Olympus E-500 versus Olympus E-600

The Olympus Evolt E-500 and the Olympus E-600 are two digital cameras that were revealed to the public, respectively, in September 2005 and August 2009. Both are DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) cameras that are equipped with a Four Thirds sensor. The E-500 has a resolution of 8 megapixel, whereas the E-600 provides 12.2 MP. Read on to find out how these two cameras compare with respect to their size, their sensors, their features, and their reception by expert reviewers.

Body comparison: Olympus E-500 vs Olympus E-600

The side-by-side display below illustrates the physical size and weight of the Olympus E-500 and the Olympus E-600. Three consecutive views from the front, the top, and the rear side are shown. All width, height and depth measures are rounded to the nearest millimeter. You can also use the toggle button to switch to a percentage comparison if you prefer that the measures are being expressed in relative terms (in this case, the camera on the left – the E-500 – represents the basis or 100 percent across all the size and weight measures).

If the front view area (width x height) of the cameras is taken as an aggregate measure of their size, the Olympus E-600 is somewhat smaller (1 percent) than the Olympus E-500. However, the E-600 is markedly heavier (12 percent) than the E-500. In this context, it is worth noting that neither the E-500 nor the E-600 are weather-sealed.

The above size and weight comparisons are to some extent incomplete since they do not consider the interchangeable lenses that both of these cameras require. In this particular case, both cameras feature the same lens mount, so that they can use the same lenses. You can find an overview of suitable optics in the Four Thirds Lens Catalog.

Concerning battery life, the E-500 gets 750 shots out of its BLM-1 battery, while the E-600 can take 500 images on a single charge of its BLS-1 power pack.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the two cameras alongside a broader set of comparators. If you want to switch the focus of the display and review another camera pair, just select a new right or left comparator from among the camera models in the table. Alternatively, you can also move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible camera comparisons there.

Camera Body Specifications

	Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life (CIPA)	Weather Sealing (yes/no)	Camera Launch (announced)	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price (USD)	Used Price (USD)	Camera Model
	Olympus E-500»	5.1 in	3.7 in	2.6 in	16.9 oz	750	n	Sep 2005	599	-		Olympus E-500
	Olympus E-600«	5.1 in	3.7 in	2.4 in	18.9 oz	500	n	Aug 2009	449	-		Olympus E-600
	Leica Digilux 3« »	5.7 in	3.4 in	3.0 in	21.4 oz	750	n	Sep 2006	1,499	-		Leica Digilux 3
	Olympus E-620« »	5.1 in	3.7 in	2.4 in	18.4 oz	500	n	Feb 2009	699	-		Olympus E-620
	Olympus E-450« »	5.1 in	3.6 in	2.1 in	15.5 oz	500	n	Mar 2009	499	-		Olympus E-450
	Olympus E-420« »	5.1 in	3.6 in	2.1 in	15.5 oz	500	n	Mar 2008	599	-		Olympus E-420
	Olympus E-520« »	5.4 in	3.6 in	2.7 in	18.9 oz	750	n	May 2008	699	-		Olympus E-520
	Olympus E-30« »	5.6 in	4.3 in	3.0 in	24.7 oz	750	n	Nov 2008	1,299	-		Olympus E-30
	Olympus E-410« »	5.1 in	3.6 in	2.1 in	15.3 oz	500	n	Mar 2007	699	-		Olympus E-410
	Olympus E-510« »	5.4 in	3.6 in	2.7 in	19.0 oz	750	n	Mar 2007	799	-		Olympus E-510
	Olympus E-330« »	5.5 in	3.4 in	2.8 in	22.5 oz	750	n	Jan 2006	999	-		Olympus E-330
	Olympus E-400« »	5.1 in	3.6 in	2.1 in	15.3 oz	500	n	Sep 2006	699	-		Olympus E-400
	Olympus E-300« »	5.8 in	3.3 in	2.5 in	22.0 oz	750	n	Sep 2004	799	-		Olympus E-300
	Panasonic L10« »	5.3 in	3.8 in	3.1 in	19.6 oz	450	n	Aug 2007	599	-		Panasonic L10
	Panasonic L1« »	5.7 in	3.4 in	2.5 in	21.4 oz	750	n	Feb 2006	999	-		Panasonic L1
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The price is, of course, an important factor in any camera decision. The listed launch prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The E-600 was launched at a somewhat lower price (by 25 percent) than the E-500, which makes it more attractive for photographers on a tight budget. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Sensor comparison: Olympus E-500 vs Olympus E-600

The size of the sensor inside a digital camera is one of the key determinants of image quality. A large sensor will generally have larger individual pixels that offer better low-light sensitivity, provide wider dynamic range, and have richer color depth than smaller pixels in a sensor of the same technological generation. Further, a large sensor camera will give the photographer additional creative options when using shallow depth-of-field to isolate a subject from its background. On the downside, larger sensors tend to be more expensive and lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

Both cameras under consideration feature a Four Thirds sensor and have a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 2.0. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the review cameras among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability. Both cameras feature a native aspect ratio (sensor width to sensor height) of 4:3.

While the two cameras under review share the same sensor size, the E-600 offers a higher resolution of 12.2 megapixel, compared with 8 MP of the E-500. This megapixel advantage translates into a 24 percent gain in linear resolution. On the other hand, these sensor specs imply that the E-600 has a higher pixel density and a smaller size of the individual pixel (with a pixel pitch of 4.29μm versus 5.30μm for the E-500). However, it should be noted that the E-600 is much more recent (by 3 years and 11 months) than the E-500, and its sensor will have benefitted from technological advances during this time that compensate for the smaller pixel size.

