Canon EOS
500D
 vs
Canon EOS
5D Mark II

Updated (February, 2011): Compare the Canon EOS 1100D vs Canon EOS 5D Mark II

Canon EOS 5D Mark II

94
"In addition the adoption of high precision split-level alignment of the magnesium-alloy external covers, high precision dial construction and external rubber grip covers, has improved the camera's dust and water resistance."
dpreview.com | talking about the 5D Mark II's build-quality
"The original 5D was the first 'affordable' and lightweight full frame camera, and set a standard for low noise at high ISO settings that remains competitive three years later."
dpreview.com | talking about the 5D Mark II's iso-noise

Reasons to buy the Canon EOS 5D Mark II

Low light performance
 Low noise at high ISO
1,815 ISO
Overall image quality
 Great image quality
79.0
Color depth
 Great color depth
23.7 bits
Viewfinder size
 Large viewfinder
0.71x
True resolution
 High true resolution
21 MP
Weather sealed
 Weather sealed
Shoot in extreme weather
Canon EOS 500D

68
Runner-up

Canon EOS 500D

Reasons to buy the Canon EOS 500D

Startup delay
 Almost no delay when powering up
300 ms startup delay
Shutter lag
 Barely any delay taking photos
159 ms shutter lag
Size
 Really small
Prosumer size 129x98x62 mm
Sensor cleaning
 Self cleaning sensor
Avoids dust in your photos
Badge
 Built-in focus motor
Autofocuses with more lenses
Thickness
 Thin
2.4"

differences

Advantages of the Canon 500D
Lens availability More lenses available 162 lenses vs 125 lenses
Help
 Around 30% more lenses available
Size Significantly smaller 129x98x62 mm vs 152x114x75 mm
Help
 Around 40% smaller
Shutter lag Less shutter lag 159 ms vs 206 ms
Help
 More than 20% less delay when taking photos
Startup delay Less startup delay 300 ms vs 400 ms
Help
 Around 30% less delay when turning on
Thickness Significantly thinner 2.4" vs 3"
Help
 Around 20% thinner
Weight Significantly lighter 520 g vs 850 g
Help
 Around 40% lighter
Built-in flash Built-in flash Yes vs No
Help
 A built-in flash is useful for taking indoor shots where there is little light
Lowest price Cheaper $599.00 vs $2,160.00
Help
 The best price we've seen is $1,561 cheaper (3.6x less)
Canon EOS 500D Learn more about
the Canon 500D

Advantages of the Canon 5D Mark II
Low light performance Much lower noise at high ISO 1,815 ISO vs 663 ISO
Help
 The 5D Mark II has excellent image quality 1.5 f-stops higher ISO than the 500D
Overall image quality Much better image quality 79.0 vs 63.0
Help
 Around 30% better image quality
Color depth Better color depth 23.7 bits vs 21.7 bits
Help
 Distinguishes 2 more bits of color
Viewfinder size Much larger viewfinder 0.71x vs 0.54x
Help
 More than 70% larger viewfinder
Sensor size Much larger sensor Full frame 36.0x24.0mm vs APS-C 22.3x14.9mm
Help
 More than 2.5x larger sensor
External mic jack Has an external mic jack Yes vs No
Help
 Record high quality audio with an external microphone
Supports 24p Supports 24p Yes vs No
Help
 Get that real film feel
Weather sealed Weather sealed Yes vs No
Help
 Sealed to shoot in the rain
Dynamic range More dynamic range 11.9 EV vs 11.5 EV
Help
 0.4 f-stops more dynamic range
True resolution Significantly higher true resolution 21 MP vs 15.1 MP
Help
 Capture around 40% more detail in your photos
Viewfinder Has a pentaprism viewfinder Pentaprism vs Pentamirror
Help
 Pentaprism viewfinders are typically brighter
Viewfinder coverage Significantly better viewfinder coverage 98% vs 95%
Help
 Almost the same
Battery life Longer battery life 850 shots vs 400 shots
Help
 More than 2x more shots per battery charge
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 6,400 ISO vs 3,200 ISO
Help
 The 5D Mark II's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better
Fastest shutter speed Much faster max shutter speed 1/8000s vs 1/4000s
Help
 2x faster max shutter speed
Continuous shooting Shoots slightly faster 3.9 fps vs 3.4 fps
Help
 More than 10% faster continuous shooting
Light sensitivity (boost) Better boost ISO 25,600 ISO vs 12,800 ISO
Help
 The 5D Mark II's boost ISO is 1 f-stop better
Canon EOS 5D Mark II Learn more about
the Canon 5D Mark II
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent DSLRs, and ignoring price

Canon EOS 500D Canon EOS 500D
68 vs 94
Explain scores
Canon EOS 5D Mark II Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon EOS 5D Mark II. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a entry-level DSLR with a pro DSLR.

performance Which camera has better performance? Cast your vote!

