Olympus OM-D E-M5

Announced Feb 8, 2012 •
16.1 megapixels | 3 screen | Four Thirds sensor
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Product description
Announced Feb 8, 2012
Discuss in the Olympus SLR Talk forum

The E-M5 is the first of Olympus' OM-D range of Micro Four Thirds cameras and is styled to look like its classic OM series SLRs. It is built around a 16MP sensor and features the company's latest 5-axis image stabilization system that works for both stills and movies. It can shoot 1080 60i movies in MOV format (h.264 compression) and includes a 1.44M dot EVF in its weather-sealed magnesium alloy body.

The E-M5 is, without question, the most accomplished Micro Four Thirds camera we've yet seen and, given how well established the system has become, it vies for the title of most capable mirrorless option yet. It's not entirely without flaws, and, predictably, most of those relate to continuous autofocus. But, for the most part, the E-M5 is simply an awful lot of camera in a compact and attractive body. It's a nice camera to use and the images it takes are just as enjoyable.

Quick specs
Body type SLR-style mirrorless
Max resolution 4608 x 3456
Effective pixels 16.1 megapixels
Sensor size Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm)
Sensor type CMOS
ISO Auto (200 - 25600), 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800, 25600
Lens mount Micro 4/3 Lens Mount
Focal length mult. 2×
Articulated LCD Tilting
Screen size 3
Screen dots 610,000
Min shutter speed 60 sec
Max shutter speed 1/4000 sec
Format
  • H.264
  • Motion JPEG
Storage types SD/SDHC/SDXC
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
Weight (inc. batteries) 425 g (0.94 lb / 14.99 oz)
Dimensions 122 x 89 x 43 mm (4.8 x 3.5 x 1.69)
GPS None

See full specifications

Our review

The Olympus OM-D E-M5 is certainly the most capable Micro Four Thirds camera we've reviewed and arguably the most likeable mirrorless model yet. It falls down a little bit on its continuous focusing but we have no absolutely no complaints about the image quality. It's small, attractive and a pleasure to use, and its pictures are equally enjoyable.

Good for: A wide variety of photography, particularly if you spend the time configuring it to your needs.

Not so good for: Photography of moving subjects - the only area where it falls significantly behind a good DSLR.

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Gold Award
80%
dpreview score
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