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Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550

Portability
68
Imaging
45
Features
45
Overall
45
Olympus E-520 front
 
Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 front
Portability
63
Imaging
54
Features
65
Overall
58

Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 Key Specs

Olympus E-520
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 552g - 136 x 92 x 68mm
  • Announced August 2008
  • Previous Model is Olympus E-510
Sony A550
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 632g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Released December 2009
  • Succeeded the Sony A100
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Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 Overview

Below, we are matching up the Olympus E-520 and Sony A550, both Entry-Level DSLR digital cameras by competitors Olympus and Sony. There exists a huge gap between the resolutions of the E-520 (10MP) and A550 (14MP) and the E-520 (Four Thirds) and A550 (APS-C) enjoy totally different sensor measurements.

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The E-520 was launched 15 months earlier than the A550 making the cameras a generation apart from one another. Both the cameras come with the identical body type (Compact SLR).

Before going in to a more detailed comparison, below is a concise view of how the E-520 scores versus the A550 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-520 over the Sony A550

 E-520 A550 

Reasons to pick Sony A550 over the Olympus E-520

 A550 E-520 
ReleasedDecember 2009August 2008Fresher by 15 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display dimension3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution922k230kClearer display (+692k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-520 and Sony A550

 E-520 A550 
Manually focus Dial exact focusing
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither contains Touch friendly display

Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 Physical Comparison

If you're aiming to carry your camera frequently, you should take into account its weight and size. The Olympus E-520 has got exterior measurements of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") and a weight of 552 grams (1.22 lbs) whilst the Sony A550 has specifications of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") and a weight of 632 grams (1.39 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-520 and Sony A550 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you have chosen during that time. Underneath is the front view proportions comparison of the E-520 compared to the A550.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-520 and A550 is 68 and 63 respectively.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it's difficult to visualise the difference between sensor sizing only by looking at a spec sheet. The photograph below may offer you a better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-520 and A550.

As you can see, both of those cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-520 featuring a tinier sensor will make shooting bokeh tougher and the Sony A550 will give greater detail utilizing its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop images somewhat more aggressively. The older E-520 is going to be behind with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-520 Portrait photography features
Sony A550 Portrait photography features
59
manual focus
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports face detection focusing
supports RAW formats
low resolution sensor (10MP)
72
has manual focus
good MP (14 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
has face detect autofocus
saves RAW files
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Olympus E-520 Street photography factors
Sony A550 Street photography factors
65
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
no moving screen
74
screen tilts
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-520 as a Sports photography camera
Sony A550 as a Sports photography camera
55
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
great battery pack (650 per charge)
has phase detect AF
slow continuous shooting (4.0 frames per second)
low resolution sensor (10MP)
67
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (14MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
has phase detect autofocus
bad battery (480 per charge)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-520 Travel photography info
Sony A550 Travel photography info
52
great battery pack (650 CIPA)
has built in flash
no Time Lapse recording
low resolution sensor (10 megapixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
52
good MP (14 megapixels)
built-in flash
missing Time Lapse function
bad battery (480 shots)
display isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-520 Landscape photography info
Sony A550 Landscape photography info
58
manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
great battery pack (650 per charge)
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inches)
low resolution sensor (10MP)
no Time Lapse recording
66
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
screen is a good size (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (14MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
bad battery (480 shots)
missing Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-520 as a Vlogging camera
Sony A550 as a Vlogging camera
9
no video recording
9
no video shooting
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Olympus E-520 vs Sony A550 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-520 and Sony A550
 Olympus E-520Sony Alpha DSLR-A550
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model Olympus E-520 Sony Alpha DSLR-A550
Type Entry-Level DSLR Entry-Level DSLR
Announced 2008-08-20 2009-12-09
Body design Compact SLR Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Processor - Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 23.4 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 365.0mm²
Sensor resolution 10MP 14MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 3648 x 2736 4592 x 3056
Highest native ISO 1600 12800
Lowest native ISO 100 200
RAW data
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 3 9
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds Sony/Minolta Alpha
Available lenses 45 143
Crop factor 2.1 1.5
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Tilting
Display sizing 2.7 inch 3 inch
Display resolution 230 thousand dot 922 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) Optical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder coverage 95% 95%
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x 0.53x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shooting speed 4.0 frames per second 7.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 12.00 m
Flash modes Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/180 secs 1/160 secs
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Highest video resolution None None
Mic jack
Headphone jack
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 seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 552g (1.22 lbs) 632g (1.39 lbs)
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 55 66
DXO Color Depth score 21.4 21.9
DXO Dynamic range score 10.4 11.8
DXO Low light score 548 807
Other
Battery life 650 photographs 480 photographs
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Retail price $400 $749