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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1

Portability
70
Imaging
41
Features
34
Overall
38
Olympus E-500 front
 
Pentax Optio S1 front
Portability
93
Imaging
37
Features
31
Overall
34

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 Key Specs

Olympus E-500
(Full Review)
  • 8MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 400 (Push to 1600)
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 479g - 130 x 95 x 66mm
  • Revealed October 2005
  • Additionally referred to as EVOLT E-500
  • Replacement is Olympus E-510
Pentax S1
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-140mm (F3.5-5.5) lens
  • 157g - 114 x 58 x 28mm
  • Introduced March 2011
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 Overview

Here is a complete overview of the Olympus E-500 and Pentax S1, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by companies Olympus and Pentax. There exists a noticeable gap between the resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and S1 (14MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and S1 (1/2.3") have different sensor sizes.

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The E-500 was introduced 6 years earlier than the S1 and that is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Pentax S1 being a Compact camera.

Before delving straight to a in-depth comparison, here is a simple summation of how the E-500 grades vs the S1 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-500 over the Pentax S1

 E-500 S1 

Reasons to pick Pentax S1 over the Olympus E-500

 S1 E-500 
IntroducedMarch 2011October 2005Fresher by 65 months
Screen size2.7"2.5"Bigger screen (+0.2")
Screen resolution230k215kCrisper screen (+15k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-500 and Pentax S1

 E-500 S1 
Focus manually More exact focus
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Neither has Touch friendly screen

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 Physical Comparison

If you are going to carry your camera, you will need to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-500 has external dimensions of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") and a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) and the Pentax S1 has measurements of 114mm x 58mm x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1") having a weight of 157 grams (0.35 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-500 and Pentax S1 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have at that time. Here is a front view overall size comparison of the E-500 compared to the S1.

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-500 and S1 is 70 and 93 respectively.

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 Sensor Comparison

Sometimes, it's hard to visualize the contrast between sensor sizing just by looking at specs. The photograph here may provide you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-500 and S1.

All in all, each of these cameras come with different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-500 using its bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF less difficult and the Pentax S1 will give you extra detail using its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop pictures a good deal more aggressively. The older E-500 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor tech.

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-500 Portrait photography details
Pentax S1 Portrait photography details
48
you can focus manually
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
doesn't have liveview
sensor resolution low (8MP)
35
you can focus manually
good megapixels (14MP)
manual mode not available
can't use external flash
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-500 Street photography highlights
Pentax S1 Street photography highlights
56
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
lighter than competition (479g)
fixed screen
does not have image stabilization
max ISO too low (400)
56
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
screen does not articulate
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-500 as a Sports photography camera
Pentax S1 as a Sports photography camera
37
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
has phase detect AF
doesn't have liveview
continuous shooting slow (3.0 frames/s)
does not have image stabilization
sensor resolution low (8MP)
39
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (14 megapixels)
provides tracking autofocus
very slow continuous shooting (1.0 fps)
no shutter priority mode
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-500 as a Travel photography camera
Pentax S1 as a Travel photography camera
52
lighter than competition (479 grams)
built-in flash
lack of Timelapse function
sensor resolution low (8MP)
display is not selfie friendly
64
good megapixels (14 megapixels)
has built in flash
fairly wide (28mm)
does not have Timelapse recording
display isn't selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.5)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-500 Landscape photography information
Pentax S1 Landscape photography information
43
you can focus manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
screen is small (2.5")
doesn't have liveview
does not have image stabilization
sensor resolution low (8MP)
max ISO too low (400)
lack of Timelapse function
42
you can focus manually
fairly wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (14 megapixels)
cannot change lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.5)
tiny screen (2.7 inches)
manual mode not available
small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have RAW format
does not have Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-500 Vlogging advice
Pentax S1 Vlogging advice
9
no video
28
fairly wide (28mm)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
slow max aperture (f3.5)
display isn't selfie friendly
video res low (1280 x 720 resolution)
does not have external microphone socket
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax S1 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-500 and Pentax S1
 Olympus E-500Pentax Optio S1
General Information
Brand Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus E-500 Pentax Optio S1
Also Known as EVOLT E-500 -
Type Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2005-10-21 2011-03-02
Physical type Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Sensor type CCD CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 8 megapixel 14 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9
Highest resolution 3264 x 2448 4288 x 3216
Highest native ISO 400 6400
Highest boosted ISO 1600 -
Minimum native ISO 100 80
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Number of focus points 3 9
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 28-140mm (5.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.5-5.5
Macro focus range - 1cm
Number of lenses 45 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.8
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display size 2.5 inch 2.7 inch
Resolution of display 215k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Display tech - TFT color LCD with Anti-reflective coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.45x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 4s
Highest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/1500s
Continuous shooting rate 3.0fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 13.00 m (at ISO 100) 3.90 m
Flash settings Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/180s -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1280 x 720 (30, 15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 240 (30, 15 fps)
Highest video resolution None 1280x720
Video file format - Motion JPEG
Microphone port
Headphone port
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 sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 479 gr (1.06 lb) 157 gr (0.35 lb)
Physical dimensions 130 x 95 x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") 114 x 58 x 28mm (4.5" x 2.3" x 1.1")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life - 260 photos
Battery type - Battery Pack
Battery model - D-LI92
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots One One
Retail pricing $600 $174