Sony Alpha a500 review
Review Date : Fri, 29 Jan 2010
Author : Mike Lowe
- Product Shots: Sony Alpha a500 product shots
The Sony a500 is the a550's similar cousin, but does what it offers warrant its place in the Alpha range? The What Digital Camera Sony a500 review...
| Pros: | Long battery life, tilt LCD, AF live view, all-black finish |
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| Cons: | Value vs a550, noisy AF with kit lens, dual card access, no video |
As part of its plans for world domination of DSLR sales, Sony has assured its place in the market not only by delivering quality, but delivering en masse too. With the sturdily built Alpha A700 now out of production, the A500 and A550 are the next-closest offerings from the Sony camp. But with the two models released simultaneously, what exactly separates the a500 from the a550? The What Digital Camera Sony Alpha a500 review takes a look...
Sony Alpha a500 vs a550 review
The A500 is the younger brother of the A550.
As such it's not quite as ‘mature', and a number of features differ, making it the more low-spec of the two. The sensor is a less resolute 12.3MP that offers a smaller maximum output size. However, the very same APS-C sized CMOS technology and BIONZ engine is used to full effect as per the A550. The LCD on the A500's rear still follows the A550's tilt mechanism, but is a lower resolution 230k-dot affair - more like the resolution found on compact cameras. Continuous shooting doesn't include the ‘Speed Priority' of the A550, although the
A500 is still capable of the same 5fps burst mode, or 4fps in live view. The main difference, though, is that the buffer is not able to process as much information as quickly, with less than half the capacity meaning you'll likely find burst shooting clogs up the camera quicker. All these differences would make sense for a more entry-level purchaser with a tighter budget, but - and it's really quite the big but on this occasion - the street prices aren't really all that far apart.
Sony Alpha a500 vs a550 comparison table
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Verdict
The street price between the A500 and A550 kit options only differs by up to about £100. They’re very similar pieces of kit, and the small amount of extra money needed for the A550 from many retailers seems to render the A500 a touch outclassed. As a standalone camera the A500 is certainly a good bit of kit, but it’s tough to justify its presence in the market, especially considering the new a450's recent appearance. What Sony could have done with is a tougher-bodied, beefed-up version of the A550, rather than the subtle step down that is the a500 - though that's likely to come later this year in the form of the A700 replacement.
Have your say!
Latest comments
April 03 09:53
D
Currently available for only £400 (after cashback), the A500 is a cracking camera with lots of features & more importantly is faster than any of it's similar priced competitors & produces excellent results, why go for an A500 & not an A550?; £100 cheaper, longer battery life, better noise control, smaller file sizes etc,etc oh and the A700's replacement, if you can afford an A550 the chances are you'll probably be able to buy an A750. When taken on it's own merits the A500 represents excellent value for money, £400 will buy you a 5fps d-slr with onboard anti-shake, tiltable lcd & the best live view system on the market & that's just for starters. dcviews.com has several A500 reviews, which all sing the A500's praises.