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Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580

Portability
77
Imaging
43
Features
31
Overall
38
Olympus E-400 front
 
Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 front
Portability
64
Imaging
56
Features
82
Overall
66

Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 Key Specs

Olympus E-400
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 435g - 130 x 91 x 53mm
  • Revealed September 2006
  • New Model is Olympus E-410
Sony A580
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 12800 (Raise to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 599g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Introduced May 2011
  • Succeeded the Sony A100
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Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 Overview

Its time to examine more closely at the Olympus E-400 versus Sony A580, both Entry-Level DSLR digital cameras by competitors Olympus and Sony. There exists a significant gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-400 (10MP) and A580 (16MP) and the E-400 (Four Thirds) and A580 (APS-C) feature different sensor size.

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The E-400 was manufactured 5 years earlier than the A580 which is quite a sizable gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras offer the identical body type (Compact SLR).

Before going straight into a complete comparison, below is a brief synopsis of how the E-400 scores against the A580 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-400 over the Sony A580

 E-400 A580 

Reasons to pick Sony A580 over the Olympus E-400

 A580 E-400 
IntroducedMay 2011September 2006Newer by 57 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen sizing3"2.5"Bigger screen (+0.5")
Screen resolution922k215kCrisper screen (+707k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-400 and Sony A580

 E-400 A580 
Manually focus More precise focusing
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Neither has Touch friendly screen

Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 Physical Comparison

If you're going to travel with your camera, you are going to need to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-400 has outer measurements of 130mm x 91mm x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") accompanied by a weight of 435 grams (0.96 lbs) while the Sony A580 has measurements of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") accompanied by a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-400 versus Sony A580 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you are using at that time. Following is the front view dimension comparison of the E-400 compared to the A580.

Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-400 and A580 is 77 and 64 respectively.

Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, it is difficult to imagine the contrast between sensor dimensions purely by reviewing specs. The pic underneath may give you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the E-400 and A580.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras enjoy different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-400 because of its tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field more challenging and the Sony A580 will offer more detail due to its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will let you crop shots far more aggressively. The more aged E-400 is going to be behind with regard to sensor technology.

Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-400 Portrait photography factors
Sony A580 Portrait photography factors
45
focusing manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
no liveview feature
lack of manual mode
low resolution (10MP)
73
has manual focus
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports face detection focusing
delivers RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-400 as a Street photography camera
Sony A580 as a Street photography camera
60
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
fixed screen
no image stabilization
75
screen tilts up and down
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-400 Sports photography highlights
Sony A580 Sports photography highlights
38
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports phase detect auto focus
no liveview feature
max frames per second low (3.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
low resolution (10 megapixels)
78
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports tracking autofocus
good battery life (1,050 shots)
comes with phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-400
Travel photography with Sony A580
49
flash built-in
lack of Time Lapse recording
low resolution (10 megapixels)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
60
good battery life (1,050 CIPA)
MP count decent (16MP)
built-in flash
lack of Timelapse function
does not offer selfie friendly screen
Photography Glossary

Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-400 Landscape photography details
Sony A580 Landscape photography details
44
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
small screen (2.5 inches)
no liveview feature
lack of manual mode
no image stabilization
low resolution (10MP)
lack of Time Lapse recording
73
has manual focus
swap lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
decent sized screen (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW formats
good battery life (1,050 per charge)
2 card slots
lack of Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-400 Vlogging advice
Sony A580 Vlogging advice
9
lack of video recording
34
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
supports face detection focusing
high res video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
does have external microphone support
does not offer selfie friendly screen
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Olympus E-400 vs Sony A580 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-400 and Sony A580
 Olympus E-400Sony Alpha DSLR-A580
General Information
Brand Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus E-400 Sony Alpha DSLR-A580
Class Entry-Level DSLR Entry-Level DSLR
Revealed 2006-09-14 2011-05-26
Physical type Compact SLR Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Chip - Bionz
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 10MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 3648 x 2736 4912 x 3264
Maximum native ISO 1600 12800
Maximum enhanced ISO - 25600
Lowest native ISO 100 100
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
Continuous autofocus
Autofocus single
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Center weighted autofocus
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Total focus points 3 15
Cross type focus points - 3
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds Sony/Minolta Alpha
Amount of lenses 45 143
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1.5
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Tilting
Screen size 2.5 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 215 thousand dots 922 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) Optical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder coverage 95% 95%
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x 0.53x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/4000 seconds
Continuous shutter rate 3.0fps 7.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 10.00 m (at ISO 100) 12.00 m
Flash modes Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize - 1/160 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (60, 29.97 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 640 x 424 (29.97 fps)
Maximum video resolution None 1920x1080
Video file format - MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 435 gr (0.96 pounds) 599 gr (1.32 pounds)
Dimensions 130 x 91 x 53mm (5.1" x 3.6" x 2.1") 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested 80
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 23.8
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 13.3
DXO Low light rating not tested 1121
Other
Battery life - 1050 images
Style of battery - Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage type Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots One Two
Launch cost $599 $848