Olympus E-520 vs Pentax K-500

Lets take a closer look at the Olympus E-520 and Pentax K-500, both Entry-Level DSLR cameras by companies Olympus and Pentax. There exists a noticeable gap among the image resolutions of the E-520 (10MP) and K-500 (16MP) and the E-520 (Four Thirds) and K-500 (APS-C) provide totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-520 was announced 6 years prior to the K-500 which is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of these cameras have the same body design (Compact SLR).

Before we go into a more detailed comparison, here is a short synopsis of how the E-520 grades against the K-500 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Here is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus E-520 & Pentax K-500. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-520 Gallery & Pentax K-500 Gallery.

When you are intending to carry around your camera frequently, you'll need to think about its weight and volume. The Olympus E-520 comes with outer measurements 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 Pentax K-500 has sizing of 130mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") with a weight of 646 grams (1.42 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-520 and Pentax K-500 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are employing during that time. Underneath is a front view dimension comparison of the E-520 and the K-500.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-520 and K-500 is 68 and 64 respectively.

More often than not, it is hard to visualise the contrast in sensor sizes purely by viewing a spec sheet. The pic here will help provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the E-520 and K-500.

Clearly, both of these cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-520 using its smaller sensor will make shooting shallow depth of field more challenging and the Pentax K-500 will result in more detail with its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will enable you to crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The more aged E-520 will be disadvantaged in sensor tech.