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Olympus SZ-30MR vs Olympus E-PM1 Comparison

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Olympus SZ-30MR

16 MP | 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) CMOS Sensor

Olympus SZ-30MR
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Olympus E-PM1

12 MP | Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) CMOS Sensor

Olympus E-PM1
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Olympus SZ-30MR vs Olympus E-PM1 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two Olympus cameras cameras with different body types: Olympus SZ-30MR, which was introduced in March 2011 is a Small Sensor Superzoom camera with a 16.0MP 1/2.3-inch sensor whereas Olympus E-PM1, which was introduced in November 2011 is a Entry-Level Mirrorless camera with a 12.0MP Four Thirds sensor. There is only 9 months difference between SZ-30MR and E-PM1 so we are expecting this to be a fair comparison regarding age and technology level.

Comparing an interchangeble lens camera to a fixed lens camera is a bit tricky but we will do our best to make this a fair comparison.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Olympus SZ-30MR Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2011-03-02
  • 16MP - 1/2.3-inch CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • 25-600 mm F3.0-6.9 Zoom Lens
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 3" Fixed Type Screen
  • 2 fps continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • 226g. 106 x 69 x 40 mm

Olympus E-PM1 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2011-11-23
  • 12MP - Four Thirds CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 12800
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 3" Fixed Type Screen
  • 6 fps continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • 265g. 110 x 64 x 34 mm

Olympus E-PM1 was replaced by Olympus PEN E-PM2. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Olympus PEN E-PM2 vs Olympus PEN E-PM1
Olympus PEN E-PM2 vs Olympus SZ-30MR

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Olympus SZ-30MR over Olympus PEN E-PM1
Built-in Flash
Yes vs No Useful in low-light
Max Sensor Resolution
16 MP vs 12 MP 33% more pixels
Weight
226 g vs 265 g 39 g lighter


Reasons to choose Olympus PEN E-PM1 over Olympus SZ-30MR
External Flash Shoe
Yes vs No Better for flash photography
RAW Support
Yes vs No Better image quality
Max ISO
12.800 vs 3.200 300% higher Max ISO
Max Mech. Shutter
1/4000s vs 1/1700s faster mechanical shutter
Continuous Shooting
6.0fps vs 2.0fps 4 fps faster
Battery Life
330 shots vs 220 shots 110 more frames with a single charge
Manual Exposure
Yes vs No better exposure control
Sensor Pixel Area
18.45µm2 vs 1.76µm2 948% larger pixel area
AE Bracketing
Yes vs No Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR

Common Strengths of Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus PEN E-PM1
Image Stabilization
Sensor-shift vs Sensor-shift Sharper images at longer focal lengths and long exposures
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs Yes very handy for portraits
Common Weaknesses of Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus PEN E-PM1
Fixed Screen
Fixed Type vs No No flexible viewing angles
LCD Screen Resolution
460k dots vs 460k dots Low resolution screens
Environmental Sealing
No vs No not suitable for tough conditions
Olympus SZ-30MR vs Olympus E-PM1: Physical Specs and Body features Comparison

Size and weight is a big decision factor when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs. In this section, We are going to illustrate Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Olympus SZ-30MR has external dimensions of 106 x 69 x 40 mm (4.17 x 2.72 x 1.57″) and weighs 226 g (0.50 lb / 7.97 oz) (including batteries). Olympus E-PM1 has external dimensions of 110 x 64 x 34 mm (4.33 x 2.52 x 1.34″) and weighs 265 g (0.58 lb / 9.35 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1. Olympus E-PM1 is 5mm shorter and 6mm thinner than Olympus SZ-30MR but it is also 4mm wider. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Olympus SZ-30MR has a built-in lens but Olympus E-PM1 doesn't. Once you put a lens on E-PM1, its thickness will increase significantly.

Olympus SZ-30MR vs Olympus E-PM1 Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1.
Olympus SZ-30MR vs Olympus E-PM1 Camera Size Comparison - Top View
Top View Comparison image of Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Olympus SZ-30MR is significantly lighter (39g ) than the Olympus E-PM1 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-PM1, the total kit will weigh much higher.

