Olympus XZ-1 vs Sony NEX-5N

The following is a complete assessment of the Olympus XZ-1 and Sony NEX-5N, former is a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by companies Olympus and Sony. There is a large difference among the resolutions of the XZ-1 (10MP) and NEX-5N (16MP) and the XZ-1 (1/1.63") and NEX-5N (APS-C) posses different sensor sizes.

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The XZ-1 was launched 8 months prior to the NEX-5N so they are of a similar age. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus XZ-1 being a Compact camera and the Sony NEX-5N being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before delving right into a detailed comparison, here is a concise summation of how the XZ-1 scores versus the NEX-5N in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus XZ-1 & Sony Alpha NEX-5N. The complete galleries are viewable at Olympus XZ-1 Gallery & Sony NEX-5N Gallery.

When you are going to travel with your camera frequently, you are going to need to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus XZ-1 provides outer dimensions of 111mm x 65mm x 42mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.7") having a weight of 275 grams (0.61 lbs) while the Sony NEX-5N has measurements of 111mm x 59mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.3" x 1.5") and a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs).

Examine the Olympus XZ-1 and Sony NEX-5N in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you are using at that time. Below is a front view physical size comparison of the XZ-1 vs the NEX-5N.

Looking at size and weight, the portability score of the XZ-1 and NEX-5N is 88 and 89 respectively.

Oftentimes, it is hard to imagine the gap in sensor dimensions purely by checking out technical specs. The picture below will help offer you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the XZ-1 and NEX-5N.

As you can tell, both of those cameras provide different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The XZ-1 due to its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field more challenging and the Sony NEX-5N will provide more detail utilizing its extra 6MP. Greater resolution will allow you to crop pics more aggressively. The more aged XZ-1 will be behind in sensor tech.