Below you can see the front view size comparison of Canon G5 X and Olympus E-M1. Canon G5 X is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 18mm narrower, 18mm shorter and 19mm thinner than Olympus E-M1. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Canon G5 X has a built-in lens but Olympus E-M1 doesn't. Once you put a lens on E-M1, its thickness will increase significantly.
Now lets look at the top view comparison of Canon G5 X and Olympus E-M1.
Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day.
Canon G5 X is significantly lighter (144g ) than the Olympus E-M1 which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.
Again, this comparison may not be very useful in real life as we are comparing the weight of a camera with a built-in lens to the body-only weight of an interchangeable lens camera. Once you put a lens on E-M1, the total kit will weigh much higher.
Canon G5 X has a 20.0MP 1 (13.2 x 8.8 mm ) sized BSI-CMOS sensor and features DIGIC 6 processor. On the other hand, Olympus E-M1 has a 16.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features TruePIC VII processor.
Below you can see the G5 X and E-M1 sensor size comparison.
As seen above, Olympus E-M1 has a 1.9x Larger sensor area than Canon G5 X. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.
In this section, we rank and compare Canon G5 X and Olympus E-M1 for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.
Canon G5 X for Portrait Photography
Olympus E-M1 for Portrait Photography
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 20.0MP
Image Stabilization
External Flash Shoe
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
Read the details
Canon G5 X for Street Photography
Olympus E-M1 for Street Photography
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Fully Articulated LCD Screen
Fast Lens at Wide: f1.80
24 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Tilting LCD Screen
Medium sized Body
Read the details
Canon G5 X for Sports Photography
Olympus E-M1 for Sports Photography
Image Stabilization
External Flash Shoe
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Wireless Connection
Average Continuous Shooting: 5.9fps
Average Max shutter speed: 1/2000s
Environmental Sealings
Focus Points
Poor Battery Life: 210 shots
100 mm Tele Lens
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Continuous Shooting: 10.0fps
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/8000s
81 Focus Points
Wireless Connection
Read the details
Canon G5 X for Daily Photography
Olympus E-M1 for Daily Photography
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
4X Optical Zoom
353g
Body Thickness 44mm
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Medium size Body
497g
Body Thickness 63mm
Read the details
Canon G5 X for Landscape Photography
Olympus E-M1 for Landscape Photography
Very High Resolution Sensor: 20.0MP
24 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
Read the details
You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Canon G5 X and Olympus E-M1, below you can find their scores in five different aspects.
Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.
Here is a summary of how Canon G5 X and Olympus E-M1 scores compare:
Canon G5 X
Ranked
#6 out of 45 in Large sensor compact cameras
Ranked
#111 out of 1140 in all Cameras
Olympus E-M1
Ranked
#19 out of 53 in SLR-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked
#58 out of 1140 in all Cameras
Olympus E-M1 is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Canon G5 X in all criterias except one: Portability.
If small size and light body is a big priority for you, choose Canon G5 X. Otherwise, Olympus E-M1 is the better camera overall.
| General |
Canon PowerShot G5 X |
Olympus OM-D E-M1 |
| Brand |
Canon |
Olympus |
| Announced |
2015-09-11 |
2013-10-28 |
| Body Type |
Large sensor compact |
SLR-style mirrorless |
| Price |
$799.00 |
$1,099.00 |
Sensor |
|
|
| Type |
BSI-CMOS |
CMOS |
| Size |
1 |
Four Thirds |
| Dimensions |
13.2 x 8.8 mm |
17.3 x 13 mm |
| Area |
116.16mm2 |
224.90mm2 |
| Megapixels |
20 megapixels |
16 megapixels |
| Max Resolution |
5472 x 3648 |
4608 x 3456 |
| Max Native Light sensitivity |
12,800 ISO |
25,600 ISO |
| Min Native Light sensitivity |
125 ISO |
100 ISO |
| RAW Support |
|
|
Autofocus |
|
|
| AF Touch |
|
|
| AF Continuous |
|
|
| AF Single |
|
|
| AF Tracking |
|
|
| AF Selective |
|
|
| AF Center |
|
|
| AF Multi Area |
|
|
| AF Live View |
|
|
| AF Face Detection |
|
|
| AF Contrast Detection |
|
|
| AF Phase Detection |
|
|
| Number of Focus Points |
n/a |
81 |
Lens |
|
|
| Manual Focus |
|
|
| Lens Mount |
fixed lens |
Micro Four Thirds |
| Number of Available Lenses |
n/a |
92 |
| Lens Focal Range |
24–100 mm (4.2×) |
no lens |
| Max Aperture |
F1.8-2.8 |
no lens |
| Macro Focus Range |
5cm |
no lens |
Screen |
|
|
| Type |
Fully Articulated |
Tilting |
| Size |
3″ |
3″ |
| Resolution |
1,040k dots |
1,037k dots |
| Touch Screen |
|
|
Viewfinder |
|
|
| Viewfinder |
Electronic |
Electronic |
| Viewfinder Resolution |
2,360k dots |
2,360k dots |
| Viewfinder Coverage |
100% |
100% |
| Viewfinder Magnification |
n/a |
0.74 |
Photography Features |
|
|
| Max Shutter Speed |
1/2000s |
1/8000s |
| Shutter Priority |
|
|
| Aperture Priority |
|
|
| Manual Exposure Mode |
|
|
| Custom White Balance |
|
|
| Image Stabilization |
Optical |
Sensor-shift |
| Built-in Flash |
|
|
| Flash Range |
7.00 m (at Auto ISO) |
no built-in flash |
| Max Flash Sync |
n/a |
1/320s |
| External Flash |
|
|
| Continuous Shooting |
5.9 fps |
10.0 fps |
| Multi-Segment |
|
|
| Average |
|
|
| Spot |
|
|
| Partial |
|
|
| AF-Area |
|
|
| Center Weighted |
|
|
| AE Bracketing |
|
|
| WB Bracketing |
|
|
Video Features |
|
|
| Max Video Resolution |
1920 x 1080 |
1920 x 1080 |
| Video Formats |
MPEG-4, H.264 |
H.264, Motion JPEG |
| Microphone Port |
|
|
| Headphone Port |
|
|
Connectivity |
|
|
| Wireless Connectivity |
Built-In |
Built-In |
| HDMI |
|
|
Physical |
|
|
| Environmental Sealing |
|
|
| Weight |
353g |
497g |
| Dimensions |
112 x 76 x 44mm |
130 x 94 x 63mm |
| Battery Life |
210 shots |
350 shots |
Other Features |
|
|
| Timelapse Recording |
|
|
| GPS |
None |
None |
DxO Sensor Scores |
|
|
| DxO Overall Score |
not tested |
73 |
| DxO Color Depth |
not tested |
23.0 |
| DxO Dynamic Range |
not tested |
12.7 |
| DxO Low Light ISO |
not tested |
757 |
|
Report a correction |
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