Canon ELPH 510 HS vs Panasonic LZ20

Let's look a little more in depth at the Canon ELPH 510 HS and Panasonic LZ20, both Small Sensor Superzoom cameras by competitors Canon and Panasonic. There is a sizeable difference among the image resolutions of the ELPH 510 HS (12MP) and LZ20 (16MP) but both cameras posses the same sensor dimensions (1/2.3").

Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

The ELPH 510 HS was manufactured 4 months earlier than the LZ20 so they are both of a similar generation. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Canon ELPH 510 HS being a Compact camera and the Panasonic LZ20 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before delving right into a detailed comparison, here is a short synopsis of how the ELPH 510 HS grades versus the LZ20 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Below is a sample of the gallery pictures for Canon ELPH 510 HS and Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ20. The entire galleries are viewable at Canon ELPH 510 HS Gallery and Panasonic LZ20 Gallery.

For anybody who is looking to carry your camera frequently, you will have to factor in its weight and volume. The Canon ELPH 510 HS features outer dimensions of 99mm x 59mm x 22mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.9") with a weight of 206 grams (0.45 lbs) whilst the Panasonic LZ20 has sizing of 120mm x 76mm x 80mm (4.7" x 3.0" x 3.1") and a weight of 499 grams (1.10 lbs).

See the Canon ELPH 510 HS and Panasonic LZ20 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you have at that moment. Underneath is a front view measurement comparison of the ELPH 510 HS versus the LZ20.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the ELPH 510 HS and LZ20 is 93 and 71 respectively.

Oftentimes, it is very hard to imagine the gap in sensor sizing purely by viewing a spec sheet. The visual here will help give you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the ELPH 510 HS and LZ20.

Clearly, both of these cameras provide the same sensor dimensions but different megapixels. You should anticipate the Panasonic LZ20 to render extra detail due to its extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop images more aggressively.