Olympus E-420 vs Pentax K-3

Pentax K-3 advantages over Olympus E-420

• Lens selection
  Excellent vs Good
  Better lens selection gives you more options
• Focus peaking
  Peaker vs Non-peaker
  Your camera will highlight what's in focus
• Larger sensor
  APS-C vs 4/3
  More sensor area. Bigger is (generally) better.
• In-Camera Image Stabilization
  Yes vs No
  Reduces the effects of camera shake at slower shutter speeds
• Higher effective ISO

  Higher effective ISO

  Maximum effective ISO is an estimate of the highest sensitivity at which a camera can capture excellent quality photos.

  Cameras with higher effective ISO will be better choices for indoor photography, night shooting, and indoor sports photography, especially if you intend to make large prints.

  You can learn more at our glossary entry.

  Maximum effective ISO test data courtesy of DxO Mark.

  K-3 test data on DxO Mark E-420 test data on DxO Mark
  1,216 vs 527 iso
  Take photos in low light with less noise
• More dynamic range

  More dynamic range

  Cameras with more dynamic range allow you to take photos with dramatic differences in highlight and shadow areas while retaining detail in both.

  Think of a brilliant sunset on a rocky beach: Bright sunset in the background, with dark rocks in the foreground. High dynamic range means more of the extremes will be faithfully reproduced.

  Dynamic range test data courtesy of DxO Mark.

  K-3 test data on DxO Mark E-420 test data on DxO Mark
  13.4 vs 10.4 evs
  Retain detail in highlight and shadows
• More telephoto lens reach
  203 mm vs 84 mm
  Capture objects farther away with the kit lens
• Top deck display
  Yes vs No
  Check settings with a screen on top of the camera
• External Mic Jack
  Jack vs No jack
  Improved sound fidelity when shooting video
• More cross-type AF points
  25 vs 1
  Cross-type AF points improve autofocus performance
• Pentaprism viewfinder
  Pentaprism vs Pentamirror
  Much better viewfinder picture fidelity
• Newer
  11 years vs 17 years old
  Newer cameras often support more advanced features
• HDMI out
  HDMI out vs None
  Use HDMI output to monitor or review video
• Shoots 24p video
  Yes vs No
  Gives your movies a big-screen feel
• More dots on screen
  1037k vs 230k dots
  Can mean greater resolution or a brighter screen
• Shoots 1080p video
  Yes vs No
  You'll want this if you shoot video
• More viewfinder magnification
  0.63x vs 0.46x
  Get a bigger view of the scene through the eye-level viewfinder
• More pixels
  24.4 vs 10.0 megapixels
  Higher resolution photos
• Shoots 60p video
  Yes vs No
  A faster framerate can give you more editing options
• Dual card slots
  Yes vs No
  Gives you more storage flexibility
• More AF points
  27 vs 3
  More AF points improve autofocus
• Headphone jack
  Yes vs No
  Monitor audio recording while you shoot video
• Optional anti-aliasing filter
  Optional vs Fixed
  Lets you choose sharper photos or reduced moiré
• Faster JPEG shooting
  7.1 fps vs 3.5 fps
  Faster JPEG shooting (burst mode)
• Bigger JPEG buffer
  75 vs 13 shots
  Take more JPEG shots before waiting (burst mode)
• Faster shutter
  1/8000 vs 1/4000 sec
  Shoot wide open in bright light
• Higher extended ISO
  51200 vs 1600 ISO
  Higher extended ISO can give more low-light flexibility