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Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11

Portability
70
Imaging
41
Features
34
Overall
38
Olympus E-500 front
 
Olympus SZ-11 front
Portability
89
Imaging
37
Features
37
Overall
37

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 Key Specs

Olympus E-500
(Full Review)
  • 8MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 400 (Push to 1600)
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 479g - 130 x 95 x 66mm
  • Introduced October 2005
  • Also referred to as EVOLT E-500
  • Successor is Olympus E-510
Olympus SZ-11
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-500mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 226g - 106 x 69 x 40mm
  • Launched July 2011
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Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 Overview

On this page, we will be comparing the Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11, former is a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom and both of them are produced by Olympus. There is a large difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and SZ-11 (14MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and SZ-11 (1/2.3") posses different sensor size.

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The E-500 was released 6 years earlier than the SZ-11 which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus SZ-11 being a Compact camera.

Before diving right into a in depth comparison, here is a concise summary of how the E-500 grades vs the SZ-11 for portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-500 over the Olympus SZ-11

 E-500 SZ-11 
Focus manually Very exact focusing

Reasons to pick Olympus SZ-11 over the Olympus E-500

 SZ-11 E-500 
LaunchedJuly 2011October 2005Newer by 70 months
Screen dimensions3"2.5"Bigger screen (+0.5")
Screen resolution460k215kCrisper screen (+245k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-500 and Olympus SZ-11

 E-500 SZ-11 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch screen Neither has Touch screen

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 Physical Comparison

If you are aiming to travel with your camera often, you will need to take into account its weight and size. The Olympus E-500 has physical dimensions of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") along with a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) and the Olympus SZ-11 has specifications of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") along with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you are employing at the time. Following is a front view measurements comparison of the E-500 versus the SZ-11.

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability grade of the E-500 and SZ-11 is 70 and 89 respectively.

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 Sensor Comparison

Often, its hard to visualize the gap in sensor dimensions simply by seeing specifications. The picture here should give you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-500 and SZ-11.

Plainly, both of those cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-500 featuring a bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF easier and the Olympus SZ-11 will show greater detail as a result of its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures more aggressively. The more aged E-500 will be disadvantaged in sensor technology.

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-500
Portrait photography with Olympus SZ-11
48
has manual focus
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
does not have liveview
MP count low (8 megapixels)
33
MP count decent (14MP)
comes with face detect autofocus
manual focus not available
no manual control
cannot use external flash
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-500
Street photography with Olympus SZ-11
56
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
lighter than competition in class (479 grams)
no moving screen
does not have image stabilization
maximum ISO low (400)
60
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than others in class (226 grams)
no articulating screen
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-500 as a Sports photography camera
Olympus SZ-11 as a Sports photography camera
37
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
comes with phase detect autofocus
does not have liveview
very slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames per second)
does not have image stabilization
MP count low (8 megapixels)
43
excellent zoom range (25-500mm 20.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
comes with tracking focus
no shutter priority mode
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
low battery pack (200 CIPA)
has no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-500 as a Travel photography camera
Olympus SZ-11 as a Travel photography camera
52
lighter than competition in class (479 grams)
has built in flash
lack of Time Lapse mode
MP count low (8 megapixels)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
65
lighter than others in class (226g)
MP count decent (14MP)
built-in flash
really wide (25mm)
long zoom (500mm)
no Timelapse mode
low battery pack (200 shots)
screen isn't selfie friendly
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-500 Landscape photography highlights
Olympus SZ-11 Landscape photography highlights
43
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
screen is small (2.5 inch)
does not have liveview
does not have image stabilization
MP count low (8 megapixels)
maximum ISO low (400)
lack of Time Lapse mode
40
really wide (25mm)
screen is a decent size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
MP count decent (14 megapixels)
manual focus not available
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
no manual control
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
low battery pack (200 CIPA)
no Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-500
Vlogging with Olympus SZ-11
9
lack of video recording
31
really wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
comes with face detect autofocus
lighter than others in class (226 grams)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.0)
screen isn't selfie friendly
low quality video (1280 x 720 resolution)
no microphone jack
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Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SZ-11 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-500 and Olympus SZ-11
 Olympus E-500Olympus SZ-11
General Information
Make Olympus Olympus
Model Olympus E-500 Olympus SZ-11
Also Known as EVOLT E-500 -
Class Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2005-10-21 2011-07-27
Body design Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - TruePic III+
Sensor type CCD CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 8 megapixel 14 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3 and 16:9
Max resolution 3264 x 2448 4288 x 3216
Max native ISO 400 1600
Max enhanced ISO 1600 -
Min native ISO 100 80
RAW format
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points 3 -
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-500mm (20.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.0-6.9
Macro focus distance - 1cm
Total lenses 45 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 2.5" 3"
Resolution of screen 215 thousand dot 460 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen tech - TFT Color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.45x -
Features
Min shutter speed 60 seconds 4 seconds
Max shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 3.0 frames per second 7.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 13.00 m (at ISO 100) 9.30 m (@ ISO 1600)
Flash options Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Max flash sync 1/180 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1280 x 720 (30, 15fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15fps)
Max video resolution None 1280x720
Video file format - Motion JPEG
Microphone input
Headphone input
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 seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 479 gr (1.06 lbs) 226 gr (0.50 lbs)
Physical dimensions 130 x 95 x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") 106 x 69 x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life - 200 photographs
Battery format - Battery Pack
Battery model - LI-50B
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 12 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage media Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots One One
Launch pricing $600 $253