Canon 170 IS vs Panasonic FZ150

Its time to look a little more closely at the Canon 170 IS vs Panasonic FZ150, one is a Ultracompact and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by companies Canon and Panasonic. There exists a sizeable gap between the image resolutions of the 170 IS (20MP) and FZ150 (12MP) but they possess the same exact sensor sizing (1/2.3").

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The 170 IS was manufactured 2 years after the FZ150 which is quite a large gap as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras offer different body type with the Canon 170 IS being a Ultracompact camera and the Panasonic FZ150 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before getting in to a detailed comparison, below is a quick highlight of how the 170 IS grades against the FZ150 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Canon PowerShot ELPH 170 IS and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150. The entire galleries are viewable at Canon 170 IS Gallery and Panasonic FZ150 Gallery.

For anybody who is looking to carry around your camera frequently, you are going to need to think about its weight and size. The Canon 170 IS offers physical dimensions of 100mm x 58mm x 23mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.9") having a weight of 141 grams (0.31 lbs) whilst the Panasonic FZ150 has specifications of 124mm x 82mm x 92mm (4.9" x 3.2" x 3.6") with a weight of 528 grams (1.16 lbs).

Check out the Canon 170 IS vs Panasonic FZ150 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you select at that time. Below is the front view proportions comparison of the 170 IS against the FZ150.

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the 170 IS and FZ150 is 95 and 67 respectively.

Quite often, its tough to picture the contrast between sensor sizes just by reading through a spec sheet. The picture below may provide you a greater sense of the sensor dimensions in the 170 IS and FZ150.

As you can see, the 2 cameras offer the same exact sensor sizing but different MP. You should anticipate the Canon 170 IS to give you more detail due to its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop pics a little more aggressively. The younger 170 IS should have an edge when it comes to sensor innovation.