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Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV

Portability
68
Imaging
45
Features
45
Overall
45
Olympus E-520 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV front
Portability
89
Imaging
52
Features
79
Overall
62

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV 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
  • Announced August 2008
  • Succeeded the Olympus E-510
Sony RX100 IV
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - 1" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 125 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 24-70mm (F1.8-2.8) lens
  • 298g - 102 x 58 x 41mm
  • Revealed June 2015
  • Earlier Model is Sony RX100 III
  • Successor is Sony RX100 V
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV Overview

On this page, we will be analyzing the Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV, former being a Entry-Level DSLR while the latter is a Large Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There exists a sizable gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-520 (10MP) and RX100 IV (20MP) and the E-520 (Four Thirds) and RX100 IV (1") provide different sensor measurements.

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The E-520 was unveiled 7 years before the RX100 IV and that is quite a significant difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-520 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony RX100 IV being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before we go straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a concise introduction of how the E-520 matches up against the RX100 IV in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-520 over the Sony RX100 IV

 E-520 RX100 IV 

Reasons to pick Sony RX100 IV over the Olympus E-520

 RX100 IV E-520 
RevealedJune 2015August 2008More recent by 82 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution1229k230kCrisper screen (+999k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies

Common features in the Olympus E-520 and Sony RX100 IV

 E-520 RX100 IV 
Focus manually Very precise focus
Touch screen Neither features Touch screen

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV Physical Comparison

For anyone who is intending to lug around your camera, you'll need to take into account its weight and volume. The Olympus E-520 enjoys physical 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 Sony RX100 IV has sizing of 102mm x 58mm x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6") along with a weight of 298 grams (0.66 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you are using during that time. The following is a front view scale comparison of the E-520 versus the RX100 IV.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-520 and RX100 IV is 68 and 89 respectively.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV Sensor Comparison

Normally, it's tough to visualize the contrast between sensor measurements merely by reviewing specifications. The photograph here may offer you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-520 and RX100 IV.

To sum up, both cameras have different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-520 with its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field less difficult and the Sony RX100 IV will offer more detail having an extra 10 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop photographs a bit more aggressively. The older E-520 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor tech.

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV sensor size comparison

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-520 Portrait photography highlights
Sony RX100 IV Portrait photography highlights
59
focusing manually
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
comes with face detection focus
saves RAW formats
low MP (10 megapixels)
65
focusing manually
flash sync is higher than normal (1/2,000s)
MP count decent (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (1")
provides face detection focus
saves RAW formats
no external flash support
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-520 as a Street photography camera
Sony RX100 IV as a Street photography camera
65
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
screen does not articulate
85
screen tilts
image stabilization (Optical)
nice sensor size (1")
saves RAW formats
lighter than competition in class (298g)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-520 Sports photography highlights
Sony RX100 IV Sports photography highlights
55
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
great battery (650 per charge)
comes with phase detect auto focus
slow continuous shooting (4.0 fps)
low MP (10 megapixels)
68
silent mode (1/32,000 seconds)
max frames per second high (16.0 frames/s)
image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (1")
provides tracking autofocus
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-520 as a Travel photography camera
Sony RX100 IV as a Travel photography camera
52
great battery (650 shots)
built-in flash
no Timelapse mode
low MP (10MP)
screen is not selfie friendly
86
lighter than competition in class (298 grams)
MP count decent (20 megapixels)
built-in flash
display is selfie friendly
pretty wide (24mm)
very good max aperture (f1.8)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-520
Landscape photography with Sony RX100 IV
58
focusing manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
great battery (650 CIPA)
tiny screen (2.7")
low MP (10MP)
no Timelapse mode
74
focusing manually
pretty wide (24mm)
very good max aperture (f1.8)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (20 megapixels)
nice sensor size (1")
saves RAW formats
can't switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-520
Vlogging with Sony RX100 IV
9
lack of video recording
81
pretty wide (24mm)
very good max aperture (f1.8)
display is selfie friendly
image stabilization (Optical)
provides face detection focus
high quality video (3840 x 2160 resolution)
lighter than competition in class (298 grams)
doesn't have external mic port
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Olympus E-520 vs Sony RX100 IV Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-520 and Sony RX100 IV
 Olympus E-520Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus E-520 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV
Type Entry-Level DSLR Large Sensor Compact
Announced 2008-08-20 2015-06-10
Body design Compact SLR Large Sensor Compact
Sensor Information
Chip - Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 13.2 x 8.8mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 116.2mm²
Sensor resolution 10MP 20MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 3648 x 2736 5472 x 3648
Max native ISO 1600 12800
Max boosted ISO - 25600
Lowest native ISO 100 125
RAW format
Lowest boosted ISO - 80
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 3 25
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 24-70mm (2.9x)
Maximal aperture - f/1.8-2.8
Macro focusing distance - 5cm
Amount of lenses 45 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 2.7
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Tilting
Screen size 2.7 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 230 thousand dot 1,229 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentamirror) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage 95% 100%
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x 0.59x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Maximum silent shutter speed - 1/32000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed 4.0 frames per sec 16.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 12.00 m (at ISO 100) -
Flash modes Auto, Auto FP, Manual, Red-Eye -
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/180 seconds 1/2000 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 3840 x 2160 (30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p/60i/24p), 1280 x 720 (60p/30p/24p/120p), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution None 3840x2160
Video data format - MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Mic 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
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 552 gr (1.22 lbs) 298 gr (0.66 lbs)
Physical dimensions 136 x 92 x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") 102 x 58 x 41mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.6")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 55 70
DXO Color Depth rating 21.4 22.9
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.4 12.6
DXO Low light rating 548 562
Other
Battery life 650 shots 280 shots
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-BX1
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes
Time lapse shooting With downloadable app
Storage media Compact Flash (Type I or II), xD Picture Card SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Price at launch $400 $898