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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20

Portability
70
Imaging
41
Features
34
Overall
38
Olympus E-500 front
 
Pentax Optio VS20 front
Portability
90
Imaging
39
Features
35
Overall
37

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 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
  • Also referred to as EVOLT E-500
  • New Model is Olympus E-510
Pentax VS20
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-560mm (F3.1-4.8) lens
  • 235g - 111 x 61 x 38mm
  • Announced January 2012
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 Overview

Lets look a little more closely at the Olympus E-500 and Pentax VS20, one is a Advanced DSLR and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a huge gap between the image resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and VS20 (16MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and VS20 (1/2.3") have different sensor measurements.

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The E-500 was unveiled 7 years prior to the VS20 which is quite a significant gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Pentax VS20 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a quick introduction of how the E-500 grades against the VS20 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-500 over the Pentax VS20

 E-500 VS20 

Reasons to pick Pentax VS20 over the Olympus E-500

 VS20 E-500 
AnnouncedJanuary 2012October 2005Newer by 76 months
Display dimensions3"2.5"Larger display (+0.5")
Display resolution460k215kCrisper display (+245k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-500 and Pentax VS20

 E-500 VS20 
Manually focus More accurate focus
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither has Touch friendly display

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 Physical Comparison

If you are intending to travel with your camera regularly, you will have to think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-500 has outer measurements of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") having a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) whilst the Pentax VS20 has measurements of 111mm x 61mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.4" x 1.5") along with a weight of 235 grams (0.52 lbs).

Examine the Olympus E-500 and Pentax VS20 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you have at that moment. Here is a front view overall size comparison of the E-500 compared to the VS20.

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-500 and VS20 is 70 and 90 respectively.

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, its tough to picture the gap between sensor dimensions purely by reading through a spec sheet. The image below might provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the E-500 and VS20.

Clearly, each of the cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The E-500 having a larger sensor is going to make shooting bokeh less difficult and the Pentax VS20 will resolve more detail having an extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also allow you to crop pics more aggressively. The more aged E-500 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-500
Portrait photography with Pentax VS20
48
you can focus manually
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
no liveview
low resolution (8MP)
36
has manual focus
megapixel count good (16MP)
no manual control
can't use external flash
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Olympus E-500 Street photography features
Pentax VS20 Street photography features
56
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
lighter than competition (479 grams)
no moving screen
lack of image stabilization
low maximum ISO (400)
61
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than competitors (235g)
screen does not articulate
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-500 Sports photography highlights
Pentax VS20 Sports photography highlights
37
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
has phase detect auto focus
no liveview
max fps low (3.0 fps)
lack of image stabilization
low resolution (8MP)
44
great zoom range (28-560mm 20.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
has tracking autofocus
very slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-500 Travel photography factors
Pentax VS20 Travel photography factors
52
lighter than competition (479g)
flash built-in
does not have Timelapse recording
low resolution (8 megapixels)
does not feature selfie friendly display
68
lighter than competitors (235 grams)
megapixel count good (16MP)
flash built-in
decently wide (28mm)
long zoom (560mm)
does not have Time Lapse function
display isn't selfie friendly
sluggish max aperture (f3.1)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-500 Landscape photography details
Pentax VS20 Landscape photography details
43
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
screen is somewhat small (2.5")
no liveview
lack of image stabilization
low resolution (8 megapixels)
low maximum ISO (400)
does not have Timelapse recording
47
has manual focus
decently wide (28mm)
nice screen size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
megapixel count good (16 megapixels)
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f3.1)
no manual control
sensor size is tiny (1/2.3")
does not have RAW files
does not have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-500 as a Vlogging camera
Pentax VS20 as a Vlogging camera
9
can't record video
30
decently wide (28mm)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
lighter than competitors (235g)
sluggish max aperture (f3.1)
display isn't selfie friendly
low video resolution (1280 x 720 pxls)
does not have external mic port
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Olympus E-500 vs Pentax VS20 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-500 and Pentax VS20
 Olympus E-500Pentax Optio VS20
General Information
Make Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus E-500 Pentax Optio VS20
Also called as EVOLT E-500 -
Type Advanced DSLR Small Sensor Superzoom
Revealed 2005-10-21 2012-01-25
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 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3 and 16:9
Highest resolution 3264 x 2448 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 400 6400
Highest boosted ISO 1600 -
Lowest native ISO 100 100
RAW photos
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Continuous autofocus
Autofocus single
Tracking autofocus
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Autofocus multi area
Live view autofocus
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Number of focus points 3 3
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 28-560mm (20.0x)
Highest aperture - f/3.1-4.8
Macro focus distance - 3cm
Number of lenses 45 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.9
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display size 2.5" 3"
Display resolution 215k dot 460k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Display technology - 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 60 secs 4 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/2500 secs
Continuous shooting speed 3.0 frames/s 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 13.00 m (at ISO 100) 2.80 m
Flash options Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Soft
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/180 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
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 format - Motion JPEG
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
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 pounds) 235g (0.52 pounds)
Physical dimensions 130 x 95 x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") 111 x 61 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.4" x 1.5")
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 model - D-LI122
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots One One
Retail pricing $600 $106