Canon PowerShot
G12
 vs
Olympus
PEN E-P2

Updated (January, 2012): Compare the Canon PowerShot G1X vs Olympus PEN E-P3

Canon PowerShot G12

64
"Excellent build quality"
dpreview.com | talking about the G12's build-quality
"We have no hesitation in saying that the G12 is the best Canon G-series camera to date, but its original USP - as a bridge between compact cameras and DSLRs - is in danger of being eroded."
dpreview.com | talking about the G12's overall-performance

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot G12

Supports 24p
 24p movies
For that film look
Screen flips out
 Flip-out screen
Great for movies
HDR
 In-camera HDR
Combines multiple exposures
Macro focus
 Great macro
1 cm
Viewfinder
 Great viewfinder
Tunnel
Built-in flash
 Built-in flash
Usually standard
Olympus PEN E-P2

35
Runner-up

Olympus PEN E-P2

Reasons to buy the Olympus PEN E-P2

Color depth
 Great color depth
21.5 bits
Sensor size
 Large sensor
Four thirds 18.0x13.5mm
Thickness
 Thin
1.4"
Interchangeable lenses
 Interchangeable lenses
Many lenses to choose from
Sensor type
 CMOS Sensor
Better in low light
Longest exposure
 Long exposures
60 seconds

differences

Advantages of the Canon G12
Screen flips out Has a flip-out screen Yes vs No
Help
 Flip-out screens can be helpful when composing tricky shots or taking movies
Supports 24p Supports 24p Yes vs No
Help
 Get that real film feel
HDR Has in-camera HDR Yes vs No
Help
 Combines multiple exposures to capture high dynamic range
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen 461k dots vs 230k dots
Help
 More than 2x higher resolution screen
Image stabilization Better image stabilization Lens vs Sensor shift
Help
 Less risk of blur
Dynamic range More dynamic range 11.2 EV vs 10.4 EV
Help
 0.8 f-stops more dynamic range
Built-in flash Built-in flash Yes vs No
Help
 A built-in flash is useful for taking indoor shots where there is little light
Viewfinder Has a viewfinder Tunnel vs None
Help
 A viewfinder can help save battery life by keeping the screen turned off
Canon PowerShot G12 Learn more about
the Canon G12

Advantages of the Olympus PEN E-P2
Screen size Larger screen 3.0" vs 2.8"
Help
 Around 10% larger screen
Overall image quality Better image quality 56.0 vs 47.0
Help
 Around 20% better image quality
Interchangeable lenses Has interchangeable lenses Yes vs No
Help
 Can take advantage of a variety of lenses
Sensor size Significantly larger sensor Four thirds 18.0x13.5mm vs 1/1.7" 7.6x5.7mm
Help
 More than 5.5x larger sensor
Color depth Better color depth 21.5 bits vs 20.4 bits
Help
 Distinguishes 1.1 more bits of color
True resolution Higher true resolution 12.2 MP vs 10 MP
Help
 Capture more than 20% more detail in your photos
Low light performance Lower noise at high ISO 505 ISO vs 161 ISO
Help
 The PEN E-P2 has excellent image quality 1.6 f-stops higher ISO than the G12
Size Slightly smaller 121x70x36 mm vs 112x76x48 mm
Help
 Around 30% smaller
Sensor type Has a CMOS-family sensor NMOS vs CCD
Help
 CMOS-family sensors often produce better quality images
Longest exposure Much longer exposures 60s vs 15s
Help
 4x longer exposures
Thickness Thinner 1.4" vs 1.9"
Help
 Around 30% thinner
Continuous shooting Shoots slightly faster 3 fps vs 2 fps
Help
 50% faster continuous shooting
Weight Slightly lighter 355 g vs 401 g
Help
 More than 10% lighter
Olympus PEN E-P2 Learn more about
the Olympus PEN E-P2
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent digital cameras, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot G12 Canon PowerShot G12
64 vs 35
Explain scores
Olympus PEN E-P2 Olympus PEN E-P2
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon PowerShot G12. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a pro digicam with a mirrorless interchangeable-lens.

advice

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similarities

Compared to recent digital cameras

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Supports RAW RAW support Help
Better editing
External flash Support external flash Help
Better lighting
Fastest shutter speed Fast max shutter speeds Help
1/4000 of a second
Panorama Neither camera stitches together panoramas Help
You could stitch photos in post
3D Neither camera can take 3D photos Help
No 3d support
Movie format HD (720p) video Help
G12:720p @ 24fps
PEN E-P2:720p @ 30fps

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Fujifilm Finepix X10

Fujifilm Finepix X10

Pro digicam

$599
Aperture Has a significantly wider aperture
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the Finepix X10 vs the PowerShot G12
Compare the Finepix X10 vs the PEN E-P2
Sony Alpha NEX-5

