Olympus E-500 vs Sony WX30

Its time to look closer at the Olympus E-500 vs Sony WX30, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by brands Olympus and Sony. There is a large difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and WX30 (16MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and WX30 (1/2.3") come with totally different sensor size.

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The E-500 was released 6 years before the WX30 and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony WX30 being a Compact camera.

Before delving straight into a step-by-step comparison, below is a short synopsis of how the E-500 grades versus the WX30 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus E-500 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX30. The complete galleries are provided at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Sony WX30 Gallery.

If you're aiming to carry your camera frequently, you should think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-500 has physical measurements of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") along with a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) whilst the Sony WX30 has specifications of 92mm x 52mm x 19mm (3.6" x 2.0" x 0.7") with a weight of 117 grams (0.26 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-500 vs Sony WX30 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have chosen at the time. Here is the front view over all size comparison of the E-500 versus the WX30.

Looking at size and weight, the portability score of the E-500 and WX30 is 70 and 96 respectively.

Generally, it is very difficult to see the contrast in sensor sizing simply by going through technical specs. The photograph here may give you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-500 and WX30.

As you have seen, both of the cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-500 because of its bigger sensor will make achieving shallower DOF simpler and the Sony WX30 will provide greater detail as a result of its extra 8 Megapixels. Higher resolution will help you crop photographs a little more aggressively. The older E-500 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.