Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5
94 Imaging
37 Features
35 Overall
36


91 Imaging
53 Features
62 Overall
56
Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 3" Fixed Display
- ISO 80 - 1600
- Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
- 1280 x 720 video
- 24-300mm (F3.0-5.9) lens
- 158g - 101 x 58 x 29mm
- Announced July 2011
- Updated by Olympus VR-330
(Full Review)
- 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 3" Fixed Display
- ISO 200 - 25600
- 1920 x 1080 video
- Micro Four Thirds Mount
- 211g - 99 x 60 x 36mm
- Released September 2014
- Replaced the Panasonic GM1

Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5 Overview
Lets look a little more closely at the Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. The resolution of the VR-320 (14MP) and the GM5 (16MP) is very similar but the VR-320 (1/2.3") and GM5 (Four Thirds) boast different sensor sizing.

The VR-320 was announced 4 years earlier than the GM5 and that is quite a large difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus VR-320 being a Compact camera and the Panasonic GM5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.
Before we go right into a detailed comparison, here is a simple overview of how the VR-320 scores vs the GM5 for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5 Gallery
Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus VR-320 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5. The whole galleries are available at Olympus VR-320 Gallery & Panasonic GM5 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus VR-320 over the Panasonic GM5
VR-320 | GM5 |
---|
Reasons to pick Panasonic GM5 over the Olympus VR-320
GM5 | VR-320 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Released | September 2014 | ![]() | July 2011 | Fresher by 38 months |
Focus manually | ![]() | Dial accurate focus | ||
Display resolution | 921k | ![]() | 230k | Sharper display (+691k dot) |
Touch friendly display | ![]() | Easily navigate |
Common features in the Olympus VR-320 and Panasonic GM5
VR-320 | GM5 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Display type | Fixed | ![]() | Fixed | Fixed display |
Display dimensions | 3" | ![]() | 3" | Equal display measurement |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Lacking selfie screen |
Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5 Physical Comparison
If you are intending to carry your camera frequently, you will want to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus VR-320 provides outside measurements of 101mm x 58mm x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1") with a weight of 158 grams (0.35 lbs) whilst the Panasonic GM5 has measurements of 99mm x 60mm x 36mm (3.9" x 2.4" x 1.4") and a weight of 211 grams (0.47 lbs).
Take a look at the Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you use at the time. The following is a front view overall size comparison of the VR-320 vs the GM5.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the VR-320 and GM5 is 94 and 91 respectively.

Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5 Sensor Comparison
More often than not, it is difficult to picture the contrast between sensor sizing simply by reviewing a spec sheet. The visual here may provide you a clearer sense of the sensor sizing in the VR-320 and GM5.
As you can see, both the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The VR-320 having a tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF harder and the Panasonic GM5 will offer more detail with its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also enable you to crop photos a bit more aggressively. The older VR-320 is going to be behind in sensor tech.

Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus VR-320 vs Panasonic GM5 Specifications
Olympus VR-320 | Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Manufacturer | Olympus | Panasonic |
Model type | Olympus VR-320 | Panasonic Lumix DMC-GM5 |
Class | Small Sensor Superzoom | Entry-Level Mirrorless |
Announced | 2011-07-19 | 2014-09-15 |
Body design | Compact | Rangefinder-style mirrorless |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor Chip | TruePic III | Venus Engine |
Sensor type | CCD | CMOS |
Sensor size | 1/2.3" | Four Thirds |
Sensor measurements | 6.17 x 4.55mm | 17.3 x 13mm |
Sensor surface area | 28.1mm² | 224.9mm² |
Sensor resolution | 14MP | 16MP |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 |
Highest resolution | 4288 x 3216 | 4592 x 3448 |
Highest native ISO | 1600 | 25600 |
Lowest native ISO | 80 | 200 |
RAW format | ||
Lowest boosted ISO | - | 100 |
Autofocusing | ||
Focus manually | ||
AF touch | ||
Continuous AF | ||
Single AF | ||
AF tracking | ||
AF selectice | ||
AF center weighted | ||
AF multi area | ||
Live view AF | ||
Face detect focusing | ||
Contract detect focusing | ||
Phase detect focusing | ||
Total focus points | - | 23 |
Lens | ||
Lens support | fixed lens | Micro Four Thirds |
Lens zoom range | 24-300mm (12.5x) | - |
Max aperture | f/3.0-5.9 | - |
Macro focusing distance | 1cm | - |
Total lenses | - | 107 |
Focal length multiplier | 5.8 | 2.1 |
Screen | ||
Range of display | Fixed Type | Fixed Type |
Display sizing | 3 inch | 3 inch |
Resolution of display | 230k dot | 921k dot |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch capability | ||
Display tech | TFT Color LCD | - |
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | None | Electronic |
Viewfinder resolution | - | 1,166k dot |
Viewfinder coverage | - | 100 percent |
Viewfinder magnification | - | 0.46x |
Features | ||
Slowest shutter speed | 4 seconds | 60 seconds |
Maximum shutter speed | 1/2000 seconds | 1/500 seconds |
Maximum quiet shutter speed | - | 1/16000 seconds |
Continuous shooting speed | - | 5.8 frames per sec |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manual exposure | ||
Exposure compensation | - | Yes |
Custom WB | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash distance | 4.70 m | no built-in flash |
Flash settings | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in | Auto, auto w/redeye reduction, on, on w/redeye reduction, slow sync, slow sync w/redeye reduction, off |
Hot shoe | ||
AE bracketing | ||
White balance bracketing | ||
Exposure | ||
Multisegment metering | ||
Average metering | ||
Spot metering | ||
Partial metering | ||
AF area metering | ||
Center weighted metering | ||
Video features | ||
Video resolutions | 1280 x 720 (30, 15fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15fps) | 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 50p, 50i, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (30p, 25p), 640 x 480 (30p, 25p) |
Highest video resolution | 1280x720 | 1920x1080 |
Video file format | Motion JPEG | MPEG-4, AVCHD |
Microphone jack | ||
Headphone jack | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | Built-In |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | None |
Physical | ||
Environmental seal | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 158g (0.35 lb) | 211g (0.47 lb) |
Physical dimensions | 101 x 58 x 29mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.1") | 99 x 60 x 36mm (3.9" x 2.4" x 1.4") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO All around rating | not tested | 66 |
DXO Color Depth rating | not tested | 22.1 |
DXO Dynamic range rating | not tested | 11.7 |
DXO Low light rating | not tested | 721 |
Other | ||
Battery life | - | 220 photos |
Battery form | - | Battery Pack |
Battery ID | LI-42B | DMW-BLH7 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images)) |
Time lapse shooting | ||
Type of storage | SD/SDHC | SD/SDHC/SDXC |
Storage slots | 1 | 1 |
Cost at launch | $179 | $966 |