Olympus PEN E-PL8 Review

Overall Score

68

Main Features

  • 16 MP Four Thirds CMOS Sensor
  • 200 - 25600 ISO
  • 5-axis Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • Electronic (optional) Viewfinder
  • 8 fps continuous shooting
  • 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • Built-In Wireless
  • 115 x 67 x 38 mm, 357g.
  • Price Category:
  • Replaced: PEN E-PL7
  • Replaced by: PEN E-PL8

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Olympus PEN E-PL8 Overview


First introduced in September, 2016, Olympus PEN E-PL8 is a 16 MP Mirrorless with a Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sized CMOS sensor. Olympus replaced the older Olympus E-PL7 with PEN E-PL8. Follow the link to read our detailed comparison of these models:

Compare Olympus E-PL8 with Olympus E-PL7

Olympus replaced PEN E-PL8 with Olympus E-PL8. Follow the link to read our detailed comparison of these models:

Compare Olympus E-PL8 with Olympus E-PL8


Olympus E-PL8 comes with a 17.3 x 13 mm CMOS sensor, which has a diagonal of 21.64 mm (0.84").

- Full Frame
- Olympus PEN E-PL8

Sensor resolution of Olympus E-PL8 ~ 4613 x 3468 pixels.

Olympus E-PL8 has Crop Factor: 2.0

The sensor has a surface area of 224.9 mm².

There are approximate 15,997,884 photosites (pixels) on this area.

Olympus E-PL8 Series History
Model Year $ Sensor ISO Weight Dimensions
Olympus PEN E-PL9 Olympus E-PL9 2018 16MP 200 - 6400 380g 117 x 68 x 39mm
Olympus PEN E-PL8 Olympus E-PL8 2016 16MP 200 - 25600 357g 115 x 67 x 38mm
Olympus PEN E-PL7 Olympus E-PL7 2014 16MP 100 - 25600 357g 115 x 67 x 38mm
Olympus PEN E-PL6 Olympus E-PL6 2014 16MP 100 - 25600 325g 111 x 64 x 38mm
Olympus PEN E-PL5 Olympus E-PL5 2012 16MP 200 - 25600 325g 111 x 64 x 38mm

Proc and Cons of Olympus E-PL8


Get to know this camera closer. Let's look at the features and characteristics of this model. Compare Olympus PEN E-PL8 with competitors in entry-level mirrorless cameras.

Pros
Built-in Wireless
Tilting Screen
External Flash
RAW Support
1037k dots Screen Resolution
1/4000s Max Shutter Speed
Manual Exposure Mode
Timelapse Recording
±5 AE Bracketing Range
Focus Bracketing
5-axis Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
Touch Screen
AF Face Detection
25600 Max Native ISO
8.0 fps Continuous Shooting
Manual Focus
357g Light Body
81 Focus Points
Flash Sync Port
Remote Control with a Smartphone
Cons
No Bluetooth
No Environmental Sealing
No Articulating Screen
Low Battery Life: 350 shots
Type Scores

Olympus PEN E-PL8 has an Overall Score of 68/100 and ranked #105 out of 214 in Mirrorless cameras, and ranked #202 out of 1222 in all cameras.

Olympus E-PL8 Scores
Imaging score
53
Features score
71
Value for money score
82
Portability score
91
Overall score
68
Average Scores in Entry-Level Mirrorless
Imaging Score
52
Features Score
61
Value For Money Score
76
Portability Score
91
Overall score
63

Physical Dimensions of Olympus E-PL8


Olympus PEN E-PL8 weighs 357g and has external dimensions of 115 x 67 x 38mm (4.53 x 2.64 x 1.5"). Considering that the average weight of Entry-Level Mirrorless cameras is 323g, Olympus E-PL8 is 34 grams more than the average weight of cameras in this category.

Weight Comparison
Entry-Level Mirrorless Cameras


Olympus E-PL8
357g
Average weight
323g
Min weight
180g
Max weight
561g

Thickness Comparison
Entry-Level Mirrorless Cameras


Olympus E-PL8
38mm
Average Thickness
40mm
Min Thickness
23mm
Max Thickness
85mm

Here is the front and top view image of Olympus PEN E-PL8 with the dimensions:

Olympus PEN E-PL8

Size Compared to Major Competitors


Model Weight PEN E-PL8 Dimensions PEN E-PL8
Olympus PEN E-PL7 Olympus E-PL7 357 g 357 g 115 x 67 x 38 mm 115 x 67 x 38 mm
Olympus OM-D E-M10 II Olympus E-M10 II 390 g 357 g 120 x 83 x 47 mm 115 x 67 x 38 mm
Sony Alpha a6000 Sony A6000 344 g 357 g 120 x 67 x 45 mm 115 x 67 x 38 mm
Fujifilm X-A3 Fujifilm X-A3 339 g 357 g 117 x 67 x 40 mm 115 x 67 x 38 mm
Olympus PEN-F Olympus PEN-F 427 g 357 g 125 x 72 x 37 mm 115 x 67 x 38 mm
Sony Alpha a5100 Sony a5100 283 g 357 g 110 x 63 x 36 mm 115 x 67 x 38 mm
Olympus PEN E-PL9 Olympus E-PL9 380 g 357 g 117 x 68 x 39 mm 115 x 67 x 38 mm
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX85 Panasonic GX85 426 g 357 g 122 x 71 x 44 mm 115 x 67 x 38 mm

Specifications of Olympus PEN E-PL8


General
Brand Olympus
Model PEN E-PL8
Announced September, 2016
Body Type Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Lens
Lens Mount Micro Four Thirds
Manual Focus
Focal Lens Multiplier 2
Number of Lenses 103
Macro Focus Range n/a
Screen
Screen Size 3"
Screen Type Tilting
Screen Resolution 1037k pixels
Touch Screen
Live View
Viewfinder
Viewfinder Electronic (optional)
Viewfinder Resolution no electronic viewfinder
Viewfinder Coverage n/a%
Viewfinder Magnification 0.0
Autofocus
AF Touch
AF Continuous
AF Single
AF Tracking
AF Selective
AF Center
AF Multi Area
AF Live View
AF Face Detection
AF Contrast Detection
AF Phase Detection
Number of Focus Points 81
Number of Cross Focus Points 0
Photography Features
RAW Support
Min Shutter Speed 1/60 sec
Max Shutter Speed 1/4000 sec
Continuous Shooting 8.0 fps
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Exposure Compensation
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization
Built-in Flash
Flash Range no built-in flash
Flash Modes no built-in flash
External Flash
AE Bracketing
AE Bracketing Range ±5 EV
WB Bracketing
Sensor
Sensor Size Four Thirds
Sensor Type CMOS
Sensor Dimensions 17.3 x 13 mm
Sensor Area 224.9 mm²
Sensor Resolution 16 MP
Max Image Resolution 4608 x 3456
Max Native ISO 25600
Min Native ISO 200
Max Boosted ISO 0
Min Boosted ISO 100
Video Features
4K
Max Video Resolution 1920 x 1080
Video Formats H.264, Motion JPEG
Timelapse Recording
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Exposure Modes
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
Connectivity
GPS None
Wireless Connectivity Built-In
Bluetooth
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
Battery
Battery Life 350 shots
Battery Type Battery Pack
Battery Model
Physical
Weight 357 g
Physical Dimensions 115 x 67 x 38 mm
Environmental Sealing
Water Proof
Dust Proof
Shock Proof
Crush Proof
Freeze Proof
Shock Proof
Storage
Storage Type SD/SDHC/SDXC card
Storage Slots 1
Other Features
Self Timer
Selfie Friendly

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