Olympus SP-100 vs Sony A500

Its time to look a bit more closely at the Olympus SP-100 vs Sony A500, former is a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Sony. There exists a substantial gap between the resolutions of the SP-100 (16MP) and A500 (12MP) and the SP-100 (1/2.3") and A500 (APS-C) provide different sensor measurements.

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The SP-100 was announced 4 years after the A500 which is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus SP-100 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Sony A500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving straight to a thorough comparison, here is a short view of how the SP-100 matches up versus the A500 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus Stylus SP-100 & Sony Alpha DSLR-A500. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus SP-100 Gallery & Sony A500 Gallery.

For those who are looking to travel with your camera often, you will want to consider its weight and volume. The Olympus SP-100 comes with physical dimensions of 122mm x 91mm x 133mm (4.8" x 3.6" x 5.2") and a weight of 594 grams (1.31 lbs) and the Sony A500 has sizing of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") and a weight of 630 grams (1.39 lbs).

Examine the Olympus SP-100 vs Sony A500 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you have at that time. The following is a front view measurement comparison of the SP-100 vs the A500.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the SP-100 and A500 is 63 and 63 respectively.

Quite often, it is tough to imagine the gap between sensor dimensions just by looking at specifications. The image below might provide you a greater sense of the sensor dimensions in the SP-100 and A500.

Plainly, both of those cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The SP-100 having a tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF tougher and the Olympus SP-100 will give extra detail with its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also help you crop shots more aggressively. The younger SP-100 provides an edge when it comes to sensor technology.