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Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV

Portability
70
Imaging
41
Features
34
Overall
38
Olympus E-500 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV front
Portability
89
Imaging
52
Features
79
Overall
62

Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV Key Specs

Olympus E-500
(Full Review)
  • 8MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 400 (Increase to 1600)
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 479g - 130 x 95 x 66mm
  • Revealed October 2005
  • Other Name is EVOLT E-500
  • Successor is Olympus E-510
Sony RX100 IV
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-70mm (F1.8-2.8) lens
  • 298g - 102 x 58 x 41mm
  • Introduced June 2015
  • Older Model is Sony RX100 III
  • Later Model is Sony RX100 V
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Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV Overview

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Large Sensor Compact by companies Olympus and Sony. There exists a noticeable gap between the resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and RX100 IV (20MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and RX100 IV (1") use totally different sensor sizing.

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The E-500 was manufactured 10 years before the RX100 IV and that is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony RX100 IV being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before delving through a thorough comparison, below is a simple synopsis of how the E-500 grades against the RX100 IV when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-500 over the Sony RX100 IV

 E-500 RX100 IV 

Reasons to pick Sony RX100 IV over the Olympus E-500

 RX100 IV E-500 
IntroducedJune 2015October 2005Fresher by 117 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display sizing3"2.5"Larger display (+0.5")
Display resolution1229k215kClearer display (+1014k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Common features in the Olympus E-500 and Sony RX100 IV

 E-500 RX100 IV 
Manually focus Very exact focusing
Touch display Lack of Touch display

Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV Physical Comparison

For anybody who is going to carry your camera often, you'll have to factor its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-500 enjoys exterior dimensions of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") and a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) while the Sony RX100 IV has dimensions of 102mm x 58mm x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6") and a weight of 298 grams (0.66 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you select at that moment. Underneath is the front view measurement comparison of the E-500 against the RX100 IV.

Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-500 and RX100 IV is 70 and 89 respectively.

Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it's difficult to see the contrast between sensor sizing merely by going over technical specs. The photograph below will help give you a greater sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-500 and RX100 IV.

As you have seen, each of these cameras offer different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The E-500 due to its larger sensor will make shooting bokeh easier and the Sony RX100 IV will offer extra detail due to its extra 12 Megapixels. Greater resolution will enable you to crop pics a little more aggressively. The older E-500 is going to be behind in sensor tech.

Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV sensor size comparison

Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-500 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony RX100 IV as a Portrait photography camera
48
has manual focus
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
doesn't have liveview
low resolution (8MP)
65
focusing manually
above average flash sync speed (1/2,000 seconds)
megapixel count decent (20 megapixels)
sensor size is good (1")
provides face detect autofocus
saves RAW formats
can't use external flash
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-500 Street photography info
Sony RX100 IV Street photography info
56
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
lighter than others in class (479g)
screen is fixed
lack of image stabilization
low max ISO (400)
85
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is good (1")
saves RAW formats
lighter than competition (298g)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-500 Sports photography advice
Sony RX100 IV Sports photography advice
37
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports phase detect auto focus
doesn't have liveview
slow frames per second (3.0 fps)
lack of image stabilization
low resolution (8MP)
68
silent shooting (1/32,000s)
fast shooting (16.0 frames per second)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count decent (20MP)
sensor size is good (1")
provides tracking focus
has no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-500 Travel photography information
Sony RX100 IV Travel photography information
52
lighter than others in class (479g)
flash built-in
no Timelapse recording
low resolution (8MP)
does not have a selfie friendly display
86
lighter than competition (298g)
megapixel count decent (20MP)
has built in flash
display is selfie friendly
reasonably wide (24mm)
fast max aperture (f1.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-500 Landscape photography information
Sony RX100 IV Landscape photography information
43
has manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
small screen (2.5 inches)
doesn't have liveview
lack of image stabilization
low resolution (8MP)
low max ISO (400)
no Timelapse recording
74
focusing manually
reasonably wide (24mm)
fast max aperture (f1.8)
screen size is good (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
megapixel count decent (20MP)
sensor size is good (1")
saves RAW formats
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-500 as a Vlogging camera
Sony RX100 IV as a Vlogging camera
9
can't shoot video
81
reasonably wide (24mm)
fast max aperture (f1.8)
display is selfie friendly
built in image stabilization (Optical)
provides face detect autofocus
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pxls)
lighter than competition (298g)
doesn't have microphone socket
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Olympus E-500 vs Sony RX100 IV Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-500 and Sony RX100 IV
 Olympus E-500Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus E-500 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV
Otherwise known as EVOLT E-500 -
Class Advanced DSLR Large Sensor Compact
Revealed 2005-10-21 2015-06-10
Physical type Mid-size SLR Large Sensor Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - Bionz X
Sensor type CCD BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 8 megapixel 20 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 3264 x 2448 5472 x 3648
Highest native ISO 400 12800
Highest boosted ISO 1600 25600
Min native ISO 100 125
RAW pictures
Min boosted ISO - 80
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 3 25
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 24-70mm (2.9x)
Max aperture - f/1.8-2.8
Macro focusing range - 5cm
Total lenses 45 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 2.7
Screen
Type of screen Fixed Type Tilting
Screen sizing 2.5 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 215k dots 1,229k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentaprism) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359k dots
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.45x 0.59x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Maximum silent shutter speed - 1/32000 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 3.0 frames per sec 16.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 13.00 m (at ISO 100) -
Flash settings Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye -
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/180 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p/60i/24p), 1280 x 720 (60p/30p/24p/120p), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution None 3840x2160
Video data format - MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 479g (1.06 lbs) 298g (0.66 lbs)
Dimensions 130 x 95 x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") 102 x 58 x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 70
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 22.9
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 12.6
DXO Low light rating not tested 562
Other
Battery life - 280 photos
Battery type - Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-BX1
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes
Time lapse shooting With downloadable app
Storage type Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots 1 1
Price at launch $600 $898