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Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III

Portability
68
Imaging
45
Features
45
Overall
45
Olympus E-520 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III front
Portability
53
Imaging
52
Features
77
Overall
62

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III 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
  • Introduced August 2008
  • Succeeded the Olympus E-510
Sony RX10 III
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Raise to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-600mm (F2.4-4.0) lens
  • 1051g - 133 x 94 x 127mm
  • Launched March 2016
  • Succeeded the Sony RX10 II
  • Renewed by Sony RX10 IV
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III Overview

In this article, we will be contrasting the Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III, former is a Entry-Level DSLR while the latter is a Large Sensor Superzoom by brands Olympus and Sony. There is a large difference among the resolutions of the E-520 (10MP) and RX10 III (20MP) and the E-520 (Four Thirds) and RX10 III (1") possess different sensor sizing.

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The E-520 was unveiled 8 years before the RX10 III which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-520 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony RX10 III being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before we go straight into a in depth comparison, below is a short introduction of how the E-520 scores vs the RX10 III when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-520 over the Sony RX10 III

 E-520 RX10 III 

Reasons to pick Sony RX10 III over the Olympus E-520

 RX10 III E-520 
LaunchedMarch 2016August 2008More modern by 92 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen sizing3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution1229k230kClearer screen (+999k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-520 and Sony RX10 III

 E-520 RX10 III 
Focus manually More exact focus
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen
Touch screen Neither features Touch screen

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III Physical Comparison

In case you're planning to carry around your camera regularly, you will need to consider its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-520 enjoys outside measurements of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") and a weight of 552 grams (1.22 lbs) and the Sony RX10 III has proportions of 133mm x 94mm x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0") and a weight of 1051 grams (2.32 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you are employing at the time. Here is the front view dimension comparison of the E-520 against the RX10 III.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability grade of the E-520 and RX10 III is 68 and 53 respectively.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III Sensor Comparison

Oftentimes, it can be difficult to picture the gap in sensor sizes just by researching specifications. The image below should provide you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-520 and RX10 III.

Plainly, both of the cameras offer different resolutions and different sensor sizes. The E-520 with its bigger sensor is going to make getting shallower DOF less difficult and the Sony RX10 III will result in extra detail having an extra 10 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also let you crop shots a little more aggressively. The more aged E-520 will be behind in sensor tech.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III sensor size comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-520 as a Portrait photography camera
Sony RX10 III as a Portrait photography camera
59
you can focus manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
has face detection focusing
supports RAW files
resolution not great (10MP)
71
has manual focus
resolution is good (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
has face detection focus
saves RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-520
Street photography with Sony RX10 III
65
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
no moving screen
64
tilting screen
image stabilization (Optical)
sensor size is nice (1")
saves RAW formats
weather sealing
more heavy than competition (1,051 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-520 Sports photography highlights
Sony RX10 III Sports photography highlights
55
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
good battery pack (650 shots)
supports phase detect AF
slow continuous shooting (4.0 frames/s)
resolution not great (10MP)
70
excellent zoom range (24-600mm 25.0 x zoom)
quiet mode (1/32,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
has tracking autofocus
weather sealing
great battery (420 shots)
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-520 Travel photography advice
Sony RX10 III Travel photography advice
52
good battery pack (650 per charge)
has built in flash
no Timelapse function
resolution not great (10 megapixels)
display isn't selfie friendly
55
great battery (420 shots)
weather sealing
resolution is good (20MP)
has built in flash
decently wide (24mm)
very long reach (600mm)
lack of Timelapse recording
more heavy than competition (1,051 grams)
display is not selfie friendly
sluggish max aperture (f2.4)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-520 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony RX10 III as a Landscape photography camera
58
you can focus manually
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
good battery pack (650 CIPA)
tiny screen (2.7")
resolution not great (10 megapixels)
no Timelapse function
63
has manual focus
decently wide (24mm)
screen size is good (3 inches)
image stabilization (Optical)
resolution is good (20MP)
sensor size is nice (1")
saves RAW formats
weather sealing
great battery (420 CIPA)
can't swap lens (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f2.4)
lack of Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-520 Vlogging factors
Sony RX10 III Vlogging factors
9
no video recording
28
decently wide (24mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
has face detection focus
video resolution high (3840 x 2160 pxls)
includes external microphone port
sluggish max aperture (f2.4)
display is not selfie friendly
more heavy than competition (1,051g)
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Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX10 III Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-520 and Sony RX10 III
 Olympus E-520Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
General Information
Make Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus E-520 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 III
Type Entry-Level DSLR Large Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2008-08-20 2016-03-29
Body design Compact SLR SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Powered by - Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 10 megapixel 20 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 3648 x 2736 5472 x 3648
Highest native ISO 1600 12800
Highest boosted ISO - 25600
Minimum native ISO 100 125
RAW pictures
Minimum boosted ISO - 64
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points 3 25
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 24-600mm (25.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/2.4-4.0
Macro focusing range - 3cm
Number of lenses 45 -
Crop factor 2.1 2.7
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Tilting
Display diagonal 2.7" 3"
Resolution of display 230 thousand dot 1,229 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage 95% 100%
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x 0.7x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Maximum quiet shutter speed - 1/32000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 4.0fps 14.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 12.00 m (at ISO 100) 10.80 m (at Auto ISO)
Flash modes Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye Auto, fill-flash, slow sync, rear sync, off
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/180 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions - 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p) ,1440 x 1080 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Highest video resolution None 3840x2160
Video format - MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 552 grams (1.22 lb) 1051 grams (2.32 lb)
Dimensions 136 x 92 x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") 133 x 94 x 127mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 5.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 55 70
DXO Color Depth rating 21.4 23.1
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.4 12.6
DXO Low light rating 548 472
Other
Battery life 650 photographs 420 photographs
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Price at launch $400 $1,398