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Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500

Portability
80
Imaging
55
Features
75
Overall
63
Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III front
 
Sony Alpha DSLR-A500 front
Portability
63
Imaging
52
Features
52
Overall
52

Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 Key Specs

Olympus E-M10 III
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 410g - 122 x 84 x 50mm
  • Revealed August 2017
  • Previous Model is Olympus E-M10 II
  • New Model is Olympus E-M10 IV
Sony A500
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 630g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Launched August 2009
  • Renewed by Sony A560
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Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 Overview

Its time to look a bit more in depth at the Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by companies Olympus and Sony. There exists a large gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-M10 III (16MP) and A500 (12MP) and the E-M10 III (Four Thirds) and A500 (APS-C) boast totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-M10 III was manufactured 8 years later than the A500 and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-M10 III being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving right into a full comparison, here is a quick overview of how the E-M10 III scores versus the A500 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M10 III over the Sony A500

 E-M10 III A500 
LaunchedAugust 2017August 2009More recent by 98 months
Screen resolution1040k230kClearer screen (+810k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony A500 over the Olympus E-M10 III

 A500 E-M10 III 

Common features in the Olympus E-M10 III and Sony A500

 E-M10 III A500 
Manual focus More precise focusing
Screen typeTiltingTiltingTilting screen
Screen size3"3"Same screen dimensions
Selfie screen Neither features selfie screen

Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 Physical Comparison

In case you're intending to lug around your camera frequently, you'll need to consider its weight and size. The Olympus E-M10 III enjoys outside measurements of 122mm x 84mm x 50mm (4.8" x 3.3" x 2.0") accompanied by a weight of 410 grams (0.90 lbs) and the Sony A500 has specifications of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") along with a weight of 630 grams (1.39 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are employing at that time. Following is a front view size comparison of the E-M10 III and the A500.

Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-M10 III and A500 is 80 and 63 respectively.

Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it is hard to envision the difference in sensor measurements only by looking through specifications. The visual below will offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizing in the E-M10 III and A500.

To sum up, each of these cameras come with different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-M10 III because of its smaller sensor will make shooting shallow depth of field more challenging and the Olympus E-M10 III will render extra detail due to its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also help you crop shots a good deal more aggressively. The more modern E-M10 III will have a benefit in sensor tech.

Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Portrait photography factors
Sony A500 Portrait photography factors
73
you can focus manually
good resolution (16MP)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
includes face detection focus
delivers RAW files
63
manual focus
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
includes face detection focusing
exports RAW files
sensor resolution low (12MP)
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Street photography features
Sony A500 Street photography features
77
screen tilts up and down
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
supports touch to focus
great ISO range (25,600)
more heavy than competition in class (410g)
74
tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Sports photography information
Sony A500 Sports photography information
69
quiet shutter (1/16,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
includes tracking autofocus
no phase detect auto focus
51
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
sensor has phase detect AF
max frames per second low (5.0 frames per second)
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
bad battery power (520 CIPA)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III as a Travel photography camera
Sony A500 as a Travel photography camera
67
supports touch to focus
good resolution (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
more heavy than competition in class (410g)
display isn't selfie friendly
43
flash built-in
does not have Timelapse recording
bad battery power (520 per charge)
sensor resolution low (12MP)
doesn't feature selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Landscape photography factors
Sony A500 Landscape photography factors
80
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
great ISO range (25,600)
delivers RAW files
60
manual focus
swap lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW files
sensor resolution low (12MP)
bad battery power (520 CIPA)
does not have Timelapse recording
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M10 III Vlogging features
Sony A500 Vlogging features
32
touchscreen capability
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
includes face detection focus
video resolution high (3840 x 2160 resolution)
display isn't selfie friendly
no external microphone support
more heavy than competition in class (410 grams)
9
no video shooting
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Olympus E-M10 III vs Sony A500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M10 III and Sony A500
 Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IIISony Alpha DSLR-A500
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III Sony Alpha DSLR-A500
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Entry-Level DSLR
Revealed 2017-08-31 2009-08-27
Body design SLR-style mirrorless Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic VIII Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor measurements 17.4 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 226.2mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 12MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4608 x 3456 4272 x 2848
Highest native ISO 25600 12800
Minimum native ISO 200 200
RAW files
Minimum boosted ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Manual focus
AF touch
AF continuous
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 121 9
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds Sony/Minolta Alpha
Number of lenses 107 143
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1.5
Screen
Screen type Tilting Tilting
Screen sizing 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 1,040k dot 230k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic Optical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder resolution 2,360k dot -
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 95 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.62x 0.53x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Highest silent shutter speed 1/16000s -
Continuous shooting speed 8.6 frames/s 5.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 5.80 m (at ISO 100) 12.00 m
Flash settings Auto, redeye, slow sync, 2nd-curtain slow sync, redeye slow sync, fill-in, manual, off Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/250s 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 102 Mbps, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM -
Highest video resolution 3840x2160 None
Video file format MPEG-4, H.264 -
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 410 grams (0.90 lb) 630 grams (1.39 lb)
Physical dimensions 122 x 84 x 50mm (4.8" x 3.3" x 2.0") 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 64
DXO Color Depth score not tested 21.8
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 11.6
DXO Low light score not tested 772
Other
Battery life 330 photos 520 photos
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-50 NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 secs, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I/II supported) SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots 1 1
Launch price $650 $638