Sony Alpha NEX-5

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$569 with 18-55mm lens
Overall image quality Has slightly better image quality
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Image stabilization Doesn't have image stabilization
Compare the Alpha NEX-5 vs the PowerShot G12
Compare the Alpha NEX-5 vs the PEN E-P2
Nikon 1 J1

Nikon 1 J1

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$547 with 10-30mm lens
Movie format Records higher quality movies
High-speed framerate Records high-speed movies
External flash Doesn't support an external flash
Battery life Has a slightly shorter battery life
Compare the 1 J1 vs the PowerShot G12
Compare the 1 J1 vs the PEN E-P2
Olympus XZ-1

Olympus XZ-1

Pro digicam

$499 - $500
Aperture Has a much wider aperture
Screen resolution Has a slightly higher resolution screen
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Color depth Has slightly less color depth
Compare the XZ-1 vs the PowerShot G12
Compare the XZ-1 vs the PEN E-P2
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$433 body only
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Light sensitivity Slightly higher maximum light sensitivity
External flash Doesn't support an external flash
Image stabilization Doesn't have image stabilization
Compare the Lumix DMC-GF3 vs the PowerShot G12
Compare the Lumix DMC-GF3 vs the PEN E-P2
Olympus PEN E-PL1

Olympus PEN E-PL1

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$260 - $279 with 14-42mm lens
External mic jack Has an external mic jack
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Shutter lag Has slightly more shutter lag
Compare the PEN E-PL1 vs the PowerShot G12
Compare the PEN E-PL1 vs the PEN E-P2
Canon EOS Rebel T2i

Canon Rebel T2i

Entry-level DSLR

$544 - $949 body only

$649 - $867 with 18-55mm lens
Overall image quality Has slightly better image quality
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the Rebel T2i vs the PowerShot G12
Compare the Rebel T2i vs the PEN E-P2

Canon PowerShot G12 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot G1X

Canon PowerShot G1X

Boutique

$799 - $800
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Screen resolution Significantly higher resolution screen
Macro focus Much worse macro capability
Size Larger
Compare the PowerShot G1X vs the PowerShot G12
Canon Powershot S100

Canon Powershot S100

Pro digicam

$356 - $430
Aperture Significantly wider aperture
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Screen flips out Screen does not flip out
Battery life Shorter battery life
Compare the Powershot S100 vs the PowerShot G12
Nikon Coolpix P7100

Nikon Coolpix P7100

Pro digicam

$450
External mic jack Has an external mic jack
Screen resolution Significantly higher resolution screen
Supports 24p No 24p support
Overall image quality Worse image quality
Compare the Coolpix P7100 vs the PowerShot G12
Canon Powershot SX40

Canon Powershot SX40

Super zoom

$347 - $380
Zoom Much more zoom
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Size Much larger
HDR Lacks in-camera HDR
Compare the Powershot SX40 vs the PowerShot G12
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Pro digicam

$350
Aperture Significantly wider aperture
Wide angle Significantly better wide angle
Screen flips out Screen does not flip out
Supports 24p No 24p support
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX5 vs the PowerShot G12

Olympus PEN E-P2 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Olympus PEN E-PL2

Olympus PEN E-PL2

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$485 with 14-42mm lens
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen
Built-in flash Built-in flash
Size Slightly larger
Dynamic range Less dynamic range
Compare the PEN E-PL2 vs the PEN E-P2
Olympus PEN E-P3

Olympus PEN E-P3

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$849 - $900 with 17mm lens
Screen type Has an OLED screen
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Overall image quality Worse image quality
Color depth Worse color depth
Compare the PEN E-P3 vs the PEN E-P2
Olympus PEN E-P1

Olympus PEN E-P1

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$185 body only

$375 with 17mm lens
Lowest price Slightly cheaper
Color depth Worse color depth
Compare the PEN E-P1 vs the PEN E-P2
Olympus PEN E-PM1

Olympus PEN E-PM1

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$500 with 14-42mm lens
Movie format Higher resolution movies
3D Takes 3D photos
Overall image quality Slightly worse image quality
Color depth Worse color depth
Compare the PEN E-PM1 vs the PEN E-P2
Olympus PEN Lite E-PL3

Olympus PEN Lite E-PL3

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$589 - $600 with 14-42mm lens
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Screen flips out Has a flip-out screen
Overall image quality Slightly worse image quality
Color depth Worse color depth
Compare the PEN Lite E-PL3 vs the PEN E-P2

appearance

Canon PowerShot G12 Olympus PEN E-P2
Canon PowerShot G12 Olympus PEN E-P2
Canon PowerShot G12 Olympus PEN E-P2

discussion

Showing 1 comments

Dean (1:56 AM, December 10, 2010)
For me, the winner for the Canon G series are the access to manual dials, adjusting ISO settings, etc from the top of the camera without needing to go into the menu. As well as the flip out screen which I am happy they brought back into the G series.

The winning features for the Pen in my mind, interchangeable lenses! A huge feature for this size range.