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Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500

Portability
88
Imaging
41
Features
51
Overall
45
Olympus Stylus SH-3 front
 
Sony Alpha DSLR-A500 front
Portability
63
Imaging
52
Features
52
Overall
52

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 Key Specs

Olympus SH-3
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 271g - 109 x 63 x 42mm
  • Announced February 2016
  • Older Model is Olympus SH-2
Sony A500
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 630g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Launched August 2009
  • Replacement is Sony A560
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Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 Overview

Here is a in depth analysis of the Olympus SH-3 versus Sony A500, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by competitors Olympus and Sony. There is a big difference among the sensor resolutions of the SH-3 (16MP) and A500 (12MP) and the SH-3 (1/2.3") and A500 (APS-C) come with totally different sensor sizes.

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The SH-3 was unveiled 6 years later than the A500 and that is a fairly big gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus SH-3 being a Compact camera and the Sony A500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving through a step-by-step comparison, below is a short summary of how the SH-3 scores vs the A500 for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SH-3 over the Sony A500

 SH-3 A500 
LaunchedFebruary 2016August 2009Fresher by 79 months
Display resolution460k230kSharper display (+230k dot)
Touch display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Sony A500 over the Olympus SH-3

 A500 SH-3 
Manually focus Very accurate focus
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display

Common features in the Olympus SH-3 and Sony A500

 SH-3 A500 
Display dimension3"3"Identical display dimensions
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 Physical Comparison

For those who are going to carry your camera regularly, you are going to need to think about its weight and size. The Olympus SH-3 enjoys outer 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) and the Sony A500 has specifications of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") accompanied by a weight of 630 grams (1.39 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus SH-3 versus Sony A500 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you are employing at the time. Underneath is the front view dimensions comparison of the SH-3 versus the A500.

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability score of the SH-3 and A500 is 88 and 63 respectively.

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 Sensor Comparison

In many cases, it is tough to visualise the contrast in sensor sizing only by viewing technical specs. The visual underneath will help offer you a better sense of the sensor sizing in the SH-3 and A500.

As you can tell, the two cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The SH-3 having a smaller sensor will make shooting bokeh trickier and the Olympus SH-3 will provide you with greater detail having an extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also enable you to crop photos somewhat more aggressively. The fresher SH-3 will have a benefit with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 sensor size comparison

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SH-3 Portrait photography features
Sony A500 Portrait photography features
44
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
offers face detection autofocus
supports RAW files
lack of manual focus
can't use external flash
very small sensor (1/2.3")
63
focusing manually
decent sensor size (APS-C)
provides face detection focus
exports RAW formats
low resolution sensor (12MP)
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Street Comparison

Olympus SH-3 Street photography info
Sony A500 Street photography info
70
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
supports RAW files
features touch to focus
lighter than competition (271 grams)
no moving screen
very small sensor (1/2.3")
74
has a tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SH-3 Sports photography information
Sony A500 Sports photography information
51
excellent zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (16 megapixels)
offers tracking autofocus
great battery pack (380 shots)
lack of shutter priority mode
very small sensor (1/2.3")
does not have phase detect autofocus
51
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports phase detect auto focus
continuous shooting slow (5.0 fps)
low resolution sensor (12MP)
low battery power (520 CIPA)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SH-3 as a Travel photography camera
Sony A500 as a Travel photography camera
74
great battery pack (380 shots)
lighter than competition (271g)
features touch to focus
good megapixels (16MP)
has built in flash
decently wide (25mm)
long zoom (600mm)
display isn't selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.0)
43
built-in flash
no Time Lapse function
low battery power (520 CIPA)
low resolution sensor (12MP)
screen is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SH-3 Landscape photography factors
Sony A500 Landscape photography factors
55
decently wide (25mm)
good sized screen (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
good megapixels (16MP)
supports RAW files
great battery pack (380 per charge)
lack of manual focus
cannot switch lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
60
focusing manually
change lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
decent sized screen (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
low resolution sensor (12 megapixels)
low battery power (520 per charge)
no Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SH-3 as a Vlogging camera
Sony A500 as a Vlogging camera
35
decently wide (25mm)
touchscreen functionality
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
offers face detection autofocus
high res video (3840 x 2160 pxls)
lighter than competition (271g)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
display isn't selfie friendly
doesn't have external microphone socket
9
no video shooting
Photography Glossary

Olympus SH-3 vs Sony A500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SH-3 and Sony A500
 Olympus Stylus SH-3Sony Alpha DSLR-A500
General Information
Company Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus Stylus SH-3 Sony Alpha DSLR-A500
Class Small Sensor Superzoom Entry-Level DSLR
Announced 2016-02-08 2009-08-27
Physical type Compact Compact SLR
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic VII Bionz
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" APS-C
Sensor dimensions 6.17 x 4.55mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4608 x 3456 4272 x 2848
Highest native ISO 6400 12800
Minimum native ISO 125 200
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points - 9
Lens
Lens support fixed lens Sony/Minolta Alpha
Lens zoom range 25-600mm (24.0x) -
Largest aperture f/3.0-6.9 -
Macro focusing range 3cm -
Number of lenses - 143
Focal length multiplier 5.8 1.5
Screen
Type of screen Fixed Type Tilting
Screen sizing 3 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 460 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Optical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder coverage - 95%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.53x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 30s 30s
Highest shutter speed 1/2000s 1/4000s
Continuous shooting rate 11.5 frames per sec 5.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 8.30 m (at ISO 3200) 12.00 m
Flash modes Auto, redeye reduction, fill-in, off Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize - 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 3840 x 2160 (15 fps), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) -
Highest video resolution 3840x2160 None
Video data format H.264 -
Mic support
Headphone support
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 sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 271 grams (0.60 lbs) 630 grams (1.39 lbs)
Dimensions 109 x 63 x 42mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.7") 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 64
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 21.8
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 11.6
DXO Low light rating not tested 772
Other
Battery life 380 images 520 images
Battery style Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID LI-92B NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD, SDHC, SDXC, Internal Memory SD/ SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots 1 1
Pricing at launch $579 $638