Olympus E-PL1 has a
12.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Truepic V processor. On the other hand, Panasonic G3 has a
16.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Venus Engine FHD processor.
Below you can see the E-PL1 and G3 sensor size comparison.
Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic G3 have the same sensor sizes so they will provide same level of control over the depth of field when used with same focal length and aperture. On the other hand, since Olympus E-PL1 has 29% larger pixel area compared to Panasonic G3, it has potential to collect more light on pixel level hence have less noise in low light / High ISO images.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
DxOMark is a benchmark that scientifically assesses image quality of camera sensors. It scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic G3 sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that G3 has a better overall score of 56, 2 points higher compared to E-PL1's score of 54.
Model |
Overall |
Color Depth |
Dynamic Range |
Low-light ISO |
Olympus E-PL1 |
54 |
21.5 bits |
10.1 Evs |
487 ISO |
Panasonic G3 |
56 |
21.0 bits |
10.6 Evs |
667 ISO |