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Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20

Portability
70
Imaging
41
Features
34
Overall
38
Olympus E-500 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH20 front
Portability
93
Imaging
36
Features
21
Overall
30

Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 Key Specs

Olympus E-500
(Full Review)
  • 8MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 400 (Increase to 1600)
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 479g - 130 x 95 x 66mm
  • Launched October 2005
  • Alternate Name is EVOLT E-500
  • Updated by Olympus E-510
Panasonic FH20
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-224mm (F3.3-5.9) lens
  • 178g - 100 x 56 x 28mm
  • Revealed January 2010
  • Also Known as Lumix DMC-FS30
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Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 Overview

Here is a in depth assessment of the Olympus E-500 and Panasonic FH20, one being a Advanced DSLR and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by companies Olympus and Panasonic. There is a significant difference between the resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and FH20 (14MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and FH20 (1/2.3") offer totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-500 was unveiled 5 years earlier than the FH20 and that is quite a sizable gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Panasonic FH20 being a Compact camera.

Before going into a complete comparison, here is a concise view of how the E-500 matches up versus the FH20 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-500 over the Panasonic FH20

 E-500 FH20 
Manually focus More exact focus

Reasons to pick Panasonic FH20 over the Olympus E-500

 FH20 E-500 
RevealedJanuary 2010October 2005Fresher by 51 months
Screen size2.7"2.5"Bigger screen (+0.2")
Screen resolution230k215kClearer screen (+15k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-500 and Panasonic FH20

 E-500 FH20 
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither comes with selfie screen
Touch screen Missing Touch screen

Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is intending to carry your camera, you'll need to consider its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-500 comes with outer dimensions of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") with a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) while the Panasonic FH20 has proportions of 100mm x 56mm x 28mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1") accompanied by a weight of 178 grams (0.39 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-500 and Panasonic FH20 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you are working with at the time. Below is a front view scale comparison of the E-500 vs the FH20.

Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the E-500 and FH20 is 70 and 93 respectively.

Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 Sensor Comparison

Usually, it's tough to envision the difference between sensor sizing purely by reading technical specs. The visual underneath might offer you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-500 and FH20.

As you have seen, both of those cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-500 having a bigger sensor will make achieving shallower depth of field simpler and the Panasonic FH20 will offer greater detail having an extra 6MP. Higher resolution will allow you to crop shots a good deal more aggressively. The older E-500 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-500 Portrait photography highlights
Panasonic FH20 Portrait photography highlights
48
manual focus
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
no liveview
MP count low (8 megapixels)
28
decent MP (14MP)
no manual focus
no manual exposure
cannot use external flash
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
no RAW format
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-500
Street photography with Panasonic FH20
56
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
lighter than others (479g)
screen does not articulate
does not have image stabilization
low maximum ISO (400)
56
image stabilization (Optical)
screen does not articulate
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
no RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-500 Sports photography info
Panasonic FH20 Sports photography info
37
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
has phase detect AF
no liveview
very slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames per second)
does not have image stabilization
MP count low (8MP)
34
image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (14 megapixels)
low frames per second (5.0 frames per second)
lack of shutter priority mode
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
no phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-500 Travel photography information
Panasonic FH20 Travel photography information
52
lighter than others (479g)
built-in flash
does not have Timelapse recording
MP count low (8 megapixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
64
decent MP (14 megapixels)
built-in flash
pretty wide (28mm)
lack of Time Lapse mode
screen is not selfie friendly
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-500
Landscape photography with Panasonic FH20
43
manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
small screen (2.5 inch)
no liveview
does not have image stabilization
MP count low (8 megapixels)
low maximum ISO (400)
does not have Timelapse recording
37
pretty wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
decent MP (14MP)
no manual focus
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
small screen (2.7 inch)
no manual exposure
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
no RAW format
lack of Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-500 Vlogging features
Panasonic FH20 Vlogging features
9
no video recording
28
pretty wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
screen is not selfie friendly
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pixels)
lack of mic port
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Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-500 and Panasonic FH20
 Olympus E-500Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH20
General Information
Make Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus E-500 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH20
Otherwise known as EVOLT E-500 Lumix DMC-FS30
Class Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Launched 2005-10-21 2010-01-06
Body design Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Sensor type CCD CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 8 megapixels 14 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 3264 x 2448 4320 x 3240
Max native ISO 400 6400
Max boosted ISO 1600 -
Min native ISO 100 80
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch focus
Autofocus continuous
Autofocus single
Tracking autofocus
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Total focus points 3 9
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 28-224mm (8.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.3-5.9
Macro focusing distance - 5cm
Available lenses 45 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.9
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen sizing 2.5 inch 2.7 inch
Screen resolution 215 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.45x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 60 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/1600 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 3.0fps 5.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 13.00 m (at ISO 100) 5.80 m (Auto ISO)
Flash options Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/180 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Max video resolution None 1280x720
Video file format - Motion JPEG
Mic jack
Headphone jack
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 proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 479g (1.06 pounds) 178g (0.39 pounds)
Physical dimensions 130 x 95 x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") 100 x 56 x 28mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth rating not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested not tested
DXO Low light rating not tested not tested
Other
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage media Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots Single Single
Price at launch $600 $179