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Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500

Portability
69
Imaging
44
Features
42
Overall
43
Olympus E-510 front
 
Sony Alpha DSLR-A500 front
Portability
63
Imaging
52
Features
52
Overall
52

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 Key Specs

Olympus E-510
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 490g - 136 x 92 x 68mm
  • Introduced November 2007
  • Other Name is EVOLT E-510
  • Old Model is Olympus E-500
  • Successor is Olympus E-520
Sony A500
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 630g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Revealed August 2009
  • Renewed by Sony A560
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 Overview

Let's look a little more in depth at the Olympus E-510 and Sony A500, one being a Advanced DSLR and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Olympus and Sony. The image resolution of the E-510 (10MP) and the A500 (12MP) is fairly close but the E-510 (Four Thirds) and A500 (APS-C) possess different sensor measurements.

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The E-510 was revealed 21 months prior to the A500 making the cameras a generation apart from each other. Both cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-510 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony A500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before we go straight into a complete comparison, below is a concise highlight of how the E-510 grades against the A500 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-510 over the Sony A500

 E-510 A500 

Reasons to pick Sony A500 over the Olympus E-510

 A500 E-510 
RevealedAugust 2009November 2007More recent by 21 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display sizing3"2.5"Larger display (+0.5")

Common features in the Olympus E-510 and Sony A500

 E-510 A500 
Manually focus Very precise focus
Display resolution230k230kIdentical display resolution
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen
Touch friendly display Absent Touch friendly display

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 Physical Comparison

If you're intending to lug around your camera frequently, you are going to need to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-510 has got outside measurements of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") and a weight of 490 grams (1.08 lbs) whilst the Sony A500 has measurements of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") and a weight of 630 grams (1.39 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-510 and Sony A500 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you have chosen at that moment. The following is the front view over all size comparison of the E-510 vs the A500.

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability rating of the E-510 and A500 is 69 and 63 respectively.

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 Sensor Comparison

Often, it's difficult to picture the gap in sensor measurements purely by viewing a spec sheet. The photograph underneath will give you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the E-510 and A500.

As you can see, both of the cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-510 using its smaller sensor is going to make shooting bokeh harder and the Sony A500 will result in extra detail because of its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also help you crop pics a little more aggressively. The older E-510 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-510 Portrait photography factors
Sony A500 Portrait photography factors
56
manual focus
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
MP count low (10MP)
63
you can focus manually
decent sensor size (APS-C)
includes face detect focus
exports RAW files
low resolution (12MP)
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-510 Street photography details
Sony A500 Street photography details
68
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
lighter than competitors (490 grams)
screen does not articulate
74
screen tilts
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-510 as a Sports photography camera
Sony A500 as a Sports photography camera
52
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
has phase detect auto focus
max fps very slow (3.0 frames/s)
MP count low (10MP)
51
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
comes with phase detect auto focus
low fps (5.0 frames per second)
low resolution (12MP)
bad battery power (520 per charge)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-510 as a Travel photography camera
Sony A500 as a Travel photography camera
52
lighter than competitors (490 grams)
has built in flash
does not have Time Lapse recording
MP count low (10MP)
display is not selfie friendly
43
flash built-in
missing Timelapse mode
bad battery power (520 shots)
low resolution (12MP)
display isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-510 Landscape photography features
Sony A500 Landscape photography features
55
manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
screen is small (2.5")
MP count low (10 megapixels)
does not have Time Lapse recording
60
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
nice screen size (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW files
low resolution (12 megapixels)
bad battery power (520 per charge)
missing Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-510 Vlogging features
Sony A500 Vlogging features
9
lack of video recording
9
no video recording
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Olympus E-510 vs Sony A500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-510 and Sony A500
 Olympus E-510Sony Alpha DSLR-A500
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Sony
Model Olympus E-510 Sony Alpha DSLR-A500
Also called EVOLT E-510 -
Category Advanced DSLR Entry-Level DSLR
Introduced 2007-11-23 2009-08-27
Physical type Mid-size SLR Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Processor - Bionz
Sensor type CMOS 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 10 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 3648 x 2736 4272 x 2848
Max native ISO 1600 12800
Min native ISO 100 200
RAW data
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Autofocus live view
Face detect autofocus
Contract detect autofocus
Phase detect autofocus
Number of focus points 3 9
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds Sony/Minolta Alpha
Available lenses 45 143
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1.5
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Tilting
Display diagonal 2.5 inch 3 inch
Display resolution 230 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) Optical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder coverage 95% 95%
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x 0.53x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Continuous shooting rate 3.0fps 5.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 12.00 m
Flash settings Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/180s 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Max video resolution None None
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None None
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 490 gr (1.08 pounds) 630 gr (1.39 pounds)
Dimensions 136 x 92 x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 52 64
DXO Color Depth score 21.2 21.8
DXO Dynamic range score 10.0 11.6
DXO Low light score 442 772
Other
Battery life - 520 shots
Battery style - 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, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots Single Single
Cost at launch $550 $638