Olympus PEN E-P3 vs Pentax Optio WG-2

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Olympus PEN E-P3 and the Pentax Optio WG-2, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Olympus PEN E-P3 was introduced in August 2011 and Pentax Optio WG-2 was introduced in February 2012. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Olympus PEN E-P3 over Pentax Optio WG-2.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Pentax Optio WG-2 over Olympus PEN E-P3.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Olympus PEN E-P3 and Pentax Optio WG-2 have 3.0" Fixed screens with 614k dot and 460k dot resolutions respectively. Olympus PEN E-P3 also features touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Camera does not have a built-in viewfinder but an optional electronic viewfinder can be attached on Olympus PEN E-P3.

Olympus PEN E-P3 features a 12.3 megapixel Micro Four Thirds CMOS sensor with dimensions of 17.3 x 13 mm and a total area of 224.9 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 12,800. Pentax Optio WG-2 features a 16 megapixel 1/2.3-inch BSI-CMOS sensor with dimensions of 6.17 x 4.55 mm and a total area of 20.7 mm². Its native ISO range is 125 - 6,400.

Pentax Optio WG-2 has BSI-CMOS sensor, short for Backside Illuminated Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor sensor. In traditional CMOS sensors, the wiring and circuitry are located on the front side of the sensor, which can block some of the incoming light. BSI technology flips this design by placing the photosensitive elements (pixels) on the backside of the sensor, allowing more light to reach the pixels. This significantly enhances light sensitivity and improves low-light performance. BSI-CMOS sensors are particularly effective in low-light conditions, as they can capture more light, resulting in brighter and less noisy images. This makes them well-suited for indoor and night photography. BSI-CMOS sensors deliver a higher SNR and reduced cross-talk.

Olympus PEN E-P3 is equipped with TruePic VI processor and can take pictures up to 4032 x 3024 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 3200 x 2400, 2560 x 1920, 1600 x 1200, 1280 x 960, 1024 x 768, 640 x 480 with 3:2, 4:3, 16:9 aspect ratios. Pentax Optio WG-2 can take pictures up to 4288 x 3216 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 4288 x 3216, 4224 x 2376, 3216 x 3216, 3072 x 2304, 3072 x 1728, 2592 x 1944, 2592 x 1464, 2048 x 1536, 1920 x 1080, 1024 x 768, 640 x 480 with 1:1, 4:3, 16:9 aspect ratios.

In-Body Image Stabilization on Olympus PEN E-P3

Olympus PEN E-P3 has a built-in Sensor Shift in-body image stabilization (IBIS). This means that you are still getting vibration reduction when camera is paired with non-image stabilizied lenses. It also works with lenses with optical image stabilization and in combination can achieve even better compensation.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) inputs for data transfer. Olympus PEN E-P3 has a Mini type C HDMI and Pentax Optio WG-2 has a Micro, Type D HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Olympus PEN E-P3 comes with BLS-5 battery pack with battery life of 330 shots and Pentax Optio WG-2 comes with D-LI92 battery pack with battery life of 260 shots.

External Storage Slots

Cameras have a single SD/SDHC/SDXC card slot.

Shutter

Shutter speed can go up to 1/4000 sec on Olympus PEN E-P3, and up to 1/4000 sec on Pentax Optio WG-2. Olympus PEN E-P3 can shoot continuously up to 3.0 fps. Pentax Optio WG-2 can shoot continuously up to 1.0 fps.

Flash

Cameras have built-in flash with maximum range of 10.00 m (@ ISO 200) on Olympus PEN E-P3 and 5.40 m on Pentax Optio WG-2. Olympus PEN E-P3 also accepts external flash. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/180 sec on Olympus PEN E-P3.

Olympus PEN E-P3 body has dimensions of 122 x 69 x 34 mm (4.8 x 2.72 x 1.34") and Pentax Optio WG-2 body has dimensions of 122 x 61 x 30 mm (4.8 x 2.4 x 1.18"). Olympus PEN E-P3 weighs 369 g (0.81 lb / 13.02 oz) and Pentax Optio WG-2 weighs 192 g (0.42 lb / 6.77 oz).

Olympus PEN E-P3

Pentax Optio WG-2

122 mm

69 mm

122 mm

61 mm

69 mm

61 mm

34 mm

30 mm