Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH20

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.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus E-500 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH20. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-500 Gallery and Panasonic FH20 Gallery.

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.

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.

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

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.