Testseek.com have collected 137 expert reviews of the Olympus Pen E-P3 and the average rating is 79%. Scroll down and see all reviews for Olympus Pen E-P3.
July 2011
(79%)
137 Reviews
Average score from experts who have reviewed this product.
Users
(90%)
12 Reviews
Average score from owners of the product.
790100137
The editors liked
Very good photo quality (though see issues below)
Solid
Eyecatching rangefinderstyle body
Interchangeable grips let you find the right comfort level
Sensorshift image stabilization
Stunning 3inch touchscreen OLED display offers great color
Sharpness
And viewing angle
Very fast autofocus performance in nearly all situations
Full manual controls
With lots of white balance options
Five ki
Well thought out body with choice of handgrip sizes
Loads of external controls including dual control dials
Very fast autofocus speeds
Fast prefocused shutter lag
Built-in flash with wireless remote flash support
Touch screen is handy for autofocu...
Excellent overall performance
* Good still and video image quality
* Built-in flash
* Full complement of manual and auto controls
* OLED Semi-touchscreen
Beautiful images and video. Fast performance. Improved autofocus speed over its predecessor. Built-in flash. Big
Bright OLED touch screen.
Low image noise
Conservative metering
Fast contrastdetect AF
Short shutterlag
Almost instant video recording
Generally quick and responsive
Effective builtin stabilization
Excellent automatic Manual Focus Assist
Great LCD visibility and antireflec
BeautifulLoads of buttons and dialsStellar autofocus system
The Olympus PEN E-P3 is an attractively designed camera that's now one of the fastest in its class.
See Also
Olympus PEN EP3 Improves Almost Everything
NextGen Olympus PEN Hits the Micro Four Thirds Sweet Spot
Olympus Pen EP2
Now in RetroTastic Silver
Olympus Puts Pro Sensor into Tiny PEN EPL3 and PEN Lite
New Olympus Pen Adds Flash
Loses Good L
Incredibly high speed
Touchscreen and 3D shooting
Endless customization options
And new hardware for improved
Quicker manual use
User-friendly in-camera UI
Stylish look and comfortable feel
Stylish retro pedigree
1080i60 HD video
Hugely customisable
PASM modes for video
Builtin flash (finally)
Fast autofocus
OLED screen
Manual movie and CAF features
The editors didn't like
Some noise reduction artifacting visible at base ISO
Colors a bit warm for my taste at default settings (totally subjective
Of course)
Hard to see screen in bright outdoor light
Camera can struggle to lock focus in low light
No sensorshift IS in movie mode
AF system slow to react to moving subjects
Some redeye
Can't access memory card slot while camera is on a tripod
No AC adapter availa
Not as compact as some of its competitors
Touchscreen is easily bumped by mistake
High ISO performance and dynamic range not as good as APS-C rivals
Lowest available ISO sensitivity is 200
Low power flash (though better than no flash
And not a sur...
Pricey
* Confusing menu system beyond the basics
* Weak flash output
* Only 3 frames per second continuous shooting
Expensive. A bit heavy and slightly larger than its predecessor. No optical viewfinder. Touch screen interaction can be confusing.
Poor color accuracy
Below average AWB
Useless ISO 12800
No detents on lower controldial
Poor video framing preview accuracy
Modal ExposureCompensation
Histogram disappears during EC
Not always ExposurePriority and frequently wrong LiveHistogram
Un
PriceyNo dedicated ISO wheelPoor low-light performance
Poor video quality and suboptimal default image settings aren't that great
So you really need to shoot raw to get good results at midrange to high ISO sensitivities.
Would benefit from a new
Improved sensor. All that metal means it's no lightweight. It's got so many features and options you might spend more time figuring it out than shooting. What happened to 24fps video?
Low image noise, Conservative metering, Fast contrastdetect AF, Short shutterlag, Almost instant video recording, Generally quick and responsive, Effective builtin stabilization, Excellent automatic Manual Focus Assist, Great LCD visibility and antireflec
Poor color accuracy, Below average AWB, Useless ISO 12800, No detents on lower controldial, Poor video framing preview accuracy, Modal ExposureCompensation, Histogram disappears during EC, Not always ExposurePriority and frequently wrong LiveHistogram, Un
This new sensor delivers high-quality images and performance. Image noise is low and metering rarely overexposes. There are some issues with color- and white-balance accuracy though. The Olympus PEN E-P3 is much faster than its predecessor, particularly f...
Published: 2011-06-30, Author: Lori , review by: cnet.com
The Olympus PEN E-P3 is an attractively designed camera that's now one of the fastest in its class.
Poor video quality and suboptimal default image settings aren't that great, so you really need to shoot raw to get good results at midrange to high ISO sensitivities.
While the Olympus PEN E-P3 shoots out in front of its class for performance and holds its own on features and design, it's a bit expensive and you'll need to tweak its JPEG settings to get the most out of its images.
Very good photo quality (though see issues below), Solid, eyecatching rangefinderstyle body; interchangeable grips let you find the right comfort level, Sensorshift image stabilization, Stunning 3inch touchscreen OLED display offers great color, sharpness, and viewing angle, Very fast autofocus performance in nearly all situations, Full manual controls, with lots of white balance options, five ki
Some noise reduction artifacting visible at base ISO, Colors a bit warm for my taste at default settings (totally subjective, of course), Hard to see screen in bright outdoor light, Camera can struggle to lock focus in low light, No sensorshift IS in movie mode; AF system slow to react to moving subjects, Some redeye, Can't access memory card slot while camera is on a tripod, No AC adapter availa
The Olympus E-P3 is a welcome upgrade to the E-P1 and E-P2, offering significant improvements in usability and performance. While its rangefinder-styled body is mostly unchanged since its predecessors, the E-P3 has gained a beautiful 3-inch OLED displ...
Abstract: New popup flashThe newest member of the Micro Four Thirds Olympus PEN family is without a doubt the company's best model to date. I was fortunate enough to receive an Olympus PEN E-P3 well before the camera's August release date in order to crank out this...
Incredibly high speed, Touchscreen and 3D shooting, Endless customization options, and new hardware for improved, quicker manual use, User-friendly in-camera UI, Stylish look and comfortable feel
Still no viewfinder, Price comparable to many DSLRs, Shooting in low-lighting remains tricky, but improved
Olympus has seriously invested to bring its PEN series up to speed and the E-P3 packs a much more serious punch than its predecessors....
The E-P3 is, in many ways, the camera we always hoped the PEN would be. It addresses the major weaknesses and criticisms of the E-P1 and E-P2, most notably with substantially faster focusing, a much better screen, and the addition of a built-in flash....
Abstract: Build and Ergonomics Although it retains the traditional styling and build quality of the original PEN cameras, the E-P3's body has been further refined to improve its appearance and handling. It's slightly longer than the E-P2 but marginally thinner, not...
