Size and weight are big decision factors when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs.
In this section, we are going to illustrate the Olympus E-P5 and Sony W290 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Olympus E-P5 has external dimensions of 122 x 69 x 37 mm (4.8 x 2.72 x 1.46″) and weighs 420 g (0.93 lb / 14.82 oz) (including batteries). Sony W290 has external dimensions of 98 x 57 x 23 mm (3.86 x 2.24 x 0.91″) and weighs 167 g (0.37 lb / 5.89 oz) (including batteries).
Below you can see the front-view size comparison of the Olympus E-P5 and the Sony W290. Sony W290 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 24mm narrower, 12mm shorter and 14mm thinner than Olympus E-P5. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Sony W290 has a built-in lens but Olympus E-P5 doesn't. Once you put a lens on E-P5, its thickness will increase significantly.
Here is the back view size comparison of the Olympus E-P5 and Sony W290.
Now lets look at the top view comparison of Olympus E-P5 and Sony W290.
Weight is another important factor, especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day.
Sony W290 is significantly lighter (253g ) than the Olympus E-P5 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-P5, the total kit will weigh much higher.
Weather Sealing
Unfortunately neither the Olympus PEN E-P5 nor Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290 provides any type of weather sealing in their bodies, so you have to give extra care especially when you are shooting outdoors. If weather sealing is a must-have feature for you, check these sections: Top Mirrorless Cameras with Weather Sealing Top Compact Cameras with Weather Sealing
LCD Screen Size and Features
Olympus E-P5 and Sony W290's LCD screens have the same diagonal size of 3.00 inches.
On the other hand, Olympus E-P5 features a
Tilting screen where you can change the angle of the screen to make it easier to shoot from waist or over-the-head levels whereas the Sony W290 has a fixed type screen which provides less flexibility in shooting positions compared to E-P5.