Olympus E-500

Review summary: This review has been completed using a production-level EVOLT E-500. Product photos have been reshot where necessary and all sample photos are from the production camera.

Pros: Excellent photo quality (though see issue below) ; Great value ; Well designed, attractive body (unlike the E-300) ; doesn't feel cheap ; Dust reduction system ; All the expandability you'd expect from a D-SLR ; hot shoe for external flash ; Large LCD ...

Cons: Images a bit noisier than competition at high ISOs ; some jaggies ; Startup time is slower than other D-SLRs due to dust reduction system ; Burst mode could be better ; Only three focus points ; No battery grip available ; No LCD info display on top ...

Verdict: As is the case with all D-SLRs, Olympus does not include a memory card with the E-500, so you'll have to factor that into the total purchase price. The camera supports both xD and CompactFlash memory cards, though you'll get the most capacity out of ...

Review summary: The Olympus E-500 is a DSLR (digital single lens reflex) camera and I was sent it with a couple of lenses, the first a macro lens great for those close ups and the send a more general 14-45mm offering.

Verdict: Perhaps a camera those who come from a 35mm background would fall in love with, mainly because they are used to making decisions that the modern digital photographer either does not make or does not have to make. However the 'Auto' mode is there but ...

Review summary: The Olympus EVOLT E-500 is Olympus's entry-level 4:3-formatted digital SLR. The 8-megapixel body alone sells online for $550 (its retail price hovers at $799). With the standard 14-45mm kit lens, it's still less than $600, giving many super-zoom all ...

Pros: Beautiful LCD ; Body is rugged ; Easy to hold securely ; Flexible white balance tuning ; Good owner's manual

Cons: Noisy images, poor resolution ; Only one control dial ; Confusing, long menus ; Poor autofocus ; Cheap lens

Verdict: The Olympus EVOLT E-500 is a contender among entry-level DSLRs. Its price, its LCD, and some aspects of its imaging performance put it in the running. Like the less-expensive cameras, it has drawbacks - it's slow, like nearly all of them. It comes ...

Review summary: The E-500 looks like the camera the E-300 should have been all along

Pros: Easy and pleasant to use, Surprisingly free of fringing , Good definition levels, A classy build

Cons: Sluggish manual focus, Inferior high ISO performance

Verdict: If you want to retain some shadow or highlight detail in these areas, you'll need to apply a degree of exposure compensation first. For example, to just retain detail in a bright sky, you might set the EV compensation to -0.3EV or -0.7EV before using ...