Olympus E-500 vs Pentax K20D
70 Imaging
41 Features
34 Overall
38
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59 Imaging
53 Features
52 Overall
52
Olympus E-500 vs Pentax K20D Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 8MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 2.5" Fixed Display
- ISO 100 - 400 (Raise to 1600)
- No Video
- Micro Four Thirds Mount
- 479g - 130 x 95 x 66mm
- Released October 2005
- Also referred to as EVOLT E-500
- New Model is Olympus E-510
(Full Review)
- 15MP - APS-C Sensor
- 2.7" Fixed Screen
- ISO 100 - 3200 (Raise to 6400)
- Sensor based Image Stabilization
- No Video
- Pentax KAF2 Mount
- 800g - 142 x 101 x 70mm
- Introduced June 2008
- Old Model is Pentax K10D
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax K20D Overview
In this write-up, we will be reviewing the Olympus E-500 and Pentax K20D, both Advanced DSLR digital cameras by brands Olympus and Pentax. There exists a substantial gap between the resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and K20D (15MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and K20D (APS-C) possess different sensor dimensions.
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The E-500 was unveiled 3 years prior to the K20D which is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Both cameras offer the identical body type (Mid-size SLR).
Before diving straight into a step-by-step comparison, below is a concise view of how the E-500 matches up versus the K20D when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax K20D Gallery
This is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus E-500 & Pentax K20D. The full galleries are provided at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Pentax K20D Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-500 over the Pentax K20D
E-500 | K20D |
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Reasons to pick Pentax K20D over the Olympus E-500
K20D | E-500 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Introduced | June 2008 | ![]() | October 2005 | More modern by 32 months |
Screen sizing | 2.7" | ![]() | 2.5" | Bigger screen (+0.2") |
Screen resolution | 230k | ![]() | 215k | Clearer screen (+15k dot) |
Common features in the Olympus E-500 and Pentax K20D
E-500 | K20D | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Manually focus | ![]() | More precise focus | ||
Screen type | Fixed | ![]() | Fixed | Fixed screen |
Selfie screen | ![]() | Lacking selfie screen | ||
Touch friendly screen | ![]() | Lacking Touch friendly screen |
Olympus E-500 vs Pentax K20D Physical Comparison
When you are intending to carry around your camera often, you will want to think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-500 enjoys outer measurements 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 Pentax K20D has specifications of 142mm x 101mm x 70mm (5.6" x 4.0" x 2.8") accompanied by a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).
Check out the Olympus E-500 and Pentax K20D in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Always remember, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you are working with at the time. The following is the front view dimension comparison of the E-500 against the K20D.
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Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-500 and K20D is 70 and 59 respectively.
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax K20D Sensor Comparison
Sometimes, it is tough to picture the gap between sensor sizes simply by checking a spec sheet. The pic underneath will help give you a stronger sense of the sensor measurements in the E-500 and K20D.
Clearly, both the cameras enjoy different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The E-500 having a tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF harder and the Pentax K20D will give greater detail having an extra 7 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop shots far more aggressively. The more aged E-500 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax K20D Screen and ViewFinder
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Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison
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Street Comparison
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Sports Comparison
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Travel Comparison
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Landscape Comparison
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Vlogging Comparison
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax K20D Specifications
Olympus E-500 | Pentax K20D | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Make | Olympus | Pentax |
Model | Olympus E-500 | Pentax K20D |
Also called | EVOLT E-500 | - |
Type | Advanced DSLR | Advanced DSLR |
Released | 2005-10-21 | 2008-06-25 |
Body design | Mid-size SLR | Mid-size SLR |
Sensor Information | ||
Sensor type | CCD | CMOS |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | APS-C |
Sensor dimensions | 17.3 x 13mm | 23.4 x 15.6mm |
Sensor area | 224.9mm² | 365.0mm² |
Sensor resolution | 8 megapixel | 15 megapixel |
Anti aliasing filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 3:2 |
Max resolution | 3264 x 2448 | 4672 x 3104 |
Max native ISO | 400 | 3200 |
Max enhanced ISO | 1600 | 6400 |
Minimum native ISO | 100 | 100 |
RAW support | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Manual focus | ||
Touch to focus | ||
Continuous autofocus | ||
Single autofocus | ||
Autofocus tracking | ||
Selective autofocus | ||
Center weighted autofocus | ||
Autofocus multi area | ||
Autofocus live view | ||
Face detect focus | ||
Contract detect focus | ||
Phase detect focus | ||
Number of focus points | 3 | 11 |
Lens | ||
Lens mount | Micro Four Thirds | Pentax KAF2 |
Amount of lenses | 45 | 151 |
Focal length multiplier | 2.1 | 1.5 |
Screen | ||
Range of display | Fixed Type | Fixed Type |
Display size | 2.5 inches | 2.7 inches |
Resolution of display | 215 thousand dot | 230 thousand dot |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch function | ||
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | Optical (pentaprism) | Optical (pentaprism) |
Viewfinder coverage | 95% | 95% |
Viewfinder magnification | 0.45x | 0.64x |
Features | ||
Min shutter speed | 60 seconds | 30 seconds |
Max shutter speed | 1/4000 seconds | 1/4000 seconds |
Continuous shutter speed | 3.0 frames/s | 3.0 frames/s |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Manually set exposure | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
Custom white balance | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Integrated flash | ||
Flash range | 13.00 m (at ISO 100) | 13.00 m (at ISO 100) |
Flash settings | Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye | Auto, Red-Eye, Slow, Red-Eye Slow, Rear curtain, wireless |
External flash | ||
AE bracketing | ||
White balance bracketing | ||
Max flash sync | 1/180 seconds | 1/180 seconds |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment | ||
Average | ||
Spot | ||
Partial | ||
AF area | ||
Center weighted | ||
Video features | ||
Max video resolution | None | None |
Mic input | ||
Headphone input | ||
Connectivity | ||
Wireless | None | None |
Bluetooth | ||
NFC | ||
HDMI | ||
USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
GPS | None | None |
Physical | ||
Environmental seal | ||
Water proof | ||
Dust proof | ||
Shock proof | ||
Crush proof | ||
Freeze proof | ||
Weight | 479g (1.06 lb) | 800g (1.76 lb) |
Dimensions | 130 x 95 x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") | 142 x 101 x 70mm (5.6" x 4.0" x 2.8") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO Overall score | not tested | 65 |
DXO Color Depth score | not tested | 22.9 |
DXO Dynamic range score | not tested | 11.1 |
DXO Low light score | not tested | 639 |
Other | ||
Battery model | - | D-LI50 |
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/MMC/SDHC card |
Storage slots | 1 | 1 |
Retail pricing | $600 | $700 |