Olympus SP-600 UZ vs Pentax K-500

The following is a extended overview of the Olympus SP-600 UZ vs Pentax K-500, former is a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by companies Olympus and Pentax. There is a considerable difference among the image resolutions of the SP-600 UZ (12MP) and K-500 (16MP) and the SP-600 UZ (1/2.3") and K-500 (APS-C) have totally different sensor size.

Photography Glossary

The SP-600 UZ was manufactured 4 years prior to the K-500 which is a fairly large difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus SP-600 UZ being a Compact camera and the Pentax K-500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving into a detailed comparison, here is a brief highlight of how the SP-600 UZ scores against the K-500 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

This is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus SP-600 UZ & Pentax K-500. The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus SP-600 UZ Gallery & Pentax K-500 Gallery.

In case you're going to travel with your camera frequently, you need to take into account its weight and proportions. The Olympus SP-600 UZ provides physical measurements of 110mm x 90mm x 91mm (4.3" x 3.5" x 3.6") accompanied by a weight of 455 grams (1.00 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-500 has measurements of 130mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") accompanied by a weight of 646 grams (1.42 lbs).

Look at the Olympus SP-600 UZ vs Pentax K-500 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you choose at that time. Here is a front view physical size comparison of the SP-600 UZ versus the K-500.

Looking at size and weight, the portability grade of the SP-600 UZ and K-500 is 69 and 64 respectively.

Usually, it's difficult to see the contrast in sensor dimensions only by viewing a spec sheet. The picture below will offer you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the SP-600 UZ and K-500.

As you can see, both the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The SP-600 UZ because of its smaller sensor will make getting shallow depth of field trickier and the Pentax K-500 will result in more detail due to its extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also help you crop pics a bit more aggressively. The more aged SP-600 UZ will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.