Olympus E-500 vs Sony W570

On this page, we will be analyzing the Olympus E-500 versus Sony W570, former is a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Ultracompact by companies Olympus and Sony. There is a large difference among the resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and W570 (16MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and W570 (1/2.3") provide different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The E-500 was announced 6 years prior to the W570 which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony W570 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before going right into a in depth comparison, here is a simple highlight of how the E-500 matches up versus the W570 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus E-500 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W570. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Sony W570 Gallery.

For anyone who is intending to carry around your camera frequently, you're going to have to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-500 provides exterior measurements 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 W570 has measurements of 91mm x 52mm x 19mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.7") having a weight of 116 grams (0.26 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-500 versus Sony W570 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you have at that time. Underneath is a front view measurement comparison of the E-500 against the W570.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the E-500 and W570 is 70 and 96 respectively.

Generally, its difficult to visualize the gap in sensor sizes only by looking through technical specs. The picture below may provide you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-500 and W570.

As you have seen, the 2 cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-500 having a bigger sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF less difficult and the Sony W570 will provide you with extra detail with its extra 8MP. Higher resolution will help you crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The more aged E-500 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.