Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SP-100

Below is a detailed overview of the Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SP-100, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom and both are built by Olympus. There is a substantial difference among the resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and SP-100 (16MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and SP-100 (1/2.3") provide different sensor size.

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The E-500 was unveiled 9 years prior to the SP-100 and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus SP-100 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before delving into a more detailed comparison, here is a quick summary of how the E-500 scores vs the SP-100 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-500 & Olympus Stylus SP-100. The full galleries are available at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Olympus SP-100 Gallery.

For anyone who is going to lug around your camera frequently, you have to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-500 enjoys physical dimensions of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") accompanied by a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) and the Olympus SP-100 has dimensions of 122mm x 91mm x 133mm (4.8" x 3.6" x 5.2") with a weight of 594 grams (1.31 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-500 vs Olympus SP-100 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are utilising at that moment. Below is a front view sizing comparison of the E-500 against the SP-100.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability grade of the E-500 and SP-100 is 70 and 63 respectively.

Generally, it's hard to visualize the gap in sensor measurements merely by researching technical specs. The photograph underneath may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-500 and SP-100.

As you can tell, each of the cameras have different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-500 using its larger sensor is going to make shooting bokeh easier and the Olympus SP-100 will provide you with more detail having an extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also let you crop photos a bit more aggressively. The older E-500 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor tech.