Since 2007, DXO Mark has published sensor performance measurements that have been derived using a consistent methodology. This service assesses and scores the color depth ("DXO Portrait"), dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports") of camera sensors, and also publishes an overall camera score. The adjacent table reports on the physical sensor characteristics and the outcomes of the DXO sensor quality tests for a sample of comparator-cameras.

Feature comparison: Olympus E-500 vs Olympus E-600

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. The E-500 and the E-600 are similar in the sense that both have an optical viewfinder. The latter is useful for getting a clear image for framing even in brightly lit environments. The table below summarizes some of the other core capabilities of the Olympus E-500 and Olympus E-600 in connection with corresponding information for a sample of similar cameras. If needed, the dpreview camera hub, for example, contains further detail on the cameras' specs.

Both the E-500 and the E-600 have been discontinued, but can regularly be found used on eBay. The E-500 was replaced by the Olympus E-510, while the E-600 does not have a direct successor.

Review summary: Olympus E-500 vs Olympus E-600

So what conclusions can be drawn? Is the Olympus E-500 better than the Olympus E-600 or vice versa? Below is a summary of the relative strengths of each of the two contestants.

Reasons to prefer the Olympus Evolt E-500:

• Less heavy: Is lighter (by 56g or 10 percent) and hence easier to carry around.
• Longer lasting: Can take more shots (750 versus 500) on a single battery charge.
• More heavily discounted: Has been available for much longer (launched in September 2005).

Advantages of the Olympus E-600:

• More detail: Has more megapixels (12.2 vs 8MP), which boosts linear resolution by 24%.
• Larger screen: Has a bigger rear LCD (2.7" vs 2.5") for image review and settings control.
• More flexible LCD: Has swivel screen for odd-angle shots in portrait or landscape orientation.
• Faster burst: Shoots at higher frequency (4 vs 2.5 flaps/sec) to capture the decisive moment.
• Sharper images: Has stabilization technology build-in to reduce the impact of hand-shake.
• More affordable: Was released into a lower priced segment (25 percent cheaper at launch).
• More modern: Reflects 3 years and 11 months of technical progress since the E-500 launch.

If the count of individual advantages (bullet points above) is taken as a guide, the E-600 is the clear winner of the contest (7 : 3 points). However, the pertinence of the various camera strengths will differ across photographers, so that you might want to weigh individual camera traits according to their importance for your own imaging needs before making a camera decision.

In any case, while the comparison of the spec-sheets of cameras can offer a general idea of their imaging potential, it remains partial and cannot reveal, for example, the handling experience and imaging performance when actually working with the E-500 or the E-600. At times, user reviews, such as those published at amazon, address these issues in a useful manner, but such feedback is on many occasions incomplete, inconsistent, and unreliable. This is why hands-on reviews by experts are important. The table below summarizes the assessments of some of the best known camera review sites (cameralabs, dpreview, ephotozine, imaging-resource, photographyblog). You can find the full text of the reviews by clicking on the site logo in the table header.

Review Scores

	Camera Model						Camera Launch (announced)	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price (USD)	Used Price (USD)	Camera Model
	Olympus E-500»	76/100	HiRec	-	-	-	Sep 2005	599	-		Olympus E-500
	Olympus E-600«	-	-	-	-	4.5/5	Aug 2009	449	-		Olympus E-600
	Leica Digilux 3« »	-	-	-	-	-	Sep 2006	1,499	-		Leica Digilux 3
	Olympus E-620« »	88/100	72/100	4.5/5	rev	5/5	Feb 2009	699	-		Olympus E-620
	Olympus E-450« »	-	-	4/5	-	4/5	Mar 2009	499	-		Olympus E-450
	Olympus E-420« »	85/100	HiRec	4/5	rev	4.5/5	Mar 2008	599	-		Olympus E-420
	Olympus E-520« »	87/100	HiRec	4.5/5	4/5	4.5/5	May 2008	699	-		Olympus E-520
	Olympus E-30« »	-	71/100	4.5/5	-	4/5	Nov 2008	1,299	-		Olympus E-30
	Olympus E-410« »	86/100	HiRec	4/5	rev	4.5/5	Mar 2007	699	-		Olympus E-410
	Olympus E-510« »	89/100	HiRec	3.5/5	rev	4.5/5	Mar 2007	799	-		Olympus E-510
	Olympus E-330« »	-	Rec	rev	3.5/5	-	Jan 2006	999	-		Olympus E-330
	Olympus E-400« »	85/100	-	4/5	-	4/5	Sep 2006	699	-		Olympus E-400
	Olympus E-300« »	-	Rec	rev	rev	4.5/5	Sep 2004	799	-		Olympus E-300
	Panasonic L10« »	85/100	Rec	3.5/5	rev	4/5	Aug 2007	599	-		Panasonic L10
	Panasonic L1« »	85/100	Rec	-	rev	3.5/5	Feb 2006	999	-		Panasonic L1

The above review scores should be interpreted with care, though. The assessments were made in relation to similar cameras of the same technological generation. Thus, a score needs to be put into the context of the launch date and the launch price of the camera, and rating-comparisons among cameras that span long time periods or concern very differently equipped models make little sense. It should also be noted that some of the review sites have over time altered the way they render their verdicts.

Other camera comparisons

Did this review help to inform your camera decision process? If you would like to see a different side-by-side camera review, just make a corresponding selection in the search boxes below. An an alternative, you can also directly jump to any one of the listed comparisons that were previously generated by the CAM-parator tool. If you do not see the camera that you are looking for, please send me an email, and I will try to locate and add the respective data to the application.

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