The Olympus PEN E-PL7 ($599.99 body only) sets itself apart from the crowd with a unique front-facing screen that flips down below the camera for selfies. That's a little gimmicky, but the PEN E-PL7 is just as serious a mirrorless camera as others in the company's PEN lineup. The 16-megapixel shooter captures images at up to 8.4fps, and is compatible with a large catalog of Micro Four Thirds lenses. As good as this PEN is, it doesn't quite earn Editors' Choice honors. The Sony Alpha 6000 is an overall better mirrorless camera, albeit one without quite as strong as a lens system behind it, and currently holds that spot. And a previous winner in this category, the Olympus OM-D E-M10, is still our favorite entry-level body with a Micro Four Thirds lens mount.

Design and Features
The E-PL7 measures in at 2.6 by 4.5 by 1.5 inches (HWD) and weighs 10.9 ounces without a lens. It's available in a two-tone silver and black version, or an all-black edition. Olympus has a pancake 14-42mm power zoom lens available that is ideal for shooters who value compactness, but the PEN isn't available in a bundle with that zoom. The Olympus E-M10 (3.2 by 4.7 by 1.8 inches, 14 ounces) is just a little bit bigger all around, but manages to squeeze an integrated EVF and pop-up flash into its body. The E-PL7 ships with a clip-on flash, and you can add the VF-4 EVF if you're willing to pay for it, but you can't use the EVF and flash at the same time. If you see yourself wanting to use an EVF, or if you frequently use a pop-up flash, the E-M10 is a more appealing option in this class.

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The PEN has a tilting LCD that faces all the way forward for selfies. This is nothing new; lots of cameras do that, including the Samsung NX3000. But the E-PL7's screen doesn't swing up above the camera like others; instead it moves downward, so that it's positioned at the bottom when facing forward. The big disadvantage to this is clear—you can't use the forward-facing function if the E-PL7 is mounted to a tripod or slung from a strap that connects via the tripod socket. But it does make it easy to frame a selfie when the pop-up flash or an external EVF is installed, and it forces you to shoot from a higher angle, which tends to be a bit more flattering. Flipping the screen forward activates a selfie mode, which automatically activates a 1-second self-timer and, if you have a power zoom lens attached, sets the lens to its widest angle.

The E-PL7's control scheme is built around a single control dial, which isn't quite as robust as the dual-dial system that Olympus uses with the OM-D series. The dial is located on the top plate surrounding the shutter button, between the standard mode dial and the power button. Its function changes with the shooting mode; in Program it adjusts Exposure Compensation, in Shutter Priority the shutter speed, and in Aperture Priority the f-stop. If you opt to shoot in full Manual mode, you'll need to toggle its functionality between aperture and shutter control via the EV compensation button on the rear plate. That's a little clunky when compared with the dual dials used by the E-M10; you'll always have direct access to EV compensation when shooting in S or A mode with that camera, and you won't have to toggle between shutter and aperture control when shooting in Manual mode. Of course, if you're mainly an automatic shooter, this isn't a big deal.

The rear panel includes two buttons above the thumb rest. The left (Fn) gives quick access to color settings and shooting tips. It also includes shutter and aperture control, but expressed as Blur Background and Express Motions so that users who don't know photographic terms backward and forward can better understand them. There's also a magnifying glass button which zooms in on a section of the frame as a focus aid. The same two controls are used to zoom in and out of photos during playback.

Below the thumb rest you'll find a button to start video recording, standard menu, info, playback, and delete controls, and a four-way controller with a center OK button. The functions accessible via the four-way controller include exposure compensation, the flash output settings, the drive mode, and the active focus point. Additional functions are accessible via an overlay menu. Pressing OK launches the menu, which runs along the right side of the rear display. It lets you toggle the stabilization system, set the ISO, set color output, adjust the metering pattern, and set file size and format options.

The rear display is a 3-inch LCD with a touch sensitive design. You can tap it to set a focus point, or to focus and fire, and it's possible to swipe through and zoom in on images during playback. The LCD is incredibly sharp thanks to a 1,040k-dot resolution; I had no issues using it outdoors on a bright day, and its hinged design allows it to tilt both up and down. Another camera with a hinged LCD, the Fujifilm X-A1, features a bright 921k-dot LCD that is also useful under bright skies, but it lacks support for touch input.

The E-PL7 is the second PEN with Wi-Fi—last year's E-P5 included the feature—but it's the first low-cost model in the series to include it. The camera works with the free Olympus Image Share app, available for iOS and Android devices, to copy JPG images or videos to your phone or tablet. Raw transfer isn't supported, so you'll need to shoot in Raw+JPG if you want to capture images in that format and have the ability to copy photos over to your handheld device.

The OI Share app also supports remote control. A Live View feed streams to your phone, and you have the ability to tap an area of the frame to set the focus point. Full manual control is available, and you can change modes or activate in-camera Art Filters via the app. The app also includes image editing tools, so you can apply those filters to images after they've been copied to your phone, and there's a location logger function that can geotag photos.