Olympus Pen E-PL10 vs Panasonic Lumix G100 — Which Is Better?

The Olympus Pen E-PL10 and the Panasonic Lumix G100 are compact mirrorless cameras in the Micro Four Thirds system, so any Micro 4/3 lens you buy for one fits the other directly. Olympus released the E-PL10 in 2019 and Panasonic followed with the G100 in 2020.

The E-PL10 is the slimmer body at 39 mm deep, against 54 mm for the G100, which is also taller at 83 mm. The G100 is the lighter body at 352 g, while the E-PL10 weighs 380 g.

For heavy cropping the Lumix G100 is the stronger choice, because its 20 megapixel sensor gives 25 percent more pixels than the Pen E-PL10's 16 megapixels. That extra data preserves detail when you crop a distant subject or print larger. Both use the same Micro Four Thirds CMOS sensor format, so the advantage is pixel count rather than format.

Eye-level framing favours the G100, which offers a 3,680,000-dot electronic viewfinder for bright daylight, while the E-PL10 has no viewfinder and relies on its rear screen. For action stills the E-PL10 is the stronger pick, shooting at 14 frames per second against the G100's 10 and offering 121 autofocus points versus 49, which helps with off-centre subjects. Both provide in-body stabilisation for sharper handheld shots at slower shutter speeds.

Slow motion favours the G100: its maximum frame rate of 120 fps doubles the E-PL10's 60 fps, so fast movement such as a dancer's spin or a splashing dive slows more smoothly in playback.

The other video limits are shared: both record up to 4K resolution, both write MPEG-4 or MOV files, and both include a built-in timelapse mode for subjects like drifting clouds.

The G100 gives you a sharper screen for reviewing shots and confirming focus, with 1,840,000 dots against the E-PL10's 1,037,000 on the same 3-inch size.

The two share the same everyday setup: a 3-inch flip-out touchscreen for vlogging and selfies, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for transferring images and remote control, and a built-in flash that works alongside external flash units. Neither camera offers GPS or weather sealing.

Battery life favours the E-PL10, rated for 350 shots against the G100's 270. The G100 answers with USB charging, so you can top up its BLG10 battery from a laptop or power bank between shoots; the E-PL10 and its BLS-50 battery do not support USB charging.

Both take SD, SDHC and SDXC cards with UHS-I support in a single slot, so one fast card serves either camera and neither offers dual-slot backup.