Weather Sealing

Unfortunately neither Olympus SZ-30MR nor Olympus PEN E-PM1 provides any type of weather sealing in their body, 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 Compact Cameras with Weather Sealing
Top Mirrorless Cameras with Weather Sealing

LCD Screen Size and Features

Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3".

Unfortunately, both cameras has fixed screens so they don't tilt or flip in directions.
Olympus SZ-30MR vs Olympus E-PM1: Sensor Comparison

Olympus SZ-30MR has a 16.0MP 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features TruePic III+ processor. On the other hand, Olympus E-PM1 has a 12.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features TruePic VI processor.

Below you can see the SZ-30MR and E-PM1 sensor size comparison.

Olympus SZ-30MR vs Olympus E-PM1 Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 Cameras


As seen above, Olympus E-PM1 has a 8.0x Larger sensor area than Olympus SZ-30MR. 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.

What types of Photography are Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 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.

Olympus SZ-30MR for Portrait Photography

POOR

Olympus E-PM1 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE
Image Stabilization
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Optional External Viewfinder
Average Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Olympus SZ-30MR for Street Photography

GOOD

Olympus E-PM1 for Street Photography

EXCELLENT
Image Stabilization
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
25 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Optional External Viewfinder
Medium sized Body
Read the details

Olympus SZ-30MR for Sports Photography

POOR

Olympus E-PM1 for Sports Photography

AVERAGE
Image Stabilization
600 mm Tele Lens
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Slow Continuous Shooting: 2.0fps
Environmental Sealings
Slow Max shutter speed: 1/1700s
Unknown Focus Points
Poor Battery Life: 220 shots
Slow Lens at Tele: f6.90
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
35 Focus Points
Optional External Viewfinder
Average Ergonomics&Handling
Average Continuous Shooting: 6.0fps
Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Olympus SZ-30MR for Daily Photography

GOOD

Olympus E-PM1 for Daily Photography

GOOD
Compact Body
226g
24.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Body Thickness 40mm
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
265g
Medium size Body
Read the details

Olympus SZ-30MR for Landscape Photography

POOR

Olympus E-PM1 for Landscape Photography

POOR
25 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Olympus SZ-30MR vs Olympus E-PM1: OUR DECISION

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 Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1, 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 Olympus SZ-30MR and Olympus E-PM1 scores compare:

Olympus SZ-30MR
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #213 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked #790 out of 1223 in all Cameras
Olympus E-PM1
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #83 out of 127 in Rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #371 out of 1223 in all Cameras

Olympus E-PM1 has a higher Overall Score than the Olympus SZ-30MR and would be our choice if we have to decide between these two cameras.

Olympus SZ-30MR
Olympus SZ-30MR
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Olympus E-PM1
Olympus E-PM1
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Olympus E-PM1 vs Olympus SZ-30MR Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Olympus SZ-30MR Olympus PEN E-PM1
Brand Olympus Olympus
Announced 2011-03-02 2011-11-23
Body Type Compact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor
Type CMOS CMOS
Size 1/2.3-inch Four Thirds
Dimensions 6.17 x 4.55 mm 17.3 x 13 mm
Area 28.07mm2 224.90mm2
Megapixels 16 megapixels 12 megapixels
Max Resolution 4608 x 3456 4032 x 3024
Max Native Light sensitivity 3,200 ISO 12,800 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity 80 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 35
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount fixed lens Micro Four Thirds
Lens Focal Range 25-600 mm (24×) no lens
Max Aperture F3.0-6.9 no lens
Macro Focus Range 1cm no lens
Screen
Type Fixed type Fixed type
Size 3" 3"
Resolution 460k dots 460k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder None Electronic (optional)
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/1700s 1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization Sensor-shift Sensor-shift
Built-in Flash
Flash Range 4.00 m no built-in flash
Max Flash Sync n/a 1/160s
External Flash
Continuous Shooting 2.0 fps 6.0 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 AVCHD, Motion JPEG
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity Eye-Fi Connected None
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 226g 265g
Dimensions 106 x 69 x 40mm 110 x 64 x 34mm
Battery Life 220 shots 330 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS None None
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score not tested 52
DxO Color Depth not tested 21.0
DxO Dynamic Range not tested 10.3
DxO Low Light ISO not tested 499
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