Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic GX9

Here, we are contrasting the Olympus E-500 and Panasonic GX9, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Advanced Mirrorless by brands Olympus and Panasonic. There is a considerable difference between the resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and GX9 (20MP) but both cameras have the identical sensor sizing (Four Thirds).

Photography Glossary

The E-500 was released 13 years prior to the GX9 and that is quite a large difference as far as tech is concerned. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Panasonic GX9 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going right into a more detailed comparison, here is a short overview of how the E-500 matches up vs the GX9 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-500 & Panasonic Lumix DC-GX9. The complete galleries are available at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Panasonic GX9 Gallery.

For anyone who is going to lug around your camera often, you will need to factor in its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-500 features external measurements of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") with a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) whilst the Panasonic GX9 has proportions of 124mm x 72mm x 47mm (4.9" x 2.8" x 1.9") accompanied by a weight of 407 grams (0.90 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-500 and Panasonic GX9 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you choose at that time. The following is a front view measurements comparison of the E-500 and the GX9.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the E-500 and GX9 is 70 and 82 respectively.

Generally, it's hard to visualize the difference between sensor measurements purely by looking at specs. The graphic here will help provide you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-500 and GX9.

All in all, both cameras come with the identical sensor size but different resolution. You can expect to see the Panasonic GX9 to give you greater detail as a result of its extra 12 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also let you crop images a good deal more aggressively. The older E-500 is going to be behind with regard to sensor technology.