Clicky

Canon 500D vs Sony A500

Portability
70
Imaging
54
Features
59
Overall
56
Canon EOS 500D front
 
Sony Alpha DSLR-A500 front
Portability
63
Imaging
52
Features
52
Overall
52

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 Key Specs

Canon 500D
(Full Review)
  • 15MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 3200 (Bump to 12800)
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Canon EF/EF-S Mount
  • 520g - 129 x 98 x 62mm
  • Introduced June 2009
  • Alternate Name is EOS Rebel T1i / EOS Kiss X3
  • Replaced the Canon 450D
  • Successor is Canon 550D
Sony A500
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 630g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Released August 2009
  • Renewed by Sony A560
Photography Glossary

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 Overview

The following is a extensive comparison of the Canon 500D and Sony A500, both Entry-Level DSLR cameras by competitors Canon and Sony. There is a huge difference among the resolutions of the 500D (15MP) and A500 (12MP) but they feature the exact same sensor measurements (APS-C).

Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

The 500D was released 2 months before the A500 so they are of a similar generation. The two cameras come with the identical body type (Compact SLR).

Before diving straight into a step-by-step comparison, below is a quick synopsis of how the 500D matches up versus the A500 for portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month
	
	

Reasons to pick Canon 500D over the Sony A500

 500D A500 
Display resolution920k230kCrisper display (+690k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony A500 over the Canon 500D

 A500 500D 
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display

Common features in the Canon 500D and Sony A500

 500D A500 
ReleasedJune 2009August 2009Same generation
Manual focus Very precise focusing
Display dimension3"3"Identical display measurements
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch display Neither has Touch display

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 Physical Comparison

If you're planning to travel with your camera frequently, you'll need to think about its weight and proportions. The Canon 500D has exterior measurements of 129mm x 98mm x 62mm (5.1" x 3.9" x 2.4") accompanied by a weight of 520 grams (1.15 lbs) and the Sony A500 has measurements of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") with a weight of 630 grams (1.39 lbs).

Check the Canon 500D and Sony A500 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are employing at the time. Here is the front view physical size comparison of the 500D against the A500.

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability rating of the 500D and A500 is 70 and 63 respectively.

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 top view buttons comparison

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 Sensor Comparison

Usually, its difficult to imagine the difference in sensor dimensions just by seeing technical specs. The picture below will provide you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the 500D and A500.

As you can tell, both of those cameras posses the exact same sensor measurements but different resolution. You should expect to see the Canon 500D to produce greater detail as a result of its extra 3MP. Greater resolution will enable you to crop pics somewhat more aggressively.

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 sensor size comparison

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 Screen and ViewFinder

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Canon 500D as a Portrait photography camera
Sony A500 as a Portrait photography camera
72
manual focus
good MP (15 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
comes with face detection focusing
supports RAW files
63
has manual focus
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
comes with face detect autofocus
delivers RAW files
MP count low (12 megapixels)
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images

Street Comparison

Canon 500D Street photography advice
Sony A500 Street photography advice
59
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
screen does not articulate
lack of image stabilization
74
screen tilts up and down
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
Body cameras now worn by bakery staff to deter stealing

Sports Comparison

Canon 500D Sports photography features
Sony A500 Sports photography features
52
good MP (15 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
has phase detect AF
max fps very slow (3.0 frames per second)
lack of image stabilization
bad battery pack (440 per charge)
51
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
supports phase detect autofocus
painfully slow continuous shooting (5.0 frames/s)
MP count low (12 megapixels)
terrible battery life (520 per charge)
Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

Travel Comparison

Canon 500D as a Travel photography camera
Sony A500 as a Travel photography camera
54
good MP (15 megapixels)
has built in flash
doesn't have Timelapse mode
bad battery pack (440 per charge)
display isn't selfie friendly
43
flash built-in
missing Timelapse recording
terrible battery life (520 CIPA)
MP count low (12MP)
does not posses selfie friendly display
Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

Landscape Comparison

Canon 500D Landscape photography information
Sony A500 Landscape photography information
61
manual focus
switch lenses (Canon EF/EF-S mount)
screen size is good (3 inches)
good MP (15 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
lack of image stabilization
bad battery pack (440 CIPA)
doesn't have Timelapse mode
60
has manual focus
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
screen size is good (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
MP count low (12MP)
terrible battery life (520 CIPA)
missing Timelapse recording
Cutting-edge AI developed by Apple deciphers subtle nuances in pixels

Vlogging Comparison

Canon 500D Vlogging info
Sony A500 Vlogging info
27
comes with face detection focusing
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
display isn't selfie friendly
lack of image stabilization
doesn't have external microphone socket
9
no video recording
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Canon 500D vs Sony A500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Canon 500D and Sony A500
 Canon EOS 500DSony Alpha DSLR-A500
General Information
Manufacturer Canon Sony
Model Canon EOS 500D Sony Alpha DSLR-A500
Also called as EOS Rebel T1i / EOS Kiss X3 -
Category Entry-Level DSLR Entry-Level DSLR
Introduced 2009-06-08 2009-08-27
Physical type Compact SLR Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Digic 4 Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size APS-C APS-C
Sensor measurements 22.3 x 14.9mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 332.3mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 15 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4752 x 3168 4272 x 2848
Highest native ISO 3200 12800
Highest enhanced ISO 12800 -
Min native ISO 100 200
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points 9 9
Lens
Lens mounting type Canon EF/EF-S Sony/Minolta Alpha
Available lenses 326 143
Crop factor 1.6 1.5
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Tilting
Display diagonal 3" 3"
Display resolution 920 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display tech TFT color LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) Optical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder coverage 95% 95%
Viewfinder magnification 0.55x 0.53x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 30s 30s
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter rate 3.0 frames per sec 5.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 13.00 m 12.00 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize 1/200s 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (20 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) -
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 None
Video format H.264 -
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 520 grams (1.15 lbs) 630 grams (1.39 lbs)
Dimensions 129 x 98 x 62mm (5.1" x 3.9" x 2.4") 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 63 64
DXO Color Depth score 21.7 21.8
DXO Dynamic range score 11.5 11.6
DXO Low light score 663 772
Other
Battery life 440 images 520 images
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model LP-E5 NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (2 sec or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots 1 1
Cost at release $650 $638