Olympus E-500 vs Sony A580
70 Imaging
41 Features
34 Overall
38
64 Imaging
56 Features
82 Overall
66
Olympus E-500 vs Sony A580 Key Specs
(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
- Introduced October 2005
- Additionally referred to as EVOLT E-500
- Newer Model is Olympus E-510
(Full Review)
- 16MP - APS-C Sensor
- 3" Tilting Screen
- ISO 100 - 12800 (Bump to 25600)
- Sensor based Image Stabilization
- 1920 x 1080 video
- Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
- 599g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
- Released May 2011
- Superseded the Sony A100
Olympus E-500 vs Sony A580 Overview
Following is a in depth overview of the Olympus E-500 and Sony A580, former is a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by companies Olympus and Sony. There is a sizable difference among the image resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and A580 (16MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and A580 (APS-C) posses totally different sensor measurements.
Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next monthThe E-500 was brought out 6 years prior to the A580 which is a fairly significant difference as far as camera tech is concerned. The two cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony A580 being a Compact SLR camera.
Before delving straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a simple overview of how the E-500 grades versus the A580 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.
Olympus E-500 vs Sony A580 Gallery
Here is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus E-500 & Sony Alpha DSLR-A580. The entire galleries are available at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Sony A580 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-500 over the Sony A580
E-500 | A580 |
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Reasons to pick Sony A580 over the Olympus E-500
A580 | E-500 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Released | May 2011 | October 2005 | More modern by 68 months | |
Screen type | Tilting | Fixed | Tilting screen | |
Screen size | 3" | 2.5" | Bigger screen (+0.5") | |
Screen resolution | 922k | 215k | Clearer screen (+707k dot) |
Common features in the Olympus E-500 and Sony A580
E-500 | A580 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Focus manually | Dial exact focusing | |||
Selfie screen | Lack of selfie screen | |||
Touch friendly screen | Lack of Touch friendly screen |
Olympus E-500 vs Sony A580 Physical Comparison
For anyone who is looking to carry around your camera regularly, you have to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-500 has got exterior dimensions of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") having a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) while the Sony A580 has dimensions of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") with a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs).
Check the Olympus E-500 and Sony A580 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have attached at that moment. Here is a front view size comparison of the E-500 versus the A580.
Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability grade of the E-500 and A580 is 70 and 64 respectively.
Olympus E-500 vs Sony A580 Sensor Comparison
Oftentimes, it can be difficult to visualise the difference in sensor sizes purely by researching specs. The image below should give you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the E-500 and A580.
All in all, the 2 cameras come with different megapixels and different sensor sizes. The E-500 because of its smaller sensor will make getting shallower depth of field harder and the Sony A580 will result in extra detail having its extra 8MP. Higher resolution can also help you crop shots a good deal more aggressively. The more aged E-500 will be behind in sensor technology.
Olympus E-500 vs Sony A580 Screen and ViewFinder
Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison
Street Comparison
Sports Comparison
Travel Comparison
Landscape Comparison
Vlogging Comparison
Olympus E-500 vs Sony A580 Specifications
Olympus E-500 | Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Company | Olympus | Sony |
Model | Olympus E-500 | Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 |
Also called as | EVOLT E-500 | - |
Category | Advanced DSLR | Entry-Level DSLR |
Introduced | 2005-10-21 | 2011-05-26 |
Physical type | Mid-size SLR | Compact SLR |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor Chip | - | Bionz |
Sensor type | CCD | CMOS |
Sensor size | Four Thirds | APS-C |
Sensor measurements | 17.3 x 13mm | 23.5 x 15.6mm |
Sensor area | 224.9mm² | 366.6mm² |
Sensor resolution | 8 megapixels | 16 megapixels |
Anti aliasing filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 3:2 and 16:9 |
Maximum resolution | 3264 x 2448 | 4912 x 3264 |
Maximum native ISO | 400 | 12800 |
Maximum boosted ISO | 1600 | 25600 |
Minimum native ISO | 100 | 100 |
RAW files | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Manual focus | ||
Touch to focus | ||
AF continuous | ||
Single AF | ||
AF tracking | ||
Selective AF | ||
AF center weighted | ||
Multi area AF | ||
AF live view | ||
Face detect AF | ||
Contract detect AF | ||
Phase detect AF | ||
Number of focus points | 3 | 15 |
Cross focus points | - | 3 |
Lens | ||
Lens mounting type | Micro Four Thirds | Sony/Minolta Alpha |
Total lenses | 45 | 143 |
Focal length multiplier | 2.1 | 1.5 |
Screen | ||
Display type | Fixed Type | Tilting |
Display sizing | 2.5 inches | 3 inches |
Resolution of display | 215 thousand dots | 922 thousand dots |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch function | ||
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder type | Optical (pentaprism) | Optical (pentamirror) |
Viewfinder coverage | 95% | 95% |
Viewfinder magnification | 0.45x | 0.53x |
Features | ||
Lowest shutter speed | 60s | 30s |
Highest shutter speed | 1/4000s | 1/4000s |
Continuous shooting rate | 3.0fps | 7.0fps |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Expose Manually | ||
Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
Set WB | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Built-in flash | ||
Flash range | 13.00 m (at ISO 100) | 12.00 m |
Flash options | Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless |
External flash | ||
AE bracketing | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Highest flash synchronize | 1/180s | 1/160s |
Exposure | ||
Multisegment metering | ||
Average metering | ||
Spot metering | ||
Partial metering | ||
AF area metering | ||
Center weighted metering | ||
Video features | ||
Video resolutions | - | 1920 x 1080 (60, 29.97 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 640 x 424 (29.97 fps) |
Maximum video resolution | None | 1920x1080 |
Video data format | - | MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264 |
Microphone port | ||
Headphone port | ||
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 sealing | ||
Water proof | ||
Dust proof | ||
Shock proof | ||
Crush proof | ||
Freeze proof | ||
Weight | 479g (1.06 lbs) | 599g (1.32 lbs) |
Physical dimensions | 130 x 95 x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") | 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO All around score | not tested | 80 |
DXO Color Depth score | not tested | 23.8 |
DXO Dynamic range score | not tested | 13.3 |
DXO Low light score | not tested | 1121 |
Other | ||
Battery life | - | 1050 shots |
Battery type | - | Battery Pack |
Battery model | - | NP-FM500H |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec) |
Time lapse shooting | ||
Type of storage | Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card | SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo |
Card slots | 1 | 2 |
Retail pricing | $600 | $848 |