Olympus E-500 vs Pentax Q

Its time to take a deeper look at the Olympus E-500 vs Pentax Q, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by competitors Olympus and Pentax. There is a noticeable difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and Q (12MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and Q (1/2.3") use different sensor dimensions.

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The E-500 was announced 6 years earlier than the Q and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Pentax Q being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving straight into a in depth comparison, below is a simple synopsis of how the E-500 grades versus the Q when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus E-500 & Pentax Q. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Pentax Q Gallery.

In case you're planning to lug around your camera regularly, you will need to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-500 provides exterior 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 Pentax Q has proportions of 98mm x 57mm x 31mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.2") having a weight of 180 grams (0.40 lbs).

See the Olympus E-500 vs Pentax Q in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you are working with at the time. Underneath is the front view over all size comparison of the E-500 and the Q.

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

Generally, its difficult to imagine the contrast in sensor measurements simply by checking out a spec sheet. The graphic below might offer you a better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-500 and Q.

Clearly, both the cameras posses different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-500 using its bigger sensor is going to make shooting bokeh easier and the Pentax Q will produce extra detail with its extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also help you crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The older E-500 will be behind when it comes to sensor technology.