Olympus E-500 vs Olympus FE-4030
70 Imaging
41 Features
34 Overall
38


95 Imaging
36 Features
21 Overall
30
Olympus E-500 vs Olympus FE-4030 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 8MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 2.5" Fixed Display
- ISO 100 - 400 (Expand to 1600)
- No Video
- Micro Four Thirds Mount
- 479g - 130 x 95 x 66mm
- Announced October 2005
- Additionally Known as EVOLT E-500
- Successor is Olympus E-510
(Full Review)
- 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 2.7" Fixed Display
- ISO 64 - 1600
- 640 x 480 video
- 26-105mm (F2.6-5.9) lens
- 146g - 93 x 56 x 22mm
- Announced January 2010

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus FE-4030 Overview
On this page, we are contrasting the Olympus E-500 and Olympus FE-4030, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and both of them are manufactured by Olympus. There is a considerable difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and FE-4030 (14MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and FE-4030 (1/2.3") offer different sensor measurements.

The E-500 was released 5 years earlier than the FE-4030 and that is a fairly large difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus FE-4030 being a Compact camera.
Before delving right into a more detailed comparison, here is a quick overview of how the E-500 grades against the FE-4030 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus FE-4030 Gallery
Here is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus E-500 & Olympus FE-4030. The complete galleries are viewable at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Olympus FE-4030 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-500 over the Olympus FE-4030
E-500 | FE-4030 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Focus manually | ![]() | Dial exact focusing |
Reasons to pick Olympus FE-4030 over the Olympus E-500
FE-4030 | E-500 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Announced | January 2010 | ![]() | October 2005 | More recent by 51 months |
Display dimensions | 2.7" | ![]() | 2.5" | Larger display (+0.2") |
Display resolution | 230k | ![]() | 215k | Clearer display (+15k dot) |
Common features in the Olympus E-500 and Olympus FE-4030
E-500 | FE-4030 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Display type | Fixed | ![]() | Fixed | Fixed display |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Missing selfie screen | ||
Touch friendly display | ![]() | Neither has Touch friendly display |
Olympus E-500 vs Olympus FE-4030 Physical Comparison
If you are planning to lug around your camera frequently, you will have to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-500 has outside measurements of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") with a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) while the Olympus FE-4030 has measurements of 93mm x 56mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 146 grams (0.32 lbs).
Contrast the Olympus E-500 and Olympus FE-4030 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Take into account, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you select at that moment. Following is a front view measurement comparison of the E-500 against the FE-4030.

Looking at size and weight, the portability score of the E-500 and FE-4030 is 70 and 95 respectively.

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus FE-4030 Sensor Comparison
Oftentimes, it's tough to picture the gap in sensor measurements merely by researching a spec sheet. The graphic below may provide you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the E-500 and FE-4030.
Clearly, both of the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-500 featuring a larger sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field simpler and the Olympus FE-4030 will result in extra detail as a result of its extra 6MP. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop pics a bit more aggressively. The older E-500 will be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus FE-4030 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus FE-4030 Specifications
Olympus E-500 | Olympus FE-4030 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Brand Name | Olympus | Olympus |
Model type | Olympus E-500 | Olympus FE-4030 |
Also called as | EVOLT E-500 | - |
Class | Advanced DSLR | Small Sensor Compact |
Announced | 2005-10-21 | 2010-01-07 |
Physical type | Mid-size SLR | Compact |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor | - | TruePic III |
Sensor type | CCD | CCD |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | 1/2.3" |
Sensor measurements | 17.3 x 13mm | 6.08 x 4.56mm |
Sensor surface area | 224.9mm² | 27.7mm² |
Sensor resolution | 8 megapixel | 14 megapixel |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 4:3 and 16:9 |
Peak resolution | 3264 x 2448 | 4288 x 3216 |
Highest native ISO | 400 | 1600 |
Highest enhanced ISO | 1600 | - |
Lowest native ISO | 100 | 64 |
RAW images | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Focus manually | ||
Touch to focus | ||
AF continuous | ||
Single AF | ||
Tracking AF | ||
AF selectice | ||
AF center weighted | ||
Multi area AF | ||
Live view AF | ||
Face detect focusing | ||
Contract detect focusing | ||
Phase detect focusing | ||
Total focus points | 3 | - |
Lens | ||
Lens support | Micro Four Thirds | fixed lens |
Lens zoom range | - | 26-105mm (4.0x) |
Maximum aperture | - | f/2.6-5.9 |
Macro focusing distance | - | 4cm |
Available lenses | 45 | - |
Crop factor | 2.1 | 5.9 |
Screen | ||
Display type | Fixed Type | Fixed Type |
Display sizing | 2.5 inch | 2.7 inch |
Resolution of display | 215k dots | 230k dots |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch function | ||
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | Optical (pentaprism) | None |
Viewfinder coverage | 95 percent | - |
Viewfinder magnification | 0.45x | - |
Features | ||
Min shutter speed | 60s | 4s |
Max shutter speed | 1/4000s | 1/2000s |
Continuous shutter rate | 3.0 frames per sec | - |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manual mode | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | - |
Custom WB | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash distance | 13.00 m (at ISO 100) | 5.80 m |
Flash modes | Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye | Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Fill-in |
External flash | ||
AEB | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Max flash synchronize | 1/180s | - |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment exposure | ||
Average exposure | ||
Spot exposure | ||
Partial exposure | ||
AF area exposure | ||
Center weighted exposure | ||
Video features | ||
Video resolutions | - | 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) |
Highest video resolution | None | 640x480 |
Video file format | - | Motion JPEG |
Microphone support | ||
Headphone support | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | None |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | None |
Physical | ||
Environment sealing | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 479 gr (1.06 lbs) | 146 gr (0.32 lbs) |
Physical dimensions | 130 x 95 x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") | 93 x 56 x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO Overall rating | not tested | not tested |
DXO Color Depth rating | not tested | not tested |
DXO Dynamic range rating | not tested | not tested |
DXO Low light rating | not tested | not tested |
Other | ||
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 12 seconds) |
Time lapse recording | ||
Type of storage | Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card | SD/SDHC, Internal |
Card slots | 1 | 1 |
Price at release | $600 | $130 |