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Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500

Portability
88
Imaging
41
Features
51
Overall
45
Olympus Stylus SH-2 front
 
Pentax K-500 front
Portability
64
Imaging
58
Features
70
Overall
62

Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 Key Specs

Olympus SH-2
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 271g - 109 x 63 x 42mm
  • Released March 2015
  • Succeeded the Olympus SH-1
  • Replacement is Olympus SH-3
Pentax K-500
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 51600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/6000s Maximum Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 646g - 130 x 97 x 71mm
  • Revealed November 2013
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Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 Overview

Below, we are comparing the Olympus SH-2 versus Pentax K-500, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by companies Olympus and Pentax. The image resolution of the SH-2 (16MP) and the K-500 (16MP) is very comparable but the SH-2 (1/2.3") and K-500 (APS-C) come with totally different sensor sizes.

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The SH-2 was released 16 months later than the K-500 making the cameras a generation apart from one another. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus SH-2 being a Compact camera and the Pentax K-500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before going in to a full comparison, below is a concise summary of how the SH-2 grades versus the K-500 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Photography Glossary
	
	

Reasons to pick Olympus SH-2 over the Pentax K-500

 SH-2 K-500 
RevealedMarch 2015November 2013Fresher by 16 months
Touch display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax K-500 over the Olympus SH-2

 K-500 SH-2 
Manually focus Very accurate focusing
Display resolution921k460kClearer display (+461k dot)

Common features in the Olympus SH-2 and Pentax K-500

 SH-2 K-500 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Display dimension3"3"Identical display dimensions
Selfie screen Neither offers selfie screen

Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 Physical Comparison

In case you're looking to carry your camera, you should think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus SH-2 offers external measurements of 109mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 271 grams (0.60 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-500 has measurements of 130mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") having a weight of 646 grams (1.42 lbs).

Examine the Olympus SH-2 versus Pentax K-500 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you are utilising at the time. Below is the front view scale comparison of the SH-2 and the K-500.

Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SH-2 and K-500 is 88 and 64 respectively.

Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it is very tough to envision the gap in sensor sizing purely by going through specifications. The visual below will help provide you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the SH-2 and K-500.

Plainly, the 2 cameras have got the exact same megapixel count but not the same sensor sizing. The SH-2 includes the smaller sensor which is going to make getting shallow DOF more challenging. The fresher SH-2 is going to have an advantage with regard to sensor tech.

Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 sensor size comparison

Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SH-2 Portrait photography info
Pentax K-500 Portrait photography info
44
good resolution (16MP)
features face detection focusing
saves RAW files
no manual focus
external flash not possible
small sensor size (1/2.3")
74
manual focus
decent MP (16MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
comes with face detection focus
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus SH-2 Street photography details
Pentax K-500 Street photography details
70
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
saves RAW files
supports focus by touch
lighter than others (271g)
fixed screen
small sensor size (1/2.3")
68
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
saves RAW files
above average high ISO (51,600)
no articulating screen
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SH-2 Sports photography details
Pentax K-500 Sports photography details
51
great zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
features tracking autofocus
better than average battery (380 CIPA)
no shutter priority
small sensor size (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect AF
72
max shutter speed is good (1/6,000 seconds)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
comes with tracking autofocus
good battery (710 shots)
supports phase detect auto focus
slow frames per second (6.0 fps)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SH-2 Travel photography features
Pentax K-500 Travel photography features
74
better than average battery (380 CIPA)
lighter than others (271g)
supports focus by touch
good resolution (16MP)
flash built-in
quite wide (25mm)
great zoom (600mm)
display isn't selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.0)
67
good battery (710 shots)
decent MP (16 megapixels)
flash built-in
screen isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SH-2 Landscape photography features
Pentax K-500 Landscape photography features
55
quite wide (25mm)
nice screen size (3 inch)
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good resolution (16 megapixels)
saves RAW files
better than average battery (380 CIPA)
no manual focus
lens is fixed (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
79
manual focus
swap lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
nice screen size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent MP (16MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
above average high ISO (51,600)
saves RAW files
good battery (710 CIPA)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SH-2 Vlogging details
Pentax K-500 Vlogging details
35
quite wide (25mm)
touch screen
has image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
features face detection focusing
great video quality (1920 x 1080 pxls)
lighter than others (271g)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
display isn't selfie friendly
does not have external microphone jack
30
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detection focus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
screen isn't selfie friendly
does not have external mic socket
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Olympus SH-2 vs Pentax K-500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SH-2 and Pentax K-500
 Olympus Stylus SH-2Pentax K-500
General Information
Brand Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus Stylus SH-2 Pentax K-500
Class Small Sensor Superzoom Entry-Level DSLR
Released 2015-03-11 2013-11-27
Physical type Compact Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic VII PRIME M
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 23.7 x 15.7mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 372.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 16MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2
Maximum resolution 4608 x 3456 4928 x 3264
Maximum native ISO 6400 51600
Lowest native ISO 125 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points - 11
Cross focus points - 9
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens Pentax KAF2
Lens focal range 25-600mm (24.0x) -
Maximum aperture f/3.0-6.9 -
Macro focus distance 3cm -
Number of lenses - 151
Crop factor 5.8 1.5
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 460 thousand dots 921 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Screen technology - TFT LCD monitor with brightness/color adjustment and AR coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.61x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 30 seconds 30 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/2000 seconds 1/6000 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 11.5 frames/s 6.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 8.30 m (at ISO 3200) 12.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash settings Auto, redeye reduction, fill-in, off Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Sync, Slow Sync+Redeye, Trailing Curtain Sync, Wireless
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize - 1/180 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60p, 30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (30,25,24 fps), 1280 x 720 (60,50,30,25,24 fps), 640 x 424 (30,25,24 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video format H.264 MPEG-4, H.264
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None Optional
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 271 gr (0.60 pounds) 646 gr (1.42 pounds)
Dimensions 109 x 63 x 42mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.7") 130 x 97 x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 79
DXO Color Depth score not tested 23.7
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 13.1
DXO Low light score not tested 1087
Other
Battery life 380 images 710 images
Battery type Battery Pack AA
Battery model LI-92B 4 x AA
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, custom) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD, SDHC, SDXC, Internal Memory SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots 1 1
Price at launch $399 $600