Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SP-600 UZ

Here is a complete assessment of the Olympus E-500 and Olympus SP-600 UZ, one being a Advanced DSLR and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom and both are produced by Olympus. There is a crucial difference between the image resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and SP-600 UZ (12MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and SP-600 UZ (1/2.3") boast different sensor sizing.

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The E-500 was launched 5 years before the SP-600 UZ and that is quite a serious gap as far as tech is concerned. Both cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus SP-600 UZ being a Compact camera.

Before going right into a comprehensive comparison, here is a brief highlight of how the E-500 matches up vs the SP-600 UZ with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-500 and Olympus SP-600 UZ. The complete galleries are available at Olympus E-500 Gallery and Olympus SP-600 UZ Gallery.

If you are looking to carry your camera frequently, you'll have to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-500 features outside measurements of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") and a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) whilst the Olympus SP-600 UZ has measurements of 110mm x 90mm x 91mm (4.3" x 3.5" x 3.6") accompanied by a weight of 455 grams (1.00 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-500 and Olympus SP-600 UZ in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you are employing at that time. The following is a front view over all size comparison of the E-500 compared to the SP-600 UZ.

Considering size and weight, the portability score of the E-500 and SP-600 UZ is 70 and 69 respectively.

Usually, it's tough to picture the contrast between sensor sizing simply by reading a spec sheet. The photograph below will offer you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-500 and SP-600 UZ.

As you can see, both cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-500 due to its larger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF simpler and the Olympus SP-600 UZ will offer you more detail utilizing its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop images way more aggressively. The older E-500 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor technology.