NOTE: This post contains unedited images from both cameras. ALL images are straight-out-of-camera (SOOC). Only resizing has been done to speed up downloading time. You can click on individual images for a bigger enlargements. But for original resolution, you will have to email me.
Finally, I have in my hands the NEX-3 with it’s 18-55mm kit zoom lens to test out against the E-PL1 with it’s 14-42mm kit zoom lens! The NEX-5’s main difference to the NEX-3 is just better HD video and better build quality. So, let’s take a look at the NEX-3 versus the E-PL1. For detailed specifications and original resolution image comparison, please refer to www.dpreview.com
I am basically sharing my personal experience with both cameras here and I do my best not to be bias.
My style of testing is focused on the practical usage of cameras rather than comparing technical charts. So I brought the cameras along with me in my recent trip to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, East Malaysia.
First, I like the NEX-3’s finishing. Though the design looks awkward with a really small body and a big lens, I could quickly get over it by holding the lens instead of the body. It’s finishing gives me a high-tech feeling. It feels like a very advanced toy with swift responses, intuitive dials and electronic sounds.
But the first frustration quickly came when I took more than 15 mins and still could not find how to format my SD card in it. In the end, I just packed the camera for the trip and my friend solved the issue for me, fiddling with it on our way to Kota Kinabalu. First impression: Deep “Menu-Diving”!
For the E-PL1 and NEX, it seems that the camera designers want minimum buttons on the camera. So, we end up with a lot more “menu-diving” due to one-button-for-all concept. This is something I am not used to as I have been accustomed to having aperture and shutter speed dials in most of my cameras since I started photography. Maybe this will appeal to the new generation? I am not sure.
Both the NEX-3 and E-PL1 do not have dedicated aperture/shutter speed dials. They are designed with digital interfaces for you to scroll in/out, up/down, left/right in their digital menu to figure out how to even change the aperture setting for example. After having got used to the E-PL1, fiddling with the NEX is not too hard for me.
BUT I still prefer to have the dedicated dials back like the E-P1/2! Before we go further looking at the images, I must say that at least the NEX comes with “auto-rotate” feature for it’s images at the price tag below RM2000. The E-PL1’s lack of “auto-rotate” in it’s images frustrates me constantly!
andrew says
the e-pl1 seemed to produce nicer pic than the nex apart from the oil lamp pics.
admin says
Yes, it does. It’s warmer n brighter generally.
Ben says
David, another great review! It’s exactly the kind of thing people like me want to read! I am a E-PL1 user and was tempted to dump the Oly for the NEX 5 as my EPL1 AF speed was driving me up the wall (and still is). The promise of better bokeh with a larger sensor (Sony) didn’t help either. However, after careful consideration and much googling, I changed my mind and am keeping the Oly and purchasing a panasonic 20mm f/1.7 pancake for the ultimate street camera!
While i love everything about the Oly E-PL1(except AF speed), I have to admit that from your photos the contrast from the Sony is that much better. It’s subtle but noticeable and makes quite a difference to my eyes. Makes d Oly look almost like a P&S by comparison (altho in reality of course there’s no match). Not surprising as the NEX has a larger sensor but I think its one of those things (like ISO) inherent in a smaller sensor camera that can’t be helped.
david chua says
Ben, I’m not sure what you meant by Oly files seem like from pns but in reality there’s no match… I’m a little confused by what you say… from what I see, the Sony files are generally lower in contrast, tends to underexpose and colors are colder. Maybe you can clarify… thanks for reading my blog!
E Johnson says
Ultimately I chose the NEX 3 with 18-55 lens plus the 16mm (which has not arrived yet). Overall the Oly is probably the better product but with future firmware and lens upgrades (wide angle zoom, portrait , macro) I expect the Sony to become better in time. Admittedly I’m a point n’ shooter. I take 50,000+ photos a year for my job. Mostly industrial stuff – buildings, fixtures and details. I was charmed by the NEX’s features, especially the “program auto” mode which automatically sets aperture and shutter but allows me to dial in light on the fly. At work I use that setting exclusively and have shot a few keepers that are superb. I also like the flip up flash which allows me to activate it without looking. So far I’ve only used it once. One handed use is a little awkward. Two hands are required to spin the wheel so one handed shots are moot anyhow. The biggest flaw is the cartoonish geometric distortion which is intrusive at times. Software fixes are inevitable. Without the micro 4/3 correction the PENS reportedly suffer similarly. One major NEX design flaw is apparent when you clunk the front of that heavy lens every time you set the camera on a table. If I am not careful eventual damage will manifest itself. …Just my two cents.
