All 10-megapixel sensors are not equal. The Olympus E-420 has the same resolution as the Olympus E-3, the company’s top-of-the-line DSLR. That being the case, you might expect it to have the same image quality as the E-3. But studio tests reveal that the E-420 produces slightly more noise than the E-3 at ISO 400 and considerably more at ISO 1600. Although the E-420 isn’t intended to compete with the Olympus flagship digital SLR, it is useful to compare it to the best Olympus has to offer.
The 14-42mm kit lens doesn’t produce any notable vignetting, and purple fringing is virtually nonexistent, even in mountain landscapes with lots of trees and sky. Contrast and shadow detail are noticeably good, even with backlit faces. Color is superb right out of the camera. The main place where the E-420′s image quality suffers is in handheld, low-light situations, where sensitivity settings of ISO 400 and higher produce noticeable noise and image stabilization would make a difference.
The E-420 won’t give comparable Nikon or Canon digital SLRs a run for their money in terms of image quality, but it certainly will in size and weight. For many photographers, packing the world’s smallest DSLR will be worth trading a little image quality. And for those accustomed to point-and-shoot image quality, the E-420 will provide a noticeable improvement.
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Click on thumbnails to view sample photos.
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Great pro review, like most of them are.
The E-420 does feel good in the hand for me too, I tried it out at a photo store. However, the lack of in-body image stabilization and no Olympus lenses available with a stabilizer prevents me from running out and buying this camera.
Other than this, it seems to be feature-packed and high-quality. Live view in such a tiny D-SLR would also be sure to come in handy.
Thank you very much for the kind words and sharing your thoughts. I confess I’m sad to have to send this camera back!
I had the e420 with twin kits lens and its much way better then my FZ7 Lumix… The cheapest level entry DSLR in Malaysia compared to Canon/Nikon. (with the twin kits lens). As a DSLR beginners its pretty worthwhile. Throw in the pancakes 25mm + FL36.. I save a lot just to fulfill my hobby
Cheers…
Very interesting comment nafim!!!
I also own an FZ7K.
nafim and A.M.D.A. -
Bigger pixels are always better! The E-420 will be faster and have much better image quality than the Panasonic FZ7 or any other compact digital camera. What it’s missing is the long zoom and image stabilization. For those you’ll need an Olympus E-520 and the Olympus Zuiko 18-200mm or 70-300mm lens. That combination will stomp the FZ7 in every possible way.
John -
Of course I know that any DSLR will provide better image quality and features than compact digital cameras.
What I meant is that it was interesting to read someone else’s opinion comparing the E-420 with the FZ7. As you know, the menu layouts/buttons as well as the Oly’s design and feel are quite different than the Lumix.
Right now I can’t afford to buy a DSLR, but it sure is interesting to read other people’s opinions, since eventually I will have to make an upgrade. Thanks for the suggestion on the E-520, that looks like a better option, since it has a built-in stabilizer.
Thanks for great reviews! I am int process to make may final choice, the e-420 or the e-520. My major concer is: what practical impact has the absence of a stabilizer of lences or body to my work. In which situations will I feel I should hae given priority over whiegt and size over IS-functions? Very few, if any, give answers to this issue.
soy una vara caliente y ya tengo una de estas…
Que?
do nto buy the 18-180 olympus lens john. its slow and very soft. I was disappointed and took it back.
Thanks for your comment, Steph. I’ve had the opportunity to use the Olympus 18-180mm lens and I agree that it’s not one of Olympus’ better lenses. For some people it might be a good option, though. Please post a review for the lens, since you’ve used it. We need more Olympus camera and lens reviews. Here’s a link to the Olympus 18-180mm lens user review page:
Olympus Zuiko Digital 18-180mm Lens User Reviews >>
Personally, I’d rather carry a couple of lenses and know I’m going to have better quality. Usually, I carry the 12-60mm and the 70-300mm. That offers very good quality and a huge range.
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I’ve loved my Evolt Camera and its lenses — but I’ve wished that I didn’t have carry my two Olympus lenses with me when I was going to be taking images at both shorter and longer focal lengths. Having received the Olympus Zuiko 18mm-180mm ultra zoom lens (which is the equivalent of 35mm-350mm) as a present this Christmas, I no longer have to. This lightweight all-digital lens, made especially for the Olympus four thirds system, receives very sharp, very colorful, distortion-free images. Its weight is a little heavier than either of the two separate lenses that came with the camera and it’s not quite as fast a lens.
I bought this camera on Craigslist for my daughter’s birthday, it seemed to work ok but was slow so I got her a good memory card. Then shortly afterwards it started acting up. Taking B&W pictures, running VERY slow, now it hardly works at all. I tried to update the firmware but it says it has the latest. She is very upset and doesn’t want use to spend any more money on it, would it be worth sending in or did this model have some kind of problem that would not make it worth repairing? Cosmetically it looks new.