Olympus SP-500

552 reviews

Apr, 2024

Positive
usability (217)
image quality (128)
performance (125)
zoom (117)
portability (100)

Negative
stabilizer (40)
viewfinder (14)
shutter (11)
low-light (7)
storage (2)

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 552 reviews of Olympus SP-500. The average rating for this product is 4.2/5, compared to an average rating of 4.3/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras for all reviews. Reviewers really like the portability and zoom. The performance and image quality also get good feedback. There are some mixed views about the focus. There are some negative reviews about the storage and low light performance.

usability, image quality, performance, zoom, portability

stabilizer , viewfinder, shutter, low-light, storage

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other Digital Compact Cameras the Olympus SP-500 is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 87/100 = Very good quality.

See all Olympus Digital Cameras

Review analysis

(Based on 552 reviews)

Expert Reviews

User Reviews

Review Ratings

(46% of reviews)
Show all 5 star reviews (36% of reviews)
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Show all 2 star reviews (3% of reviews)
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Features

usability
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image quality
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performance
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zoom
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portability
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Showing 334 review(s)

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Showing 1 - 242 of 334 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (211)

Consumer review (amazon.co.uk)

Amazon.co.uk review summary for Olympus SP-500

alaTest has collected and analyzed 34 user reviews of Olympus SP-500 from Amazon.co.uk. The average user rating for this product is 4.3/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.3/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras on Amazon.co.uk. Reviewers are impressed by the portability and price. The performance and image quality are also appreciated, whereas many are critical about the viewfinder and durability. There are some mixed views about the low light performance and shutter.

usability, image quality, performance, price, portability

stabilizer , durability, viewfinder

91% of the reviews on Amazon.co.uk give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for Olympus SP-500

alaTest has collected and analyzed 198 user reviews of Olympus SP-500 from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 4.1/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.2/5 for other Digital Compact Cameras on Amazon.com. People really like the portability and price. The zoom and performance also get good reviews. Some have doubts about the low light performance and focus, and there are some mixed views about the shutter and image quality.

usability, performance, zoom, price, portability

stabilizer , focus, low-light

88% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Expert review by : tech.co.uk staff (techradar.com)

Olympus SP500 UltraZoom review

Is the new budget ultra-zoom model from Olympus any good?

Solid all-rounder

Lacking those extras

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.

Feb, 2006

Partner Source

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Expert review by : Richard Baguley (techadvisor.co.uk)

Olympus SP-500 UltraZoom

The biggest thing about the Olympus SP-500 UltraZoom is the lens: it's an impressive 10X model that is significantly longer than those on most point-and-shoot cameras. However, it has no type of image stabilisation, so this long zoom can be a mixed...

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 doesn't offer anti-shake, but the overall model is so good that you can do without.

Feb, 2006

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Expert review by (megapixel.net (en))

Olympus SP-500 UZ

Very good image quality.Excellent colour rendition.Big 10X optical zoom.Very good lens.Complete set of shooting modes.RAW format.Compact and light to carry.Large 2.5-inch LCD monitor.High definition EVF.

No optical stabilization.Poorly designed viewfinder eyecup and no diopter correction.EVF refresh rate lower than monitor's.RAW format needs better software support.

Nov, 2005

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Expert review by (digicamreview.co.uk)

Olympus SP-500 Ultra Zoom

Announced on the 29th of August 05, the Olympus SP-500 Ultra Zoom is a new 6 megapixel digital camera with a 10x optical zoom ED lens. The cameras 10x optical zoom lens is equiv. 38-380mm on a 35mm camera. The Olympus SP-500 is available from around...

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,...

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...

Mar, 2006

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Expert review by : Richard Baguley (digitalartsonline.co.uk)

SP-500 Ultra Zoom

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...

Low cost. Long zoom lens. Good colour reproduction.

No image stabilization. Low resolution. Blurring at long zoom.

Colours are impressively reproduced, and the camera accurately exposed the images. We did see some slight distortion when using the zoom lens at its widest settings, and the photos also looked rather soft. With a long zoom and no stabilization, details...

Feb, 2006

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Expert review by (photoxels.com)

Olympus SP-500 UZ Review

The Olympus SP-500 starts up in about 2 sec. and there is no practical shutter lag at the wide-angle end. At full tele, AF can sometimes take about 2 sec. to lock, depending on your subject. An extra large 2.5 in. LCD makes it easy to view and compose...

Jan, 2006

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Expert review by (cameras.co.uk)

Olympus SP-500

Olympus SP 500 Review. This is a super zoom digital camera. It has six megapixels and a ten times zoom lens. As well as the long lens there are a selection of more advanced features.

Design and style ; Overall picture quality ; Menu help ; Value for money

No optical image stabilisation

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.

Jan, 2006

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Expert review by (dcmag.co.uk)

Olympus SP500UZ

Ultra-zoom cameras are increasing in popularity and with all that magnifying power in a compact it is easy to see why. The colour reproduction is excellent and the images are sharp. The absense of an image stabiliser is noticable, however this is a very c

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Expert review by : Tim Caddick (thinkcamera.com)

Review: Olympus SP-500 Ultra Zoom

An easy to use 6 mega-pixel camera with plenty of features and advanced modes

10x Zoom (38-380mm in 35mm equivalent) ; 21 different scene modes

10 mb internal memory ; Feels light and plastic

In summary, the SP500-UZ is one of those that allows users to dig further into creative photography with plenty of features and a whopping 35 mm equivalent 380mm lens. Easy to use, even in the advanced modes, the overall build and output is excellent;...

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Expert review by : What Digital Camera Magazine (whatdigitalcamera.com)