. Both of the cameras offer the identical body type (Rangefinder-style mirrorless).

Before diving straight into a in depth comparison, below is a short summary of how the PEN-F grades vs the A6100 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus PEN-F over the Sony A6100

 PEN-F A6100 
Screen typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating screen
Screen resolution1037k922kClearer screen (+115k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony A6100 over the Olympus PEN-F

 A6100 PEN-F 
RevealedAugust 2019January 2016Fresher by 43 months

Common features in the Olympus PEN-F and Sony A6100

 PEN-F A6100 
Manually focus Very accurate focus
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen measurements
Selfie screen Both good for selfies
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 Physical Comparison

If you're aiming to carry your camera, you have to factor in its weight and size. The Olympus PEN-F offers external measurements of 125mm x 72mm x 37mm (4.9" x 2.8" x 1.5") accompanied by a weight of 427 grams (0.94 lbs) while the Sony A6100 has specifications of 120mm x 67mm x 59mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 2.3") and a weight of 396 grams (0.87 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus PEN-F and Sony A6100 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you are working with at that time. The following is the front view over all size comparison of the PEN-F against the A6100.

Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the PEN-F and A6100 is 84 and 81 respectively.

Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 top view buttons comparison

Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 Sensor Comparison

Normally, it is hard to visualize the contrast between sensor sizing purely by reading through a spec sheet. The photograph below should provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the PEN-F and A6100.

Clearly, both cameras enjoy different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The PEN-F with its tinier sensor is going to make achieving bokeh more challenging and the Sony A6100 will give you more detail because of its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will help you crop shots far more aggressively. The older PEN-F is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.

Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 sensor size comparison

Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus PEN-F as a Portrait photography camera
Sony A6100 as a Portrait photography camera
75
you can focus manually
decent megapixels (20MP)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with face detection focus
exports RAW files
82
focusing manually
MP count good (24 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports face detection autofocus
exports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Olympus PEN-F as a Street photography camera
Sony A6100 as a Street photography camera
84
fully articulated screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
includes touch to focus
good ISO range (25,600)
79
screen tilts up and down
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
comes with touch to focus
above average ISO range (32,000)
lack of image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus PEN-F
Sports photography with Sony A6100
67
great max shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
silent shutter (1/16,000 seconds)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking autofocus
terrible battery power (330 shots)
lacks phase detect auto focus
75
MP count good (24 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports tracking autofocus
comes with phase detect autofocus
lack of image stabilization
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Travel Comparison

Olympus PEN-F as a Travel photography camera
Sony A6100 as a Travel photography camera
75
includes touch to focus
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
selfie friendly screen
terrible battery power (330 CIPA)
86
connects via bluetooth
comes with touch to focus
MP count good (24MP)
flash built-in
selfie friendly display
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus PEN-F as a Landscape photography camera
Sony A6100 as a Landscape photography camera
76
you can focus manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
decent sized screen (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent megapixels (20MP)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
good ISO range (25,600)
exports RAW files
terrible battery power (330 CIPA)
79
focusing manually
switch lenses (Sony E mount)
screen size is good (3 inches)
MP count good (24 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
above average ISO range (32,000)
exports RAW formats
lack of image stabilization
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus PEN-F Vlogging features
Sony A6100 Vlogging features
78
selfie friendly screen
touchscreen functionality
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
comes with face detection focus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
missing external mic jack
79
selfie friendly display
built-in touchscreen
supports face detection autofocus
high quality video (3840 x 2160 resolution)
does have external mic socket
lack of image stabilization
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Olympus PEN-F vs Sony A6100 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus PEN-F and Sony A6100
 Olympus PEN-FSony Alpha a6100
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus PEN-F Sony Alpha a6100
Type Advanced Mirrorless Advanced Mirrorless
Announced 2016-01-27 2019-08-28
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic VII Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 20MP 24MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 5184 x 3888 6000 x 4000
Highest native ISO 25600 32000
Highest boosted ISO - 51200
Min native ISO 200 100
RAW images
Min boosted ISO 80 -
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points 81 425
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds Sony E
Number of lenses 107 121
Crop factor 2.1 1.5
Screen
Type of display Fully Articulated Tilting
Display diagonal 3" 3"
Display resolution 1,037k dots 922k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic Electronic
Viewfinder resolution 2,360k dots 1,440k dots
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.62x 0.71x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/8000 secs 1/4000 secs
Highest quiet shutter speed 1/16000 secs -
Continuous shooting rate 10.0 frames/s 11.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 6.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash settings Flash Auto, Redeye, Fill-in, Flash Off, Red-eye Slow sync (1st curtain), Slow sync (1st curtain), Slow sync (2nd curtain) Flash off, auto, fill flash, slow sync, rear sync, wireless, hi-speed
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p) 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video file format MPEG-4, H.264, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, XAVC S, H.264
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) Yes
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 427 grams (0.94 lb) 396 grams (0.87 lb)
Dimensions 125 x 72 x 37mm (4.9" x 2.8" x 1.5") 120 x 67 x 59mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 2.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 74 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 23.1 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.4 not tested
DXO Low light rating 894 not tested
Other
Battery life 330 images 420 images
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLN-1 NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 seconds, custom) Yes
Time lapse feature
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC + Memory Stick Pro Duo
Card slots One One
Price at launch $1,000 $748