Pentax K-S1 vs Pentax E85

Below is a in depth overview of the Pentax K-S1 and Pentax E85, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both designed by Pentax. There is a large difference among the sensor resolutions of the K-S1 (20MP) and E85 (12MP) and the K-S1 (APS-C) and E85 (1/2.3") have totally different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The K-S1 was revealed 5 years later than the E85 and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Pentax K-S1 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Pentax E85 being a Compact camera.

Before we go right into a in depth comparison, here is a quick view of how the K-S1 grades versus the E85 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Pentax K-S1 & Pentax Optio E85. The full galleries are available at Pentax K-S1 Gallery & Pentax E85 Gallery.

For those who are going to lug around your camera, you have to factor its weight and volume. The Pentax K-S1 provides outer dimensions of 121mm x 93mm x 70mm (4.8" x 3.7" x 2.8") along with a weight of 558 grams (1.23 lbs) while the Pentax E85 has sizing of 93mm x 58mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.3" x 0.9") with a weight of 145 grams (0.32 lbs).

Take a look at the Pentax K-S1 and Pentax E85 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are utilizing during that time. The following is a front view physical size comparison of the K-S1 versus the E85.

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the K-S1 and E85 is 69 and 95 respectively.

Generally, its hard to envision the difference in sensor measurements purely by viewing specs. The graphic here will help give you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the K-S1 and E85.

As you can plainly see, both of those cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The K-S1 with its larger sensor will make getting shallower depth of field simpler and the Pentax K-S1 will render more detail because of its extra 8MP. Greater resolution can also let you crop images way more aggressively. The more recent K-S1 will have an advantage when it comes to sensor technology.