Olympus VR-340 vs Pentax Q-S1

Here is a detailed comparison of the Olympus VR-340 and Pentax Q-S1, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a noticeable gap between the image resolutions of the VR-340 (16MP) and Q-S1 (12MP) and the VR-340 (1/2.3") and Q-S1 (1/1.7") possess different sensor dimensions.

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The VR-340 was revealed 3 years before the Q-S1 and that is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus VR-340 being a Compact camera and the Pentax Q-S1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight into a detailed comparison, below is a quick summation of how the VR-340 matches up versus the Q-S1 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus VR-340 & Pentax Q-S1. The full galleries are available at Olympus VR-340 Gallery & Pentax Q-S1 Gallery.

When you are going to carry your camera often, you are going to need to factor in its weight and measurements. The Olympus VR-340 enjoys external dimensions of 96mm x 57mm x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") accompanied by a weight of 125 grams (0.28 lbs) and the Pentax Q-S1 has proportions of 105mm x 58mm x 34mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.3") having a weight of 203 grams (0.45 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus VR-340 and Pentax Q-S1 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are employing at that time. Here is the front view proportions comparison of the VR-340 vs the Q-S1.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the VR-340 and Q-S1 is 96 and 92 respectively.

Quite often, its tough to imagine the gap between sensor sizing just by reviewing specifications. The photograph below will help give you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the VR-340 and Q-S1.

To sum up, both the cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The VR-340 using its tinier sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF more challenging and the Olympus VR-340 will offer more detail because of its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop images much more aggressively. The older VR-340 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.