CanonEOS 500D
 Canon EOS 500D vs Canon EOS 5D Mark II
CanonEOS 5D Mark II
Uses Travel score Travel
On holiday or vacation
23
10
Vote Vote
Sports score Sports
Fast action, sometimes indoors
20
11
Vote Vote
Features Color accuracy Color accuracy
White balance in varied lighting
19
11
Vote Vote
Autofocus peformance Still image focusing
Speed and accuracy
19
11
Vote Vote
Autofocus performance Video focusing
Speed and accuracy
18
12
Vote Vote
Manual controls Manual settings
How quickly and easily you can change settings
19
12
Vote Vote
Build quality Build quality
Is it sturdy, well made, plastic or metal
19
13
Vote Vote
Green arrow Join in the discussion below!

similarities

Compared to recent DSLRs

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Movie format Full HD (1080p) video Help
500D:1080p @ 20fps
5D Mark II:1080p @ 30fps
Screen resolution High resolution screens Help
920k dots
Startup delay Minimal startup delay Help
500D:300 ms
5D Mark II:400 ms
Storage slots Fewer storage slots Help
1
HDR Neither has in-camera HDR Help
You could do HDR manually
Screen flips out No flip-out screens Help
Less flexible
Cross type focus points Few cross-type focus points Help
1
Focus points Few focus points Help
9
Continuous shooting Slow continuous shooting Help
500D:3.4 fps
5D Mark II:3.9 fps
Autofocus No video autofocus Help
Manual focus only
Image stabilization No image stabilization Help
Risk of blur
Panorama Neither camera stitches together panoramas Help
You could stitch photos in post
3D Neither camera can take 3D photos Help
No 3d support

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon EOS 7D

Canon EOS 7D

Pro DSLR

$1,329 - $1,821 body only

$1,498 - $1,800 with 28-135mm lens
Continuous shooting Shoots faster continuously
Focus points Has slightly more focus points
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is significantly heavier
Compare the EOS 7D vs the EOS 500D
Compare the EOS 7D vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EOS 550D

Canon EOS 550D

Entry-level DSLR

$664 - $932 body only

$763 - $964 with 18-55mm lens
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Shutter lag Has slightly more shutter lag
Compare the EOS 550D vs the EOS 500D
Compare the EOS 550D vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Nikon D7000

Nikon D7000

Entry-level DSLR

$1,097 body only

$1,227 with 55-200mm lens
Dynamic range Has slightly wider dynamic range
Continuous shooting Shoots faster continuously
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the D7000 vs the EOS 500D
Compare the D7000 vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EOS 600D

Canon EOS 600D

Entry-level DSLR

$860 - $1,018 body only

$922 - $1,045 with 18-55mm lens
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the EOS 600D vs the EOS 500D
Compare the EOS 600D vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EOS 60D

Canon EOS 60D

Pro DSLR

$879 - $1,304 body only

$1,139 - $1,342 with 18-135mm lens
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Cross type focus points Has slightly more cross-type focus points
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the EOS 60D vs the EOS 500D
Compare the EOS 60D vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Nikon D5100

Nikon D5100

Entry-level DSLR

$650 - $749 body only

$600 - $750 with 18-55mm lens
Dynamic range Has slightly wider dynamic range
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the D5100 vs the EOS 500D
Compare the D5100 vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Nikon D90

Nikon D90

Entry-level DSLR

$849 - $897 body only

$1,099 - $1,200 with 18-105mm lens
Dynamic range Has slightly wider dynamic range
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the D90 vs the EOS 500D
Compare the D90 vs the EOS 5D Mark II

Canon EOS 500D Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon EOS 1100D

Canon EOS 1100D

Entry-level DSLR

$484 - $559 body only

$572 - $659 with 18-55mm lens
Color depth Better color depth
Low light performance Slightly lower noise at high ISO
Screen resolution Much lower resolution screen
Screen size Significantly smaller screen
Compare the EOS 1100D vs the EOS 500D
Nikon D3100

Nikon D3100

Entry-level DSLR

$500 - $984 with 18-55mm lens
Color depth Better color depth
Low light performance Lower noise at high ISO
Screen resolution Much lower resolution screen
Shutter lag Significantly more shutter lag
Compare the D3100 vs the EOS 500D
Canon EOS 450D

Canon EOS 450D

Entry-level DSLR

$803 body only
Color depth Better color depth
Battery life Slightly longer battery life
Movie format Does not take movies
Screen resolution Much lower resolution screen
Compare the EOS 450D vs the EOS 500D
Nikon D5000

Nikon D5000

Entry-level DSLR

$750 - $997 with 18-55mm lens
Color depth Better color depth
Overall image quality Significantly better image quality
Screen resolution Much lower resolution screen
Screen size Significantly smaller screen
Compare the D5000 vs the EOS 500D

Canon EOS 5D Mark II Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Nikon D700

Nikon D700

Pro DSLR

$2,750 body only
Low light performance Lower noise at high ISO
Focus points Many more focus points
Movie format Does not take movies
True resolution Significantly lower true resolution
Compare the D700 vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV

Pro DSLR

$5,000 - $5,930 body only
Cross type focus points Many more cross-type focus points
Continuous shooting Shoots much faster
Low light performance More noise at high ISO
Overall image quality Worse image quality
Compare the EOS-1D Mark IV vs the EOS 5D Mark II

appearance

Canon EOS 500D Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EOS 500D Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EOS 500D Canon EOS 5D Mark II

Find similar cameras

Here are some links to help you find other cameras with similar features to both of these:

discussion Which do you think is better?

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