Olympus E-510 vs Sony NEX-C3
69 Imaging
44 Features
42 Overall
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91 Imaging
56 Features
57 Overall
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Olympus E-510 vs Sony NEX-C3 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
- 2.5" Fixed Screen
- 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
- Succeeded the Olympus E-500
- Successor is Olympus E-520
(Full Review)
- 16MP - APS-C Sensor
- 3" Tilting Screen
- ISO 100 - 12800
- 1280 x 720 video
- Sony E Mount
- 225g - 110 x 60 x 33mm
- Announced August 2011
- Superseded the Sony NEX-3
- Successor is Sony NEX-F3
Photography Glossary Olympus E-510 vs Sony NEX-C3 Overview
Let's take a closer look at the Olympus E-510 versus Sony NEX-C3, one being a Advanced DSLR and the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by brands Olympus and Sony. There exists a huge gap among the resolutions of the E-510 (10MP) and NEX-C3 (16MP) and the E-510 (Four Thirds) and NEX-C3 (APS-C) offer different sensor size.
Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD CardsThe E-510 was unveiled 4 years before the NEX-C3 and that is a fairly significant gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-510 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony NEX-C3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.
Before delving straight to a comprehensive comparison, here is a concise summation of how the E-510 scores against the NEX-C3 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.
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This is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus E-510 and Sony Alpha NEX-C3. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-510 Gallery and Sony NEX-C3 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Olympus E-510 over the Sony NEX-C3
| E-510 | NEX-C3 |
|---|
Reasons to pick Sony NEX-C3 over the Olympus E-510
| NEX-C3 | E-510 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Announced | August 2011 | November 2007 | More recent by 45 months | |
| Screen type | Tilting | Fixed | Tilting screen | |
| Screen dimensions | 3" | 2.5" | Bigger screen (+0.5") | |
| Screen resolution | 920k | 230k | Crisper screen (+690k dot) |
Common features in the Olympus E-510 and Sony NEX-C3
| E-510 | NEX-C3 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Focus manually | Dial exact focus | |||
| Selfie screen | Neither includes selfie screen | |||
| Touch friendly screen | Neither includes Touch friendly screen |
Olympus E-510 vs Sony NEX-C3 Physical Comparison
In case you're looking to lug around your camera regularly, you are going to need to think about its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-510 features external dimensions of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") accompanied by a weight of 490 grams (1.08 lbs) and the Sony NEX-C3 has dimensions of 110mm x 60mm x 33mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.3") and a weight of 225 grams (0.50 lbs).
Check out the Olympus E-510 versus Sony NEX-C3 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you are utilizing at the time. Here is a front view size comparison of the E-510 against the NEX-C3.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-510 and NEX-C3 is 69 and 91 respectively.
Olympus E-510 vs Sony NEX-C3 Sensor Comparison
Sometimes, it is hard to visualize the difference in sensor measurements simply by checking out specs. The visual underneath will help provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the E-510 and NEX-C3.
All in all, each of the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-510 having a smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field more difficult and the Sony NEX-C3 will provide greater detail having an extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The older E-510 will be behind in sensor innovation.
Olympus E-510 vs Sony NEX-C3 Screen and ViewFinder
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Olympus E-510 vs Sony NEX-C3 Specifications
| Olympus E-510 | Sony Alpha NEX-C3 | |
|---|---|---|
| General Information | ||
| Brand | Olympus | Sony |
| Model | Olympus E-510 | Sony Alpha NEX-C3 |
| Otherwise known as | EVOLT E-510 | - |
| Type | Advanced DSLR | Entry-Level Mirrorless |
| Introduced | 2007-11-23 | 2011-08-22 |
| Physical type | Mid-size SLR | Rangefinder-style mirrorless |
| Sensor Information | ||
| Processor | - | Bionz |
| Sensor type | CMOS | CMOS |
| Sensor size | Four Thirds | APS-C |
| Sensor measurements | 17.3 x 13mm | 23.4 x 15.6mm |
| Sensor area | 224.9mm² | 365.0mm² |
| Sensor resolution | 10 megapixels | 16 megapixels |
| Anti aliasing filter | ||
| Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 3:2 and 16:9 |
| Max resolution | 3648 x 2736 | 4912 x 3264 |
| Max native ISO | 1600 | 12800 |
| Lowest native ISO | 100 | 100 |
| RAW format | ||
| Autofocusing | ||
| Manual focus | ||
| Touch focus | ||
| Continuous AF | ||
| Single AF | ||
| Tracking AF | ||
| Selective AF | ||
| Center weighted AF | ||
| AF multi area | ||
| AF live view | ||
| Face detection focusing | ||
| Contract detection focusing | ||
| Phase detection focusing | ||
| Number of focus points | 3 | 25 |
| Lens | ||
| Lens mounting type | Micro Four Thirds | Sony E |
| Available lenses | 45 | 121 |
| Crop factor | 2.1 | 1.5 |
| Screen | ||
| Screen type | Fixed Type | Tilting |
| Screen size | 2.5" | 3" |
| Resolution of screen | 230 thousand dots | 920 thousand dots |
| Selfie friendly | ||
| Liveview | ||
| Touch functionality | ||
| Screen tech | - | TFT Xtra Fine LCD |
| Viewfinder Information | ||
| Viewfinder | Optical (pentamirror) | None |
| Viewfinder coverage | 95% | - |
| Viewfinder magnification | 0.46x | - |
| Features | ||
| Minimum shutter speed | 60 seconds | 30 seconds |
| Fastest shutter speed | 1/4000 seconds | 1/4000 seconds |
| Continuous shutter rate | 3.0 frames/s | 6.0 frames/s |
| Shutter priority | ||
| Aperture priority | ||
| Manual mode | ||
| Exposure compensation | Yes | Yes |
| Custom WB | ||
| Image stabilization | ||
| Inbuilt flash | ||
| Flash range | 12.00 m (at ISO 100) | no built-in flash |
| Flash modes | Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye | Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in |
| External flash | ||
| AEB | ||
| White balance bracketing | ||
| Fastest flash synchronize | 1/180 seconds | 1/160 seconds |
| Exposure | ||
| Multisegment | ||
| Average | ||
| Spot | ||
| Partial | ||
| AF area | ||
| Center weighted | ||
| Video features | ||
| Video resolutions | - | 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) |
| Max video resolution | None | 1280x720 |
| Video data format | - | MPEG-4 |
| 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 | ||
| Environment sealing | ||
| Water proof | ||
| Dust proof | ||
| Shock proof | ||
| Crush proof | ||
| Freeze proof | ||
| Weight | 490g (1.08 pounds) | 225g (0.50 pounds) |
| Physical dimensions | 136 x 92 x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") | 110 x 60 x 33mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.3") |
| DXO scores | ||
| DXO Overall score | 52 | 73 |
| DXO Color Depth score | 21.2 | 22.7 |
| DXO Dynamic range score | 10.0 | 12.2 |
| DXO Low light score | 442 | 1083 |
| Other | ||
| Battery life | - | 400 photographs |
| Battery type | - | Battery Pack |
| Battery model | - | NPFW50 |
| Self timer | Yes (2 or 12 sec) | Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec 3 or 5 images) |
| Time lapse feature | ||
| 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 | 1 |
| Pricing at release | $550 | $343 |