Testseek.com have collected 30 expert reviews of the Olympus SP-500 Ultra Zoom and the average rating is 73%. Scroll down and see all reviews for Olympus SP-500 Ultra Zoom.
(73%)
30 Reviews
Average score from experts who have reviewed this product.
Compact size; 10x optical zoom; full manual capability; supports RAW format shooting.
No optical image stabilization; no diopter adjuster for the electronic viewfinder; meager internal memory; lackluster performance.
The SP-500 UZ is an average prosumer camera which wont break your arms carrying it. But there are other models out there with better features, performance and image quality.
A very capable camera apart from the image stabilisation omission. If you can, try before you buy and take a few handheld photos at top zoom. If they don't come out sharp, you'll need a camera with image stabilisation to compensate for shake...
Very good exposure / metering
Very good colour
Excellent Macro mode
Abundance of features, RAW mode, bulb mode, time-lapse photography.
Abundance of picture adjustments, both before photo and after photo is taken - Sharpness, Saturation, Contrast, etc
...
Advanced manual is on CD
Low screen resolution (115k pixels)
Slightly slow focusing / occassionally misses focus at telephoto in dark conditions
Low resolution video mode compared to the competition
Lacks image stabilisation, causing more likelihood of...
The Olympus SP-500 Ultra Zoom is an appealing digital camera, it feels very comfortable in hand, and produces very pleasing (saturated) colours, with generally low noise. The screen and electronic viewfinder let the camera down due to the screens low r...
This well-priced model has a long zoom lens that will suit beginners and casual photographers who want to get close to the action. Shame it doesnt offer anti-shake, but the overall model is so good that you can do without. Richard Baguley ...
Abstract: The biggest thing about the Olympus SP-500 Ultra Zoom is the lens: it’s an impressive 10x model that is significantly longer than those on most point-&-shoot cameras. However, it has no type of image stabilization, so this long zoom can be a mixed b...
Ultra-zoom cameras are becoming increasingly popular and its easy to see why. All that magnifying power in a compact means youve got everything you need to hand. No swapping lenses or wishing you had a longer zoom.Historically, ultra-zoom cameras hav...
Abstract: I like the Olympus SP-500. It has a good feature set and feels good in the hand. Compared to other similar digital cameras it has a very reasonable price.
10X zoom lens, good photo quality, good mix of beginner and intermediate features, good response times
EVF wont appeal to everyone, LCD could be sharper, camera shake can be a problem
Olympus has given photographers a hybrid between ultra-thin digital cameras and large 35mm-type models with its SP-500 UltraZoom. At 2.8 inches in thickness, the SP-500 UZ isnt going to fit in a pocket like an ultra-thin digital camera, but it is thi...
Abstract: While the SP-500 is not a poor camera, it certainly does nothing to distinguish itself. As an ultra-zoom camera it definitely lacks image stabilization which limits the use of its otherwise good lens. Even though the Olympus SP-500 produces sharp ima...
Abstract: The new Olympus SP-500UZ is a small and feature filled ‘pro-sumer’ 6 mega-pixel digital camera. The camera is light weight but sturdy and still has a good balance and feel in the photographers hands.Although the camera is compact, it still has...
