Olympus PEN E-P3

338 reviews

Apr, 2024

Positive
performance (241)
portability (174)
usability (141)
design (110)
image quality (88)

Negative
price (50)
sensor (15)
battery (5)
exposure (1)

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 338 reviews of Olympus PEN E-P3. The average rating for this product is 4.3/5, compared to an average rating of 4.3/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras for all reviews. Reviewers really like the image quality and design. The portability and usability are also appreciated. There are mixed comments on the viewfinder and price, while there are some critical comments about the exposure and battery.

performance, usability, portability, design, image quality

sensor, battery, exposure

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other Digital Compact Cameras the Olympus PEN E-P3 is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 91/100 = Excellent quality.

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Review analysis

(Based on 338 reviews)

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Review Ratings

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Features

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design
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Showing 1 - 120 of 188 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (149)

Consumer review (amazon.co.uk)

Amazon.co.uk review summary for Olympus PEN E-P3

alaTest has collected and analyzed 16 user reviews of Olympus PEN E-P3 from Amazon.co.uk. The average user rating for this product is 4.6/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.3/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras on Amazon.co.uk. People really like the usability and durability. The performance and lens also get good comments. Some have doubts about the battery and shutter, while comments are divided on the design.

portability, lens, performance, durability, usability

price, image quality, shutter, battery

100% of the reviews on Amazon.co.uk give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for Olympus PEN E-P3

alaTest has collected and analyzed 94 user reviews of Olympus PEN E-P3 from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 4.5/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.2/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras on Amazon.com. Reviewers really like the design and image quality. The usability and portability are also mentioned favorably. There are some mixed comments about the battery.

performance, portability, usability, image quality, design

97% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Expert review by (engadget.com)

Olympus PEN E-P3 Micro Four Thirds camera review

The E-P3 doesn't innovate enough from an image quality standpoint to justify an upgrade, and for newcomers, that $900 price point is awfully hard to swallow.

Aug, 2011

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Expert review by : Andy Westlake & Richard Butler (dpreview.com)

Olympus PEN E-P3

The Olympus PEN E-P3 looks a lot like its forebears - not just the E-P1 and E-P2 but, just as significantly, the company's film era Pen F camera. Significantly because, in an age in which the major electronics giants are building their photographic...

Beautifully-styled and built, with lots of external controls ; Excellent JPEG output: warm, saturated colours, but not cartoonish ; Reliable metering and white balance ; Extremely fast, accurate and near-silent autofocus with MSC lenses (including kit...

Ageing sensor means resolution and high ISO noise performance can't match the competition ; Multi-screen Live View interface is beginning to look very dated ; No dedicated ISO or WB buttons (but can be assigned to Drive or Flash mode buttons) ; No Live...

The Olympus PEN E-P3 is in many ways the camera we always hoped Olympus would produce at this level. Fast, pleasant to shoot with, and undeniably stylish too, it produces excellent images with the minimum of fuss. However its ageing sensor is unable to...

Aug, 2011

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Expert review by : David Pierce (pcmag.com)

Olympus PEN E-P3

The Olympus PEN E-P3 Micro Four Thirds camera offers a pleasing mix of a smaller-than-SLR body, fast performance, and beautiful images, but for the best pictures possible you still need a true D-SLR.

Beautiful images and video. Fast performance. Improved autofocus speed over its predecessor. Built-in flash. Big, bright OLED touch screen.

Expensive. A bit heavy and slightly larger than its predecessor. No optical viewfinder. Touch screen interaction can be confusing.

Video and Conclusions Like with many Micro Four Thirds cameras, video captured by the E-P3 is impressive. Recordings are in AVCHD format, 1080i at 30 frames per second, or MP4 in 720p30, the latter is easily uploaded to sites like Facebook and YouTube....

Jul, 2011

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Expert review by : Jackson Lynch (wired.com)

Review: Olympus PEN E-P3

The Olympus PEN E-P3 is a real shooter's camera, not just a designer's desktop paperweight.

Lightning autofocus with bumped-up focus points from 11 to 35. Built-in flash. A dedicated video button. Full HD 1080i video at 60fps in AVCHD. 12mm f2 prime lens is the bomb. Shadow tone-adjustment feature adds latitude to images

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

Jul, 2011

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Expert review by : Lori Grunin (cnet.com)

Olympus E-P3 review: Olympus E-P3

Olympus E-P3

The ; 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.

Jun, 2011

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Expert review by : William Chambers (steves-digicams.com)

Olympus E-P3 First Look

Olympus announced three new additions to its PEN line of compact digital cameras, which is now in its 5th generation. They have finally released the successor to the E-P2, with the new flagship E-P3 model. This unit builds off the E-P2 and E-PL2...

Jun, 2011

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Expert review by (ubergizmo.com)

Olympus E-P3 Review

Olympus E-P3 Review - It is true that it classic looks inspire confidence, but can such a small camera deliver a professional quality?

The Olympus E-P3 is a remarkable camera that snaps quality photos, even in difficult lighting conditions. I like the build quality, and the attention to details that Olympus has put into it. Its design will surely catch the attention of classic camera...

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Expert review by : Jeremy Stamas (camcorderinfo.com)

Olympus PEN E-P3Digital Camera Review

What follows is a quick overview of the video capabilities of the Olympus PEN E-P3. Read our comprehensive analysis and testing results in greater detail at DigitalCameraInfo.com.

The addition of Full HD 1080p recording may steal the headlines, but the real joy of recording video with the E-P3 stems from the camera’s slick interface and good design. On the E-P3, Olympus lets you record video in nearly any camera mode, or you can...

Jun, 2011

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Expert review by : Gavin Stoker (photographyblog.com)

Olympus E-P3 Review

The E-P3 is the latest flagship Micro Four Thirds camera from Olympus. Allegedly featuring the world's fastest auto-focus system, the Olympus E-P3 also offers a 12.3-megapixel High Speed Live MOS sensor, 610K dot OLED touch-screen, a pop-up flash and...

Interestingly, the argument for/against the E-P3, now that were have a Micro Four Thirds 'CSC' camera in its third iteration, is not whether it's good enough to completely replace a DSLR - as with its predecessors we'd argue image quality falls...

Aug, 2011

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Expert review by (imaging-resource.com)

Olympus PEN E-P3

Olympus upgrades their high-end PEN line with a load of new enhancements while maintaining the retro look of the original. The sensor size also stays the same, but is said to be enhanced for better performance in low light, though we couldn't see much...

Extremely fast autofocus; Pop-up flash and AF-assist lamp; Full HD recording; wisely limited focus for touchscreen; excellent print quality results; removable grip

Larger than some competitors (see E-PL3 if you prefer a smaller camera); strong noise suppression; touchscreen easily activated by mistake; list of options is overwhelming; shoulder strap D-rings are noisy

Along with partner Panasonic, Olympus pretty-much invented the Compact System Camera sector a couple of years ago, and since then their PEN-series models have gone down a treat with the buying public. It's a market that's becoming increasingly...

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