ben says
Yes, I agree the colours are colder on the Nex and it looks a little underexposed. But to my eyes, the contrast is better on the Sony. The dark parts are deeper with the brighter areas being about the same. Makes it look richer than the E-PL1 e.g the yellow ‘Poh Suan’ sign. Perhaps I am mistaking the slight underexposure of the NEX for this seemingly better contrast?
To clarify, my reference to PnS is when comparing the contrast of the PL1 to the Nex which reminds me of a pns to dslr. But not quite as dramatic thus ‘almost like’. ‘No match’ refers to the EPL1 contrast to a PnS in favour of the Olympus.
admin says
Ben, thanks for explaining. Now the other readers can get what you meant clearer. I do think the NEX does “pop” slightly more due to the larger sensor, and with some post-processing, the files do look quite good. (except for the occasional barrel distortion)
Rudy says
Different cameras and different in camera processing. But both good mirrorless camera system. Prefer the Pen processing still. I guess because my first cam was a olympus also. Maybe thats why there’s a little bias. Like u said la… “If your shot sucks, it sucks. It doesn’t matter about the bokeh.” Boils down to the person taking the pics also…camera bagus tak guarantee gambar cantik..haha.. Where was that place u took your son for painting dude?
admin says
1-Utama, 4yrs old onwards… ur girl is too young. 🙂
DuffyDuck says
Great website and great review of the two cameras! Congratulations.
It’s been a month since I started looking for an upgrade from my 4 year old P&S camera and the search had narrowed down to NEX-3 and E-PL1. Your great review helped me a lot. The shots are all well thought and I have to agree with the others that the Olympus shots look slightly better. What is really annoying with the NEX is the barrel distortion which is evident in both the ‘scooter’ shots and the seaside restaurant shot (look at the wooden floor). What I love in NEX is of course the great high ISO performance. Considering the price difference between the two over here (NEX3 with 18-55mm is 200 CHF more expensive than the EPL-1 with 14-42mm) I think my next camera will be an Olympus.
Thank you again for your great review
admin says
Thanks, DuffyDuck!
Blouis79 says
Great review. A small correction: E-PL1 *will* shoot when not focussed – there is a setting in the detailed menu.
admin says
Blouis,
By default, E-PL1 in S-AF mode has shutter-release-priority OFF. Which means it’ll stubbornly refuse to fire off without achieving focus. For the NEX, I could not find any menu regarding this and by default, the camera still releases it’s shutter in S-AF mode even without achieving focus.
maxypantsinyk says
It was your review that made me choose the E-PL1. Overall I’m happy with my choice but how did you get such good pictures in lowlight in iauto mode? I’ve tried and I can’t seem to do it:(
admin says
Add me in Flickr (link in my latest posts) to share with me ur pics so I can see and understand where the problem is? All I did was shot them in iAuto… I’ll need to see ur shots with exif data to understand what went wrong…
Ashley says
Thank you for your helpful review. I have been bouncing back and forth between the two cameras for weeks. Very helpful. Gracias.
simon says
Excellent review, just what I have been looking for without the bias of other forums. I am a novice to anything other than a compact camera but I was impressed level of information, telling me exactly what I need to know. The distortion of the Nex images worries me, just as the AF speed of the E-PL1 has me wondering if my decision to get one is going to haunt me! They both seem like fantastic cameras for the money, but I have to choose and it’s the oly for me.
Paolo says
Great review. I’m in the market for a DSLR camera and wanted one that isn’t too bulky. I’ve had my eyes on the EPL1 and the NEX-3 for some time now…and after this review, i think i’ve finally made up my mind. I’m choosing to go with the Olympus. For some reasons, the pics taken from the EPL1 seemed much more livelier in color and pics felt much warmer than the NEX-3. I’m picking one up tomorrow, just in time for our baby shower.
