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Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160

Portability
68
Imaging
44
Features
45
Overall
44
Olympus E-520 front
 
Olympus VG-160 front
Portability
96
Imaging
37
Features
26
Overall
32

Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 Key Specs

Olympus E-520
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 552g - 136 x 92 x 68mm
  • Introduced August 2008
  • Succeeded the Olympus E-510
Olympus VG-160
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 26-130mm (F2.8-6.5) lens
  • 125g - 96 x 57 x 19mm
  • Launched January 2012
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Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 Overview

On this page, we are comparing the Olympus E-520 and Olympus VG-160, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both sold by Olympus. There is a noticeable difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-520 (10MP) and VG-160 (14MP) and the E-520 (Four Thirds) and VG-160 (1/2.3") have totally different sensor size.

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The E-520 was introduced 4 years before the VG-160 and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-520 being a Compact SLR camera and the Olympus VG-160 being a Compact camera.

Before getting right into a detailed comparison, here is a concise highlight of how the E-520 grades against the VG-160 for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-520 over the Olympus VG-160

 E-520 VG-160 
Manual focus Very accurate focus

Reasons to pick Olympus VG-160 over the Olympus E-520

 VG-160 E-520 
LaunchedJanuary 2012August 2008Fresher by 41 months
Display dimensions3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")

Common features in the Olympus E-520 and Olympus VG-160

 E-520 VG-160 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Display resolution230k230kIdentical display resolution
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither contains Touch friendly display

Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 Physical Comparison

If you're intending to carry your camera frequently, you're going to have to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-520 has got external dimensions of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") along with a weight of 552 grams (1.22 lbs) whilst the Olympus VG-160 has measurements of 96mm x 57mm x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") with a weight of 125 grams (0.28 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-520 and Olympus VG-160 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are employing at the time. The following is a front view proportions comparison of the E-520 against the VG-160.

Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability grade of the E-520 and VG-160 is 68 and 96 respectively.

Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 Sensor Comparison

Usually, it's hard to envision the contrast in sensor sizing only by researching specs. The visual underneath will help offer you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-520 and VG-160.

As you can plainly see, the 2 cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-520 with its larger sensor will make getting shallower depth of field simpler and the Olympus VG-160 will render greater detail using its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop images a bit more aggressively. The older E-520 will be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-520 Portrait photography information
Olympus VG-160 Portrait photography information
58
focusing manually
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports face detection focusing
exports RAW files
megapixel count low (10MP)
33
sensor resolution is decent (14MP)
has face detection focus
lack of manual focus
no manual exposure
cannot use external flash
sensor is small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-520 Street photography info
Olympus VG-160 Street photography info
65
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
screen is fixed
56
lighter than competition in class (125 grams)
no articulating screen
lack of image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-520 as a Sports photography camera
Olympus VG-160 as a Sports photography camera
55
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
great battery power (650 shots)
has phase detect AF
painfully slow continuous shooting (4.0 frames/s)
megapixel count low (10MP)
26
sensor resolution is decent (14 megapixels)
no shutter priority mode
lack of image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
bad battery (165 CIPA)
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-520 Travel photography features
Olympus VG-160 Travel photography features
52
great battery power (650 CIPA)
has built in flash
doesn't have Time Lapse recording
megapixel count low (10 megapixels)
display isn't selfie friendly
65
lighter than competition in class (125g)
sensor resolution is decent (14MP)
has built in flash
reasonably wide (26mm)
does not have Timelapse mode
bad battery (165 per charge)
doesn't offer selfie friendly screen
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-520 Landscape photography details
Olympus VG-160 Landscape photography details
57
focusing manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
great battery power (650 shots)
screen is small (2.7")
megapixel count low (10MP)
doesn't have Time Lapse recording
36
reasonably wide (26mm)
screen size is decent (3")
sensor resolution is decent (14MP)
lack of manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
no manual exposure
lack of image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW format
bad battery (165 per charge)
does not have Timelapse mode
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-520 Vlogging details
Olympus VG-160 Vlogging details
9
no video
30
reasonably wide (26mm)
has face detection focus
lighter than competition in class (125 grams)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
doesn't offer selfie friendly screen
lack of image stabilization
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pxls)
does not have external microphone support
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Olympus E-520 vs Olympus VG-160 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-520 and Olympus VG-160
 Olympus E-520Olympus VG-160
General Information
Company Olympus Olympus
Model Olympus E-520 Olympus VG-160
Category Entry-Level DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2008-08-20 2012-01-10
Physical type Compact SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 10 megapixel 14 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3
Maximum resolution 3648 x 2736 4288 x 3216
Maximum native ISO 1600 1600
Min native ISO 100 80
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points 3 -
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 26-130mm (5.0x)
Max aperture - f/2.8-6.5
Macro focus distance - 7cm
Amount of lenses 45 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 2.7" 3"
Resolution of screen 230k dots 230k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen tech - TFT Color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60s 4s
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000s 1/2000s
Continuous shooting rate 4.0 frames per second -
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes -
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 4.80 m
Flash options Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/180s -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions - 1280 x 720 (30,15 fps), 640 x 480 (30, 15 fps), 320 x 180 (30,15 fps)
Maximum video resolution None 1280x720
Video data format - Motion JPEG
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
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 552 gr (1.22 lb) 125 gr (0.28 lb)
Physical dimensions 136 x 92 x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") 96 x 57 x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 55 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 21.4 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 10.4 not tested
DXO Low light score 548 not tested
Other
Battery life 650 images 165 images
Type of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - LI-70B
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 12 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC
Card slots Single Single
Launch price $400 $90