Olympus 7040 vs Pentax ist DL2

Here is a complete assessment of the Olympus 7040 and Pentax ist DL2, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Advanced DSLR by rivals Olympus and Pentax. There exists a considerable gap between the resolutions of the 7040 (14MP) and ist DL2 (6MP) and the 7040 (1/2.3") and ist DL2 (APS-C) posses different sensor measurements.

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The 7040 was unveiled 4 years later than the ist DL2 and that is quite a large difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus 7040 being a Compact camera and the Pentax ist DL2 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before going straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a concise synopsis of how the 7040 grades against the ist DL2 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus Stylus 7040 & Pentax ist DL2. The full galleries are provided at Olympus 7040 Gallery & Pentax ist DL2 Gallery.

For those who are aiming to carry your camera often, you'll need to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus 7040 enjoys external dimensions of 95mm x 56mm x 26mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 1.0") along with a weight of 144 grams (0.32 lbs) while the Pentax ist DL2 has dimensions of 125mm x 93mm x 66mm (4.9" x 3.7" x 2.6") with a weight of 565 grams (1.25 lbs).

See the Olympus 7040 and Pentax ist DL2 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you use at the time. Here is a front view physical size comparison of the 7040 versus the ist DL2.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the 7040 and ist DL2 is 95 and 69 respectively.

Quite often, it's tough to picture the contrast between sensor sizing merely by reading technical specs. The photograph underneath should offer you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the 7040 and ist DL2.

As you can tell, each of the cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The 7040 having a tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field harder and the Olympus 7040 will offer you more detail having an extra 8MP. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop photographs a good deal more aggressively. The more modern 7040 should have an edge in sensor technology.