Olympus Stylus 500 Easy Camera Review

The Olympus Stylus 500 is primarily intended for the point-and-shooter with its 5 megapixels, automatically oriented functionality, and weatherproof body. This digital camera improves on the Olympus Stylus 410’s 4 megapixels for better resolution to make larger prints. The camera body does not have an optical viewfinder, but features a large 2.5-inch LCD screen instead. The Stylus 500 comes with a 3x optical zoom lens and a 32MB xD-Picture Card and retails for $349.99.

In our quality testing, the Olympus Stylus 500 did not depict colors as accurately as we hoped, but it did perform well in resolution tests. So while you should be able to get large prints from the Stylus 500, don’t expect fabulous colors.

The design of this Olympus isn’t anything to write home about. It features a standard silver rectilinear body that lacks unique features or style to distinguish it from generic lower priced point-and-shoot digital cameras. The Stylus 500’s control buttons are small and cramped on the back of the camera, due to the large 2.5-inch LCD screen. The screen has 215,000 pixels on it, which is quite impressive. Many compact digital cameras that include a large screen are shortchanging users with its resolution, so it’s nice to see the excellent combination of large size and great picture quality.

The Olympus Stylus 500 does not have many manual controls, as it aims for the automatic crowd. You can choose the white balance mode – although there is no manual mode – and ISO and exposure compensation. If you’re looking for control of the shutter speed and aperture, the Olympus Stylus 800 could be a good option. The 500 model has 20 scene modes as well as a simple all-purpose automatic mode. Perhaps the most unique feature on this camera is its picture effects mode, which has standard color effects like Black & White, but also has interesting effects like Fish-eye Lens. There is also a movie mode, but its resolution and frame rates are somewhat disappointing. It shoots at either 320 x 240 or 160 x 120 at 15 frames per second. Video clips don’t look very smooth and the audio doesn’t sound great either.

The speed of the Stylus 500 is something to write home about. It started up and took its first shot in 2.13 seconds, which is quite fast for a compact point-and-shoot. The digital camera also took 1.5 frames per second, which is decent; however, more and more compacts are offering 2-3 fps. For example, the Kodak EasyShare C340 can take 3 frames a second. There is a slight amount of shutter lag in the Olympus Stylus 500 of 0.24 seconds.

In a fairly uninteresting camera body, the Olympus Stylus 500 has fairly uninteresting – and mostly automatic – features. This model has a few flaws: small controls, an average burst mode, and an overall lack of style. However, many point-and-shooters will find several desired features on the Stylus 500 too. With 20 scene modes and 5 megapixels, this digital camera can easily produce large prints. A 2.5-inch LCD screen with 215,000 pixels provides a smooth and clear view of the scene or captured picture. The all-weather Olympus 500 retails for about $350, but can be found online for a hundred bucks less.

Olympus Stylus 500- THE BOTTOM LINE.... Rating: 292.71

Likes

- Abundance of scene modes - Nice 2.5-inch LCD - All-weather body - Good solid feel - Fish-eye and other picture effects - Calendar playback function

Dislikes

- Advanced manual available on CD-ROM only - Non-intuitive album function - Small buttons - Weak flash - Mundane exterior body - Poor audio in movie mode

Olympus Stylus 500 Compared to the...

Olympus Stylus 800 Rating:	Kodak EasyShare C340 Rating:	Nikon Coolpix 5600 Rating: 254.42	Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T33 Rating:	Olympus Stylus 410 Rating:291.37
Better	Better	Better	Better	Better
- 8.0 MP CCD - "bright capture" in low light - 24 preset shooting modes - max. image resolution - Larger ISO range to 1600 - Adjustable aperture range - Larger shutter speed range - Internal help guide for users - Shutter Speed priority mode - 4-way control, easier to handle	- Sleek and clean design - Retails for less online - Optical viewfinder - Well spaced controls - 20 fps in movie mode - Multi and Center AF modes - Slightly lighter - Larger shutter speed range - Higher resolution Movie Mode	- D-lighting in camera for underexposed images - Lighter weight - Optical viewfinder - Larger shutter speed range - Lower online retail price - Manual preset white balance - In-camera cropping - Onscreen framing guides for preset modes - Image res in movie mode	- Unique build and external design - Higher resolution movie mode - External control layout and spacing - Carl Zeiss lens - 30 fps frame rate in movie - Slim 0.75 inch frame - 5 step manual focus preset - Lighter weight	- Lower Price - Optical viewfinder - Better color results, colors aren't under-saturated - Great Auto ISO noise test results - Well spaced and minimal external control setup
Equal	Equal	Equal	Equal	Equal
- Minimal and condensed external control - Panorama mode - 2.5-inch, 215,000 pixel LCD - 3x optical zoom - All weather construction - NO viewfinder - EV Compensation range - Comparable size - PictBridge compliant - 32MB memory included	- Well placed microphone - 5 MP CCD - 3x optical zoom - EV Compensation mode - No manual white balance - Comparable manual ISO settings - Similar body size - Easier direct print mode - Audio capture - ImageLink printer compatibility	- Panorama mode - 3x optical zoom lens - 5.1 MP CCD - Under developed movie mode settings - EV Compensation - Similar body size - Burst mode - Standard body design - No manual focus settings - Frame rate in movie mode	- 5.1 MP CCD - 2.5-inch LCD screen - 3x optical zoom lens - PictBridge compliant for direct printing - audio recording - EV Comp scale - No viewfinder - No manual white balance mode - No aperture or shutter priority modes - 32MB memory included	- All weather construction - PictBridge printing compatibility - 3x optical zoom - QuickTime movie - Shutter speed range - Limited movie mode settings - White balance settings - Comparable frame size - Flash position - Simple and straightforward menu design - EV Comp. scale - Auto aperture and shutter only - 32MB included memory
Worse	Worse	Worse	Worse	Worse
- Microphone placement near fingers - Body has a heavier weight - Higher price range	- Smaller 1.6-inch LCD - 13 Preset scene modes  - Center-weighted exposure mode only - 16MB internal memory included	- 16 preset scene modes - 1.8-inch LCD screen  - 14.5MB included memory - Poor ISO setting potential - Poor microphone placement near buttons - No all weather seal - Cluttered labels for external controls - Flash operation is time consuming and limiting	- Higher online retail price - 9 scene modes - Smaller ISO range - No manual white balance - Smaller automatic shutter speed range	- 10 preset shooting modes - 4 MP CCD  - Auto ISO only - 1.5-inch LCD screen - 66% usage of 4 MPs=low res. quality - Cheesy camera design - Slow start to first shot times - Pull-back lens cover