Both cameras are designed to appeal to consumers who are stepping up from compact cameras, and their playback modes show that. They include more in-camera editing features than most DSLRs and even some compact cameras. Head to head, the Olympus E-P1 has the lead in the number of available functions in the playback mode; it offers an E-Portrait mode that automatically smoothes skin tones and also offers a function that overlays three RAW images into a single file. The E-620 can merge two RAW files at a time.

The E-P1 and Olympus E-620 include the following editing options: shadow adjustment, red-eye fix, crop, monotone, sepia, saturation, resize, and aspect ratio change. Both can delete single or multiple images, although the process is slower than it should be.

Both cameras have a slide show function, but the Olympus E-P1 adds an option to narrate them with custom audio files or to use preprogrammed music clips on the camera. The E-P1 definitely has the edge in the playback mode; it’s just as functional, and a little flashier.