Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic FX580

Below is a in-depth overview of the Olympus SH-50 versus Panasonic FX580, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a noticeable gap among the resolutions of the SH-50 (16MP) and FX580 (12MP) but they use the exact same sensor measurements (1/2.3").

Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

The SH-50 was brought out 4 years later than the FX580 and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both cameras come with the identical body type (Compact).

Before diving through a comprehensive comparison, below is a simple introduction of how the SH-50 grades vs the FX580 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus SH-50 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX580. The entire galleries are provided at Olympus SH-50 Gallery & Panasonic FX580 Gallery.

For those who are planning to lug around your camera regularly, you need to consider its weight and volume. The Olympus SH-50 features exterior dimensions of 112mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.7") along with a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs) while the Panasonic FX580 has sizing of 95mm x 57mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus SH-50 versus Panasonic FX580 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you are using during that time. Following is the front view proportions comparison of the SH-50 vs the FX580.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SH-50 and FX580 is 88 and 95 respectively.

Quite often, it is very difficult to see the gap in sensor measurements simply by going through technical specs. The graphic here will offer you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the SH-50 and FX580.

As you can tell, the two cameras have got the exact same sensor measurements albeit not the same megapixels. You can expect the Olympus SH-50 to produce more detail having its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop photographs much more aggressively. The newer SH-50 is going to have an advantage when it comes to sensor technology.