Olympus E-500 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS

Following is a thorough overview of the Olympus E-500 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS, former is a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and both of them are sold by Olympus. There is a large difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and XZ-2 iHS (12MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and XZ-2 iHS (1/1.7") posses totally different sensor measurements.

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The E-500 was unveiled 8 years before the XZ-2 iHS which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus XZ-2 iHS being a Compact camera.

Before diving right into a comprehensive comparison, here is a simple view of how the E-500 scores vs the XZ-2 iHS when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus E-500 & Olympus XZ-2 iHS. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Olympus XZ-2 iHS Gallery.

For anyone who is planning to carry around your camera often, you will have to factor its weight and size. The Olympus E-500 features exterior 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 XZ-2 iHS has specifications of 113mm x 65mm x 48mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.9") having a weight of 346 grams (0.76 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-500 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you have at the time. Here is a front view measurement comparison of the E-500 versus the XZ-2 iHS.

Looking at size and weight, the portability grade of the E-500 and XZ-2 iHS is 70 and 85 respectively.

Generally, it can be tough to see the contrast in sensor sizes just by looking through a spec sheet. The pic here will help provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-500 and XZ-2 iHS.

Clearly, both the cameras have different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-500 using its larger sensor will make getting bokeh simpler and the Olympus XZ-2 iHS will render extra detail having an extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also enable you to crop images a bit more aggressively. The more aged E-500 will be behind in sensor innovation.