Kristofer says
Thanks, great review! I’m buying one of these camreas and I can’t decide which to buy.
There is one thing I’m wondering about though. In one picture people are sitting at tables with drinks. E-PL1 manages to get a sharp image thanks to the inbody IS. But what about the IS in the NEX-3 zoom lens, was it turned off or is it simply not as good as the E-PL1 IS?
admin says
Sony NEX lenses have NO I.S.!!!
Owen says
Nice comparison review, thanks.
I was under the impression that the NEX zoom lenses had OSS. Is it an option to turn on in a deep sub menu?!
admin says
Owen, NO IS or OS is built into the NEXes… 🙁
Owen says
The zoom lenses have Optical SteadyShot specced here?
http://www.sony.co.uk/product/ddl-nex-5-nex-3-lenses-and-a-mount-adaptor
admin says
No Owen, They do not have O.S.
Martin says
16mm lense has no O.S. 18-55 and 18-200 DO have O.S. And about the pictures, many of the Olympus seem too saturated for my taste, as if you turn color to the max on your T.V. The NEX-3 has an option to adjust color to Vivid (instead of Normal), this might get warmer results. I just bought a NEX-3, once you upgrade to v3 firmware it works much better, for me menus are intuitive in most cases, and for the two or three exceptions you can get used to it.
Shoot quality is fine, it has various options where it shoots two or three times to get some postprocessed result (HDR and some low-light modes). This is quite interesting, have gotten good results from these ideas.
If Sony just would release a decent XX-200 lens for a payable price (800USD for a 18-200 is quite a price tag).
I have been a P&S user with occasional DSLR useage. I’m really impressed with the NEX-3. high ISO modes work extremely well, was the main reason I wanted to get rid of my P&S. Now will only have to get a few good lenses…
admin says
Martin, my mistake: the NEX 18-55mm kit lens has O.S. Yes, you are right, the firmware upgrades helps alot! It does have a better sensor than the Olympus.
admin says
Owen, my mistake: the 18-55mm Sony kit lens has O.S. but in my tests, it is not as effective as the Olympus’s in-body I.S.
admin says
Yes, Owen, you are right. The zoom lenses have O.S.
Alex says
I’m new to photography,had settled on the nex 5 when I see these photos n have 2nd thots.
I dont understand- some of these shots with olympus seem surreal like sumthing you would only find in a painting or a wallpaper on your desktop.
e.g. [E-PL1, iAuto mode, ISO250, 1/100sec, F5.6.]>>
photos from both cams of the same scene -are worlds apart – how is this possible?
However I’m after real photos,as the eye seems them,n not being in a position to judge what the scene actually looked like, I have to take the photographers word for it..have you not altered the photos in any way at all to add bias to the olympus images?
Also the fixed lcd on olympus is a problem,in bright light what if you cant see what your shooting,the nex prevails over the olympus with the swivel screen.
dadix says
good review
Wesley says
Just wondering which firmware you had on the NEX 3
Michael says
very nice review, the sony seems to make cold colored pictures with more blue. the E-PL1 have warm colored pictures very red rich. cold colored pictures seems alway as the have more detail, because black parts are more dark, resulting in high contrast in the picture appearing detail rich
you have made the pictures in iAuto mode, in this mode the EPL1 use the iEnhance mode which produce the red colored pictures. the sony seems to have a very good high iso perfomance compared to the EPL1. the EPL1 is very noisy in dark parts of pictures, but the EPL1 has also a stronger noise reduction mode, you should compare the cameras at high iso setting the EPL1 to high noisereduction
kunwar verma says
HELLO SIR,
IT’S REALLY THANKFUL INFORMATION. VERY USEFUL.
QUESTION IS HOW’S PENTAX D SLR AND CANON’S QUALITY? AND DEPTH OF FIELD.
PLEASE TELL SIR, EASILY AFFORDABLE LOW BUDGET GOOD D SLR?
nice says
Nice comparison, and I actually liked the pictures, in contrast to most reviews which are filled with meaningless pictures :/
zee says
great article. nex 3 is amazing in high ISO compared to epl1.. both are great cameras